Every weekend of the year, Rivershore Charters cruises along the scenic Occoquan River. The 50-foot pontoon touring boat can hold 46 passengers—all of whom can see birds of prey, get dropped off at local restaurants and receive a lesson in Occoquan history. Meet the Captain  There's no doubt about it. One of the best decisions Captain Mark Perry ever made was buying the 16,000-pound water taxi named the "Harbor Lady" in 2004, he said. The 57-year-old Perry worked as a real estate agent since 1976, and found his calling after talking with the owner of Tim’s Rivershore Restaurant & Crabhouse in…

Recently I wrote an article on the Manassas Gap Railroad for Centreville Patch. My continued curiosity about the subject led me this past week to Conway Robinson State Forest, off Route 29 near Gainesville.  The forest comprises 444 acres in very close proximity to Manassas National Battlefield Park. The 5.1 miles of trails are perfect for an avid hiker looking for an extended trip not too far out of town and not too hard on the knees. There is also a picnic shelter. Mountain bikers love the forest. “The trails here are great,” said cyclist Jose Acevedo, of Manassas. “They’re not too hilly. …

I, personally, have never done the Cross-County Trail all the way across the county, though I’m sure somebody out there has. I do know, though, that every time I’ve tried to travel an extended, continuous length of it, I’ve run into a road block somewhere. Currently a portion of the trail that passes beneath the Dulles Toll Road, according to Fairfax County’s website, is closed thanks to construction delays caused by snow. During a recent jog I also had to dodge traffic crossing Pickett Road in Fairfax thanks to the tunnel being blocked. The Cross-County Trail, though, is a marvelous idea …

In 1858, a small village named Tudor Hall sat at the confluence of the Manassas Gap and Orange and Alexandria railroads. The tiny little town was renamed Manassas Junction, and the confluence of these two major rail lines became a principle target for both Union and Confederate forces during the Civil War, causing it to change hands on multiple occasions, which eventually led to the destruction of almost everything. “It wasn’t much of a town before the Civil War,” said Lisa Sievel-Otten, Living History Interpreter at the Manassas Museum. “But afterwards almost everything was destroyed. Soon, …

Starting this Sunday, May 1 the Flying Circus Airshow will get underway in Bealeton, VA, about 1 hour south of Lorton. It will run each weekend until October. The show has been in operation for almost 40 years, said Joe Callen, principle architect of the extravaganza. “The first show took place back in 1971,” he informed me. “It originally started out as a WWI-style barnstorming show, with Sopwith Camels and other WWI era biplanes. Over the years we’ve added a lot more WWII aircraft, which are easier to maintain and not as fragile.” While some of the aircraft may have changed, the principle …

It's springtime, and that means that I will likely spend a good portion of the next few months at Great Falls park. While Great Falls isn't a secret, it does represent the best outdoor recreation to be found anywhere in Fairfax County. I ventured out this past Monday with my 8 year-old daughter and met up with my brother and his two boys (age 9 and 11) and their beagle, Lakota. It turns out we picked the right day as the river crested that evening well above flood stage.  I have seen Great Falls at numerous stages over the years, but never as high or threatening as it appeared that day. Most …

I like to think of golf as a metaphor for life—you start with a broad expanse before you and as you move along you progressively shoot for a smaller target. Once you've moved into your short game, you're focused exclusively on a tiny cup, and whatever path you may have taken to get to that point, you inevitably end up in the same hole as everybody else. Fortunately, I'm terrible at golf and have a short attention span, so playing with me involves wandering a lot in the high grass before eventually giving up. I arrived at Burke Lake Park early on the 7th of April, a fantastically gorgeous day…

Ideally, once every spring you should be able to get downtown to walk beneath the cherry blossoms. The scene is breathtaking, and nothing could be more ideal than strolling along the edge of the Tidal Basin with the Jefferson Memorial behind you, enjoying the spring sun while reciting Japanese poetry, trying desperately to impress the exchange student you met two days before on the subway. As the fragrant petals waft slowly around like a dream of falling snow, it’s easy to find yourself drifting far, far away from the cares of the city -- until reality sets in. “Mommmmmmmmmmmm!  I want some …

I've always been fascinated by the "mountain." From different vantage points in Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties you can see it, such as from the Altoplaza restaurant in Centreville, or from certain points along the Bull Run mountains.  It isn't exactly attractive, per se, but it's interesting, since it's quite obviously man-made, it seems completely out of place, and it has about three or four small trees along the top of it. I had to find out what it was, so I spoke with Donna, one of the owners of Ticonderoga Farms. "It's the dirt from your basement," she informed me, …

Tourist traps are cool.  Those weird little roadside businesses full of merchandise that no right-thinking person would ever buy were they fully possessed of their senses have always fascinated me and represented one of the great pleasures of hitting the road.  For that reason, I always take a moment to browse through the brochure stands at rest areas and motels just to see what kind of creative, capitalistic ventures a particular area has invented.  For years I've lived in Virginia, and for years I've wondered about Dinosaur Land. Located in the Shenandoah Valley between Winchester and Front…

It's a memory that has haunted me, always.  I call it "the time we got on a boat." I was about 8 years old and me and some members of my family accepted an invitation to take a boat ride down the mighty Mississippi river from St. Louis.  A friend of the family had his own cabin cruiser that he'd use for fishing and we leapt at the opportunity to explore the local waterways.  My over-arching memory of the first part of the trip consists of quiet relaxation as we cruised along, not thinking about much except the joy of being out on the water getting away from everything. Unfortunately, though, …

In 2006 most of Fairfax, along with the rest of the world, watched stunned as the George Mason men's basketball team advanced to the Final Four.  Nationally, few moments in sports in the last decade can compare, but locally, forget about it. None of the Washington professional programs have won anything since the early 1990s and while there have been a few college level successes around the region those events, on a national scale, just never happened in Fairfax. 2006, though, was a peculiar year.  Entering the NCAA tournament despite the protestations of a few who didn't feel they belonged …

"When we opened in 1991, there was nothing here" says Marketing Coordinator Seth Petersen of the area around Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg.  Now, of course, Lansdowne isn't so far out, with houses, shopping centers and office parks sprouting all over the surrounding area.  At one time primarily a golfing destination and provider of conference space, the resort has expanded steadily over the years and is eager to re-make itself into more of a family getaway.  They have 45 holes of golf, it's true, and over 50,000 square feet of meeting space, but they've added much more. "We've added a …

This week's Great Escape isn't very far and it is probably familiar to many Lorton residents. Sure you've looked at Pohick Church while sitting in traffic on Route 1. But our columnist Mike Conway takes an even closer look at the marvelous piece of history we have in our midst. Let's face it, fate has not always been kind to southern Fairfax County. While in the early days of American history it played an important role and housed some key figures in this country's birth, it had to watch the county's center shift to the north during construction of Washington, D.C. and never come back. Pohick…