Enter the gateway to the Shenandoah Valley and Step back into Berryville, VA a
Brigadoon 1950ish town -- Berryville, playground of the horsey set, ladies and
gentlemen abound -- it's no wonder that Clarke County, in the Shenandoah
Valley Virginia about 55 minuets west of D.C., is truly the gentry’s hidden
secret and a large diamond to be found by the true elite traveler. From
Revolution war hero Daniel Morgan’s Plantation Saratoga and other King Carter
legacy of beautiful plantations, historic mills and chapels, Civil war battles
by General Early at Cool Spring to award winning winery, 5 star restaurant and
those humbling Blue Ridge views. Here are ten ideas to fill a B’Ville weekend.
For more, contact Veramar Vineyard at 540-955-5510 or www.veramar.com
1 Bears Den
- Start at the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains Route 7, Byrd Highway and 601
at Bears Den with a short hike up the hill to look in the great Shenandoah
Valley that is Clarke County and beyond. Nestled within the Blue Ridge
Mountains, overlooking the Shenandoah Valley, lies historical Bears Den Lodge.
Once a summer home for Washington physician Huron Lawson and his wife, opera
singer, Francesca Kaspar, Bears Den is an enchanting stone lodge reminiscent
of a European castle. Built in 1933 by local stonemasons, this 20-bed hostel
is complete with turrets and tower. Once used as Francesca's recital hall, a
magnificent stone fireplace graces the large common room.
2 Veramar Vineyard
- Take route 7, Byrd Highway, west over the mountain and a crossed the river
and turn Left on Rt 612, Quarry Road to 905 Veramar Vineyard. Sit on Veramar’s
Fountain Courtyard; drink in the views and the wine of your choice. Veramar
Vineyard is situated on a private 100-acre estate in the heart of Virginia
hunt county, less than one hour from the Washington D.C., at the base of the
Blue Ridge mountains along the Shenandoah River. A small, family-run vineyard
dedicated to producing naturally dry, full-bodied wines. www.veramar.com
3 Historic Downtown
Berryville - Leave
Veramar Vineyard continue on Route 7 west to 7 business via Downtown
Berryville to Rose Hill Park and sit on the park benches for a snack or lunch
while viewing the colorful trees in town.
Berryville's downtown is characterized by a sense of community shared by its
many proprietors. Walk along Main Street and do your banking, get a haircut,
pick up the local newspaper, grab a delicious lunch, and take home a bouquet
of flowers...all while enjoying the friendly hometown atmosphere. Next at the
center of Berryville, turn south on route 340 Lord Fairfax Highway continue to
route 255, Bishop Mead Highway, to a Historic Stone Chapel.
4 Carter Hall
Project Hope - On
toward Millwood, and the stunning foliage at Carter Hall home of Project Hope,
as you approach Millwood. Since the late 1970’s, Project HOPE has been
headquartered on the grounds of what was once the Carter Hall plantation, now
comprised of over 200 acres of beautiful countryside in the small town of
Millwood, Virginia. Though the property is the site of HOPE’s day-to-day
business activities, it is also a treasured, historic landmark of 18th century
America, consisting of a manor home built in 1792 and its dependencies.
5 The Burwell-Morgan
Mill - Moving in to
Millwood . The Burwell-Morgan Mill, established in 1785, is the oldest
operable merchant mill in the Shenandoah Valley. In the mid-nineteenth century
the mill operated twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, processing more
than sixty thousand bushels of wheat per year. The community of Millwood grew
around this commercial center as related businesses were established, and by
way of the seaports at Alexandria and Baltimore, mill products were shipped
abroad.
6 Historic Long
Branch - Continue on
route 255, Bishop Mead Highway, Cross over route 50, Highway continue to Route
624, Red Gate Road and proceed 1/2 mile to Long Branch Lane at Historic Long
Branch. Long Branch was built around 1805 by Robert Carter Burwell, a member
of a group of descendants of Tidewater tobacco planters who moved to the
Shenandoah Valley at the end of the eighteenth century. Settling on land
granted to them in 1730 by an ancestor, Robert 'King" Carter, they built large
and well-appointed houses and raised tobacco and wheat with slave labor. This
new plantation society revolved around the village of Millwood, with its
store, blacksmith's shop and gristmill. At Long Branch for more than six
decades, Sheila Macqueen has possessed a passion for flowers - - and more
importantly, she has been able to teach and inspire others to appreciate and
utilize flowers to beautify homes, inside and out, around the world. In an
effort to honor Mrs.
Macqueen's remarkable contributions to the field of horticulture and flower
arranging, her legion of fans have banded together to install a permanent
tribute at Long Branch - - the only living tribute to Sheila Macqneen that has
ever been created
7 State Arboretum of
Virginia At Blandy Experimental Farm
- Return down Long Branch Lane and Red Gate road to Route 50. Turn left West
on Route 50 to Next on to State Arboretum of Virginia. At Blandy Experimental
Farm about a ½ mile on your left. The 170-acre State Arboretum of Virginia is
part of the 700-acre Blandy Experimental Farm. Graham Blandy left the property
to the University of Virginia in 1926, stipulating that it be named "Blandy
Experimental Farm" and that it be used "to teach boys about farming."
Orland E. White was hired in 1927 as the first director of Blandy Experimental
Farm. Upon his retirement in 1955, the property was named the Orland E. White
Arboretum. Today, Blandy Experimental Farm is a research facility for UVA, and
women as well as men learn about environmental science. Graduate and
undergraduate students stay in the Quarters and assist faculty with ongoing
research into habitat fragmentation, small mammal population dynamics, insect
herbivory, and plant pollination systems.
8 L'Auberge
Provençale - Travel
west on route 50 about one mike, turn left on 340 south toward White Post.
Discover the feeling of a true inn of the South of France, at L'Auberge
Provençale in White Post, Virginia. While at 5 star restaurant and Inn
L'Auberge Provençale, travel the backroads of beautiful Clarke County, nestled
in the Shenandoah Valley framed by the rolling Blue Ridge Mountains. Enjoy
Visiting Vineyards like Veramar Vineyard in Clarke County or antiquing,
horseback riding, hiking, biking, golfing, canoeing, or ballooning, or simply
wile away the day on a spacious porch with a glass of wine, enjoying the
simpler pleasures: respite from the otherwise hectic world.
9 Holly Cross Abbey
– Turn north on route 340 back toward Berryville.
Continue on route 340 Lord Fairfax Highway back to Berryville. At Route 7 turn
right heading back east past Veramar Vineyard. Before you cross Smiley Bridge
at the Shenandoah River, turn left on Route 603 (Castleman's Rd) to
901 Cool Spring Lane. Holy Cross Abbey is a monastery of the Cistercian Order
of the Strict Observance (Trappists) sheltered by the Blue Ridge Mountains in
the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Cistercians dedicate their lives to seeking
God according to the sixth-century Rule of Saint Benedict, living the vows of
obedience, stability, and conversion of life in the monastic School for the
Lord's Service. Take a Fruit Cake with you.
Fruitcake from the Trappist Monks for those who appreciate quality products,
made from an old fashioned recipe, using choice fruits and nut meats in a
brandy-laced batter.
10 Virginia National
Golf Club - Back to
route 7, cross the bridge and turn left on private entrance 1400 Parker Lane
to golf course. The property has it all—incredible mountain scenery, wildlife,
the river, and a pretty nice golf course. Virginia National Golf Club at the
Battleground of Cool Springs is one of Virginia's premier golf courses. This
extraordinary course is set between the scenic Shenandoah River and the Blue
Ridge Mountains. Its three miles of unobstructed river vistas and great golf.
Most accommodations are 'booked
up' during the fall leaf viewing season. If you haven't made your hotel/motel reservations yet we
have included access to an on-line hotel reservation system for your convenience.
contributed by
Jim Bogaty
owner: Veramar Vinyard
