Two weeks exploring Baltimore MD and Washington DC…
The view while towing our home over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
Why we came…
To see our national monuments and museums and to spend time with good friends…
Liz and Bruce are thrilled to live in Maryland!
The campground…
The Fort Meade Famcamp was pretty nice. The sites were large with plenty of room between neighbors. All of the sites were paved and ours was level. Mature trees would block satellite in some spots, but our site was open so we had no problem. There was no wi-fi and cell phone was surprisingly erratic but mostly reliable. We didn’t use the bathroom and laundry facilities but they appeared to be well maintained. The location was good between Baltimore and Washington DC with public transportation available within a 5-10 minute drive. We liked being on Fort Meade with easy access to the PX and commissary and we felt safe. There was even a nice walking trail around the nearby Burba Lake. Our favorite thing about the location: we were just five minutes away from our good friends Bruce and Liz! In fact, we spent a bunch of time at their house eating, doing laundry, and hogging their wi-fi.
Initially, it was jarring to be awoken each morning by Reveille blasting through nearby speakers, along with Retreat and Taps in the evening. But it didn’t lake long to settle into our familiar military routine. The only negative about the campground were the homesteaders. About half of the campground was occupied by people that had obviously been there for awhile. Most of the homesteaders had plenty of junky sprawl and two vehicles squeezed into their sites. We watched a family of 7 and a half (baby on the way) move from one site to another in an obvious circumvention of the limited stay rules. Oh well, it’s not their fault the rules aren’t enforced. Regardless, we enjoyed our stay and would do it again.
A beautiful sunset over Burba Lake near the campground
Adventures…
On 17 October we hiked Sugarloaf Mountain with Bruce and Liz …
We wanted to get a little exercise and do a walk amongst fall colors so Bruce and Liz took us to Sugarloaf Mountain. It was chilly, cloudy, and a bit windy…a typical fall day. We headed up mid-morning on a Saturday and almost didn’t find a parking spot…the hundreds of spaces were full with people milling everywhere.
Lots of leaves covered the path making the footing a bit tricky on the rocky trail. Most of the people made the short but taxing climb to the top where they enjoyed the view, posed for pictures, and had fun. There were also a few rock climbers scaling the challenging vertical cliffs.
Immediately after we dropped off the backside of the peak to continue our nearly six mile loop, we left 95% of the people behind. It was quite peaceful and was a good workout. The changing fall colors were in the early stages but is was still pretty.
We were a bit whipped and hungry so we headed to a nearby Mexican restaurant. It was an excellent end to an excellent day!
Hike route around Sugarloaf Mountain / Bruce has conquered Sugarloaf!
Fall was in the air / Watch out Liz!
Great views from White Rocks
On 18 October Arleen had plans to meet an old friend in DC…
We had never experienced the area’s public transportation and were a bit intimidated and overwhelmed. Thankfully Bruce and Liz accompanied us to provide expert guidance on the Metro (train system). Though things went smoothly, I had minor panic attacks (a Graves Disease side effect) as the subway dipped below the ground. I was uncomfortable but still preferred the train over the drive and stress of finding a parking space adequate for our big truck.
The train process took longer than we expected, and we arrived at the meeting place nearly 45 minutes late. Arleen exchanged big hugs with her good friend, Lill, and everyone else was introduced. We all shared stories and a meal, walked a few blocks together, and then said goodbye to Lill and her husband, Raymond.
The four of us hopped back on the Metro and headed to the heart of DC…The Mall. It was my first time and my senses were overwhelmed by the sites and history. The Washington Memorial is over there…the Lincoln Memorial is over there…Congress is over there…the White House is over there…it was so much to take in all at once!
We enjoyed a nice stroll through some of the highlights in contemplative retrospection and took a few pictures as we went. It was a great and long overdue experience!
Lil and Arleen…first time they saw each other in 25 years! / Holding up the Washington Monument
The World War II Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial…See us on the left?
Great view from the Lincoln Memorial
The Vietnam Memorial
White House
On 21 October we toured the FBI building and National Museum of Natural History …
Andy, a good friend that we worked with in Germany, offered to take us on a tour of the FBI Building. This time we took the MARC into DC, exited at Union Station, and walked the rest of the way.
We learned some history of the building and quite a bit of history about the FBI. They have their own little museum that features their role in historic and high-profile cases. There is even original evidence from some of those investigations…it was very cool! Though we never saw the “X Files” type stuff (chuckle), we felt fortunate to see things that the public does not get to see. We shared a good lunch with Andy at a nearby café, and then headed to one of the museums.
Spanning from the time when we were young through our military careers in weather, we have been science geeks! Out of the multiple museums within walking distance, the one featuring “Natural History” was our obvious starting point.
The exhibits featured the ocean’s eco system, the earth’s atmospheric and oceanic patterns, insects and reptiles, American Wilderness photography, mummies, skeletons of many animals from the past and present, and a host of other things. We were surprised at the number of exhibits that had nothing to do with America (example: “Mud Masons of Mali”). I mistakenly thought our National museums focused more on our country. Regardless, it was all interesting and we liked the skeleton exhibit the most.
An interesting tour of the FBI Building with Andy
A few exhibits at the Natural History Museum
On 23 October we toured Camden Yards and Baltimore’s Inner Harbor…
Bruce is an avid fan of the Baltimore Orioles baseball team and is a proud season ticket holder. We are also baseball fans and gladly accepted his invitation to tour Camden Yards.
Our knowledgeable guide shared the history of the interesting stadium, told us stories of famous players, pointed out Babe Ruth’s childhood home at “St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys”, took us through the executive suites, and into the press box…it was all very interesting.
After an excellent lunch, we walked to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. The walk along the waterfront is very enjoyable…a Baltimore must-see! The pedestrian only area has a good selection of restaurants, touristy exhibits, a great view from the top of the World Trade Center, the National Aquarium, and other things to keep visitors busy for a day or two.
A baseball park with a lot of history / The longest homerun was hit by Ken Griffey JR in 1993
We had an interesting tour of Camden Yards
The Baltimore Inner Harbor
The view from the Baltimore World Trade Center
The National Aquarium
On 24 October we kayaked the Severn River by the Naval Academy and into the bay …
Bruce and Liz have kayaks and are quite familiar with the area so we knew that they’d be good tour guides. We discussed a few options and decided that we wanted to see the Naval Academy from the water.
We launched at the Jonas Green Park and paddled south towards the Academy. The historic buildings slowly grew bigger as we paddled closer. The rounded dome of the chapel was prominent and the tower atop the Maryland State House added to the pretty scene. We smoothly paddled right along the Academy waterfront but the water got rougher as we neared a tug boat moored at the point. It looked like there were a hundred sailboats further out in Chesapeake Bay. However, the rough water was getting to me so we turned southwest and headed into Annapolis Harbor for a break.
Though my queasiness subsided, it started right back up when we headed back. I looked forward to rounding the point and getting into the slightly more protected and calm Severn River. We paddled the opposite shore back and enjoyed a nice push from the wind and waves. We enjoyed the adventure, though it did take a bit out of me.
Kayak route in the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay
Kayaking the Severn River
The Naval Academy
Nosing into Chesapeake Bay…there were a lot of sailboats further out in the Bay
On 26 October Arleen had a dinner with old friends…
Arleen coordinated a dinner with a group of our friends from Germany. Arleen and Paul were deployed in Afghanistan together, too. They met at Virtue Feed and Grain Tavern in Old Town Alexandria. They had a good time reminiscing, catching up on each others lives, laughed a lot, and shared a good meal. It was a reminder of how fortunate we were over the years to work for and with such fine people. Unfortunately, I felt like poop and stayed home.
Paul, Arleen, Bruce, Christine, Fred, Bill
On 28 October we toured The Pentagon and the National Museum of American History…
We met a good friend, Fred, at The Pentagon. We were grateful that one of our most personally influential leaders generously took time out of his busy day to show us around.
The Pentagon is HUGE! It’s also a bit confusing to navigate. The outer ring is over 3 miles around and roughly 25,000 people work there! Many halls feature history, artifacts, and pictures…it’s like a museum around every corner! We walked through both the Department of the Army and of the Air Force sections and saw where our military leadership work. It was extremely gratifying to know that we had a small role in supporting these Services.
Our next stop was the Hall of Heroes. The poignant “room is dedicated to the more than 3,460 recipients of the Medal of Honor, the United States' highest military decoration.”
There are multiple 911 memorials in The Pentagon, but we stopped at the “America's Heroes Exhibit” and the outdoor “Pentagon Memorial” (Wikipedia link). We reflected on what happened that day and what’s happened since.
Our outstanding tour guide and personal hero showed us a few more interesting things, and then we parted. Fred, you’re a great man!
Helpful link: Pentagon Exhibits and Points of Interest Guide
We hopped on the Metro and headed back to The Mall. We spent a few hours exploring the National Museum of American History. We enjoyed the Presidents and First Ladies exhibits. I was especially enthralled with the hat that Abe Lincoln was wearing when he was shot. There were many other artifacts that these most influential Americans wore or owned during important periods in our history.
We also liked the American inventions and American enterprise exhibits. We started checking out the war histories, but had to breeze through because our time had run short. There was so much more to see!
The Air Force Memorial / Arrived at the Pentagon / Holding our own press conference
Pentagon 911 Memorial
America’s Heroes 911 Memorial
The Hall of Heroes recognizes Medal of Honor recipients
National Museum of American History / Abe Lincoln’s hat / Kermit the Frog
Our two weeks in the Baltimore and DC area went quickly. Unfortunately, I felt like poop more often than not and struggled with chaotic, noisy, crowded areas. We only saw portions of two Smithsonian museums and were in a rush each time. Once we figured out the MARC, we could have traveled to DC every other day and experienced so much more. Oh well…we can’t see and do everything!
Thanks Bruce and Liz! You guys were great hosts and are great friends!
Next…
We have explored Shenandoah National Park, and are now in Damascus VA. Our next stop is Cherokee NC to explore Great Smoky Mountain National Park.
Parting shots…
Driving across the Bay Bridge
(91,800)
This is another fine blog you've gotten us into ;-)
ReplyDeleteThoroughly enjoyed it.