We are not a particularly adventurous family. We don’t camp, much to the dismay of our middle child who is infatuated with campers {of the Airstream variety}. We don’t travel to exotic or far-off locations. We don’t even go to the lake. But, I’m determined to create some childhood memories for the girls that involve the great outdoors. The only trouble with this plan is that I’m not particularly “outdoorsy.” Sometimes I think I am, but then I realize the backpack I use for outdoor escapades is made by Vera Bradley. And, my plastic cooler is monogrammed. And, my best outdoor sandals are flip flops from Old Navy with a big fabric flower on them. And, my hair is kind of high maintenance. I’m pretty sure these things disqualify me from being an outdoor enthusiast. Nevertheless, when we had a chance to get away for twenty-four hours this week, we jumped at the opportunity to be outside for a whole day and bike the Virginia Creeper Trail with the girls.
We used to bike local trails quite a bit before we had the Preschooler. But, this was the first time we took all three girls on a biking trip of this nature. The Creeper is advertised as a good trail for families because it can be done as a 17-mile gradual descent from the top of the mountain to a town called Demascus. So, we signed ourselves up and boarded the Creeper Express yesterday morning for a ride to the top. {As a side note: the night before we did this, I apparently had too much caffeine and couldn’t get to sleep until 4:30 AM. This is not an advisable way to start an “outdoorsy” day}.
Loaded up on coffee and doughnuts, we had a curvy, scenic ride up the mountain. Once at the summit, {actually somewhere on the drive up the mountain} I realized we had gotten into a bit more of an adventure than I had anticipated. For some reason, I envisioned biking down a paved {albeit long} trail while occasionally passing through quaint little towns lined with local shops and cafes. I’m not sure the part about this being on the Appalachian Trail had ever registered with me. These are the mountains Hollie, not the streets of France. But, I took a deep breath, said goodbye to our friendly driver, put helmets on the big girls, and set the Preschooler up in her tagalong with all the necessary comforts: namely, snacks. So, she was good to go. {You’ll see we packed her beloved scooter thinking she might ride it on part of the trail. That was not to be.}
We planned on the 1st Grader biking most of the trail since it was “easy.” You may recall me mentioning that she learned to ride her bike last week. What could possibly go wrong with this plan? Well, what went wrong is about fifteen minutes into our ride she started complaining that the bumpiness of the trail {which is beat down but not paved} was making her arms itch. Granted her hand-me-down Huffy bike doesn’t have the best shocks. But, we have a name for the alter ego that sometimes emerges when the 1st Grader is frustrated or challenged: Pouty Patty. And yesterday it seemed like Patty had made an appearance and someone was just being dramatic. However, about seven miles in we finally stopped long enough to evaluate the situation with her itchiness and saw that she had broken out in hives all over her arms, meaning her complaints were valid. So, we wound up putting two girls in the tagalong, leaving the Spouse to carry her bike on his bike while pulling both of them behind him. As usual, I was of little help in this situation except to act as a rolling photographer so we could document this leg of the trip.
There were several optional stops along the trail for bathroom breaks, picnics, or rest. A little playground off to the side of the trail was the girls’ favorite detour:
The photo below was taken about two hours into our ride just before lunch at what was probably our lowest moment of the day. That’s the scooter now hanging out the back of the tagalong and our surplus of princess helmets and other headgear. At this point we were out of snacks and/or water.
Attitudes and energy levels were much improved after lunch at the cafe in a tiny town called Taylor’s Valley. It’s a wonder what a burger and fries will do for one’s spirit. The second half of the trail seemed to go a lot faster. And, the 1st Grader {mainly motivated by the promise of ice cream} hopped back on her bike to finish out the last two miles or so of the trail.
The whole day the 3rd Grader had a sense of determination about finishing the mission she felt she was on. She was annoyed only when we had to stop a couple of times because the Preschooler had spotted a tiny insect in the tagalong or had gotten splattered by mud. For the most part, the 3rd Grader was our fearless leader and quite a trooper.
As it turns out, the Creeper is not an intense trail at all in terms of terrain. It’s a pleasant descent. However, it is still 17 miles, which can feel like a lot of mileage to little legs or to adult legs hauling additional bikes on their handle bars. {Honestly, 17 miles on a moving sidewalk feels like a long way when young, hungry children are in tow}. But, the scenery and the mountain/water views were beautiful.
I’m glad we did it. I think the girls would even say it was worth the effort. Next time we will pack more wisely: more snacks; fewer bikes/scooters/princess helmets. We may even need a double-wide tagalong with a better mudguard. But, we’ll go back. We may not be anywhere near earning the status of “outdoorsy,” but we will keep getting outdoors!
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