We found this great little camp to stay at just about 10 miles away from Nick & Rachel’s new home in Pennsylvania. It was an easy drive from Miracle Mountain Ranch, we just relaxed by the lake our first night.
Saturday morning we arrived at Nick & Rachels new home – lots of big rooms, very nice! First things first…while Lorree played with baby Mary, Nick was busy getting her new computer up and running. Seemed like a good trade off, she got the best of both! LOL!
Today was Kaylee’s special day – a celebration of her baptismal name “Hope” (her middle name). It consists of celebrating a day of the year that is associated with one’s baptismal name, which is normatively that of a biblical character or other saint.
…and Kaylee wanted to go fishing! There was this beautiful pond just a few minutes away.
After a short walk, we set up to do some fish’n! Unfortunately no one caught any fish – but we sure tried! It was a beautiful day at a beautiful setting with beautiful kids! We had a great time!
Back at home we played with the neighbors and had bike rides. We found and studied a praying mantid. Just looked this up: praying mantids have long necks topped by a triangular head. They can turn their heads 180 degrees—an entire half circle! They’re as agile as a cat, can see in 3D and are well-camouflaged, adapting colors that help them blend with plants. Some also have amazing body shapes that make them look like leaves or branches.
Sunday we attended the services at St. Tikhon’s orthodox monastery with Nick, Rachel, and the kids. It was a beautiful service, lots of liturgy (reading and singing the psalms) together with affirmations of the Gospel and a relevant teaching from God’s Word. At one part, the outdoor bells were played during the service – they sounded heavenly! We enjoyed a brief walk on the campus where Nick will be attending seminary.
After a great lunch at an outdoor cookout restaurant, Nana & Papa played lots of games with Isaac and Kaylee while Nick, Rachel & Mary went out for an afternoon date. We had so much fun!
Our time went too fast – all of a sudden we were set to leave again. We’re so thankful for the time we had with Nick, Rachel, Isaac, Kaylee, and Mary. We’re also thankful for the commitment that Nick & Rachel have made to move and resettle in Pennsylvania so that Nick can attend seminary here. We’ll be back for sure to learn more about this new adventure in their lives!
We traveled South to Maryland to our next “Happy” Campsite! Sometimes our Garmin or Google Maps takes us down some pretty narrow, crazy country roads – but this one was legit! We stayed here a couple of nights and did some exploring nearby.
What a beautiful hike! We found the C&O Canal Towpath close to our campground and explored what we could. Such a peaceful setting! Here’s a bit of info one the Canal: The C&O Canal began as a dream of passage to Western wealth. Operating for nearly 100 years the canal was a lifeline for communities along the Potomac River as coal, lumber, and agricultural products floated down the waterway to market. Rising and falling over an elevation change of 605 feet (184 meters), it required the construction of 74 canal locks, 11 aqueducts to cross major streams, more than 240 culverts to cross smaller streams After much discussion of the dangers of early steamboats, the company provided a towpath so that the mules could pull the boats through the “slackwaters”.
Barge on the canal showing the towpath alongside.
The canal stretched from Georgetown (near Washington DC) to Cumberland, MD. The railroads quickly came into the picture and put the canal system out of commission within a few years.
Later, we visited Prospect Peak. From this view we could see West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. There we saw panoramic views of the Potomac valley!
We found a covered bridge to explore, Jackson’s Mill Bridge. Built in 1889 and it’s still in use today! Yikes, we had to get out of the way for a car that was passing through (they should’ve been fined that $5.00)!!!
The Bridge was adjacent to the Jackson’s Mill. The actual mill wheel was inside the structure which was turned by letting the river flow through it. It’s not a working mill, but seeing it (only from the outside) allowed us a glimpse into a bit of history.
Built in 1839, this 2 1/2 story mill is currently being restored by the current land owners.
It’s been a fun adventure this past week! We’re loving taking some time to just travel and explore and store up some amazing memories! What adventures are next ?