Paw Paw

Following a semi-traditional Thanksgiving of roasted pork instead of turkey, our family journeyed to the property late on Friday.

On Saturday our seven year-old committed to climbing Cacapon Mountain and invited me along.  We parked on Power House Road and entered the woods at power line easement.  For more than an hour we hiked, climbed, and clawed our way up the 800 foot incline.  At the halfway mark we stopped near five large power poles to split a Cliff bar and rest.  The scenery was wonderful, offering a view of the town of Cacapon to the west and the Potomac river basin to the east.  The trip was made even more enjoyable by the handheld radio which allowed us to talk with mommy and brother every thirty minutes.  Wisely we agreed to save the other cereal bar, just in case, and to descend without going up and further. We will be back to conquer the rest of the mountain!

Seldom do I have an opportunity to drink fresh rainwater from naturally occuring falls, yet this weekend I did it twice in two days.  At the end of our hike we discovered an outcropping of rocks at the trail head with a small seasonal waterfall where we refilled our Nalgene bottle.  The second time would be on Sunday.

After the hike we skunked around the railroad tracks near the green bridge, then radioed "base camp" to see if they wanted us to bring chicken wings from the deli.  Naturally that offer received an affirmative response.

On Sunday we made a spontaneous journey to the Paw Paw Tunnel, an historic attraction some thirty minutes away, by car.  The 3,100 foot tunnel, which was built by hand around 1840, allowed boats to circumnavigate the Potomac River before it was made obsolete in the 1920s.   The walk is a unique experience through the near pitch black passage with only light at the end for what seems like an eternity.  On the far side we heated Beef Stew using the backpacking stove.  The fact that we had only one spoon made the two servings seem more than adequate for the four of us.  (I nearly fell over when our four year-old ate all his peas and carrots, and said it was the best meal he'd ever had!)

Before walking back through the tunnel we filled our Nalgene bottle again, this time with rainwater that exited the woods down the rock face above the tunnel.

The rest of the weekend was spent in a sort of relaxing fashion.  The boys flew paper parachutes and helicopters from the loft.  We cracked butternuts, baked bread, fried fish, shared mean bean soup, and drank "mountain dew" rainwater tea.  Mommy said she felt as though she were convalescing at an independent living facility.  I guess that is the point, afterall.