Some weekends, all you want is a quick, relaxing getaway to a familiar place. Not pushing any vehicular limits (VOT…) or braving some obscene weather conditions (read: Overland Expo East…). Becca and I managed to escape one early September weekend for just this kind of excursion in the midst of a million other things going on.
We decided in Friday night that we both were game for a quick overnighter somewhere in the backcountry. Both of us were pretty burnt out from the work week didn’t much feel like undertaking the research to try to uncover completely new areas to explore. So we decided to just keep it familiar and head to a place we know we like, and where there’s at least a couple great campsite options for the night – George Washington National Forest.
Loaded and Ready to Ditch Suburbia!
After some errands Saturday AM it was a quick 2-hour shot West on 66, South on 81, and West on 33 to get into George Washington NF. Time to air down the tires and kick into 4-hi! We snaked up Long Run Road until we got to the top of the Ridge. We found that someone else had beat us to a favorite camping spot of ours, so we had to think about alternatives in the area. I remembered several good ones from a snow-wheeling adventure the past winter, but couldn’t remember exactly where they were. Even so, I had a directional hunch.
Shooting off on a lesser-traveled (but still mapped and legal) FS road, Becca and I rolled up one of the spots I remembered – a medium-sized raised clearing with a good balance of wind block from tress, but still enough of a break to glimpse the sunset. Home for the night!
It was a good, quick getaway, getting set up, finding firewood, making dinner – focusing on the simple things without the distractions of home and work. After a great afternoon/evening, we packed it up in the AM and made it back home in time for a bunch of Sunday afternoon commitments – feeling like slightly refreshed, better versions of ourselves for having made the time to get to the woods!
It’s been several weeks now since tent was last set up, and I’m hopeful we’ll get in at least 1 more GWNF trip before the REALLY cold weather hits!
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