Country Roads, Take Me Home

"Country roads, take me home, to the place I belong, West Virginia, mountain mama, take me home, country roads." (John Denver)

Welcome back to my blog! As I said in the last post, we were going to be "coming around the mountain" and we did! We might not have gotten to West Virginia, but a place a little closer to home. I'd like to introduce, Front Royal, Virginia. This mountainous place is home to about roughly 14,425 people according to the U.S census, and was originally founded in 1754. As you can see below, it is a mountain town with plenty to offer their residents and travelers alike! We are going to be looking at the natural wonders of Front Royal, shopping, and dining options.

The Natural Wonders of Front Royal

As you can see below, Front Royal has many different options when it comes to their natural beauty. Our first stop was actually right on the side of the road as I was entering Front Royal. You can see the beautiful mountains and fall foliage in the background, plus Front Royal is also a farmer's paradise for growing crops.

Our second stop was along the Appalachian trail! Front Royal is known for their hiking trails as well as their more experienced hikes along several of their famous mountain trails. Below are a few pictures of a creek that runs through the Appalachian trail. Now, I would recommend someone going with you, if this is your first time going hiking (like mine was)

and to help you navigate where everything is, to make sure that you don't get lost.

Our third spot was at a beautiful park right on the Shenandoah River called Eastham Park. This public park has a variety of walking trails, a boating and fishing area, plus an area for people to sit and eat. I had gorgeous views of the river that I could get lost in, and I was tempted to sit on a few benches all afternoon but I had more places to visit. This is a great spot for families, and for nature lovers alike. When looking closer at the water, I was able to find small mollusks and clams, so if you are interested in seeing nature up close and personal, this is a great place to visit!

Our fourth and final spot was entering the George Washington National Forrest. It stretches along the Blue Ridge Parkway and is part of Virginia and West Virginia. They have several spots for camping, fishing, hiking, biking, and other amenities. Also, the part that I was able to drive through, it connected the Shenandoah National Park to the the George Washington National Forrest, which made the scenery even better. Below is picture of creek running through the forest, and at the time, had a few trout wading through! Here is a video of what the park has to offer.

Shopping Options

Earlier in the day, I was able to stop off at downtown Front Royal, and take a look around at a few of their shops. Since this is a mountainous town, they have a lot of hiking and outdoors shops to keep their customers happy. They have several small businesses ranging from hiking and outdoors shops, to antiques, restaurants, and other places of business. The first shop that I stepped into was an Antique shop called Downtown Market. They had a menagerie of items to choose from, such as homemade jewelry, local honey, paintings, and they even had a small shop in the back where you can paint your own pottery! I personally got a small pair of feather earrings, and they are beautiful.

The second shop that I stepped into was more along the lines of hiking and outdoors types, it was called Mountain Trails. They have everything that a outdoors person or hiker could want. They had sleeping bags, harnesses, clothing, food stuffs, and everything was high quality. Now, I'm not an avid hiker or outdoors person, but I was looking around for something for my cousin for Christmas, (she loves going hiking and I thought this might be a good place to look) and I found a few great items that she would want. At the end, I also bought a post card to remember my time in Front Royal.

Dining options

Front Royal has so many dining options to choose from, and they are all locally owned!

Our first spot was a place called Happy Creek Coffee and Tea, and they offer everything from homemade pastries, to brewing their own coffee and tea, and use local honey in their products! Below is a picture of an Iced Hibiscus Tea with local Gunter Honey. It was one of the best drinks I had ever had.

Our second spot was a local burger spot called Spelunker's where they cater to having the best frozen custard, cheeseburgers, and fries in the town. They change their frozen custard flavors weekly, so if you wanted to come back and try a new one every week, you could!

Finally, our last spot was right before I left, I stopped off at a place called The Apple House where they are known for their barbecue, and the best apple cider donuts in the town. They make their donuts fresh daily, and you could smell them right as you are entering the parking lot.

Thank you for exploring Front Royal with me! Next week we'll be going a little farther south, right on the border...