It’s 164 miles from Harpers Ferry to Natural Bridge, Virginia, just a few hours drive. We arrived easily and set up the camper, then toured the new campground. It was raining when we arrived, so I set up the awning, pulled up a chair and a glass of wine, and relaxed in the rain – it’s one of my favorite things. The soft sounds, the cool air – it’s beautiful and relaxing. Really, we don’t spend enough time just enjoying the rain. In normal life, it’s always hustling to the next thing, upset that our clothes are wet, and are those papers in our bag going to be safe? RV-ing has made me slow down and reminded me to appreciate the little things.
Our first full day in Natural Bridge was a camper day – I needed to wrap up some work things, and M had some schoolwork to complete. However, we did have a great night – we roasted hot dogs for dinner. Having discovered we were out of ketchup, M went camper to camper begging to borrow some, and we ended up inviting over the occupants of three nearby campers for s’mores over our campfire. We had some great conversations – surprisingly, out of the six people who came over, five were from Pennsylvania!
Our second day, though, is when we set out to explore.
Natural Bridge, Virginia
Natural Bridge is a state park and historic landmark, aptly named because the limestone naturally formed a ‘bridge – 215 feet high and 90 feet to cross. Supposedly, George Washington surveyed the area in the mid-1700s, then Thomas Jefferson purchased the land in 1774 from King George III, building a small log cabin to use as a retreat. The area became a major tourist attraction to visiting Europeans in the 1800s and has even been noted in famous literature, including Moby Dick. In 2013, the plot of land – almost 1500 acres – came up for auction, and rather than risk it being broken into lots and developed, Virginia turned it into a state park.
Natural Bridge State Park
We started our day of exploration with a hearty breakfast at IHOP, then took a short drive through Lexington before heading to Natural Bridge State Park. We did some hiking – it really is impressive to look at, and we wanted to take advantage of the beautiful weather. During the hike, we met some nice people, encountered some snakes – including a water moccasin – and even saw some river otters! By the time we were done, we were pleasantly tired, so we headed back to the RV and settled for frozen dinners and relaxation. I definitely recommend making a short stop at Natural Bridge and doing the hike – it’s not particularly difficult, and we thoroughly enjoyed it.
The Rooms Where It Happened
M is a huge Hamilton fan (who isn’t?). It was only natural for us to visit Monticello – it’s ninety minutes from Natural Bridge, so accessible as a day trip. Considering how much driving we already do during RV trips, we don’t typically go so far for a day, but I didn’t have to tow the camper at least, and we knew it would be worth it.
It was! The house is gorgeous with about 75% of the original furniture, a lot of educational displays (we like to learn on the road), and our tour guide was very knowledgeable. While I did fine in my history classes, it’s been…a few years, and I didn’t remember much, so it was very informative for me as well. We saw the graveyard where President Jefferson was buried, the slave quarters, and the grounds. We grabbed a small lunch at Monticello, splitting a plate of macaroni and cheese – which was delicious.
That evening, we stopped at Melting Pot for dinner (hence, the small lunch!), and as always, it was a perfect treat. Our waitress, Cam, was phenomenal, the food was fantastic as always, and we got to relax, chat, and reminisce.
