Lovely Loudoun

A few weeks ago now, I discovered that, really, this is the prettiest place I've ever lived. Not that there weren't lovely aspects to other places, and not that Ashburn itself is attractive at all, but Loudoun County, VA, is incredibly picturesque.

I went for a drive one Saturday, just wandering along various by-ways without any destination in mind, and after I got out of Leesburg, turn after turn was just beautiful. I wasn't in the best mood when I started out, but after I headed up U.S. 15, the rolling countryside started to soften my mind. And then I came upon the Point of Rocks Bridge. (photos not mine)



While the reflection off the Potomac is beautiful, this picture doesn't even begin to capture what it's like to drive across this bridge. The blue metal framework creates an open tunnel, with the sensation of a vanishing point pulling you forward while a brilliant blue sky flashes between the baby blue struts. At the end of the tunnel, deep green foothills. To the right or left, sparkling water. I could have driven back and forth over this bride dozens of times.

But I did turn off to see what else was around. As I drove through Lovettsville and Lucketts, I passed farms that were the epitome of bucolic. Little valleys surrounded by vibrantly colored hills, 150-plus-year-old farmhouses everywhere. As I curved along the winding, scenic highways, I pulled up behind a coiled bale of hay, the top of the tractor hauling it just barely visible. I had no where to go, no timeline, and momentarily though of just puttering along behind it, but my modern mind couldn't quite slow down enough.

Further along, I came to the German Reformed Cemetery in Lovettsville. Rows upon rows of granite headstones lined the yard, many of the inscriptions completely worn away by the elements to nothing more than a rough surface colored by lichen. A crumbling silo loomed in a field just beyond the stone fence. Butterflies danced over the puddles in the gravel drive, fluttering in orange, yellow and white over the gray.

My drive also included a quick glimpse of Hillsboro, a beautiful little town studded with stone houses going back a couple hundred years. (The town is also surrounded by wineries and theoretically tourists, but there are surprisingly no good overall photos online.) At some point I missed my turn and wound up in West Virginia, which only added to my good mood. Three states in less than three hours.

A couple weeks later, the whole family spontaneously headed out to Sky Meadows State Park, technically just west in Fauquier County. We had no idea what to expect other than a no-doubt pretty view of the Shenandoah region and some Colonial reenactors. The drive out along U.S. 50 was absolutely delightful. Once we came through Middleburg, I think we were all smiling. That town is ridiculously quaint, with countless antique shops, boutiques, restaurants, taverns and early 19th century buildings. I have to take my mother back. (Again, why are there no satisfying photos?) We had unknowingly entered Virginia Hunt Country. The road from there on out was lined by neat fences, many of them stone, encircling acres upon acres of horse pastures. Signs invited you to Saturday polo matches. A neat little sign proclaiming the name of its farm was stationed at the end of each drive. The fields were as green as the gobs of money that no doubt supported them. Upperville was also lovely, but the lack of commerce of any kind definitely let us know we were out of our league. Here's the wee library.



Sky Meadows was surprisingly a lot of fun. Totally laid back, not what we expected, but fun. We spent an hour with the reenactors, who adored Abigail and let her eat their stew and biscuits, play their games, take home their corn and learn all about their sewing. They wouldn't let us leave. And then we spent another hour just wandering around the historic house's grounds and sitting on the porch. We never even hiked, though I'm sure we'll go back this fall. It was so relaxing.




And we haven't even touched Shenandoah National Park. I can't wait to see more of this area.