techchick heads to the East Coast, maybe

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Okay, some of you love me, some of you like me, some of you don’t know me, some of you hate me…well, come Sept or Oct I plan on being in Harrisonburg, VA to see my uncle and my recently moved (from Kansas) grandmother there.

So here’s the deal.

I know that Virginia is kinda middle of the East Coast, many of my SDMB, chat and Fathom friends live in those areas. I apologize for the lack of knowledge to when and if I can make it. I am relying upon my brother and sis-in-law as to when this will happen. I am also working with finances, which as many of you know can be a pain in the ass…but I would like some input as to where I might stay so I can hang out with some of you during my stay.

As it stands, my bro and sis-in-law plan on venturing to NYC for a couple of days before hitting the VA area. I plan on finding room and board while they are in NYC (hopefully on a weekend) before we meet in Harrisonburg to see our family. I also plan on having a rental car and would love to see the Capital while I am in the area.

Well, with those ideas in mind I am hoping my fellow Dopers, Fathomites and Unazoids can help me come up with some good ideas as to where to stay, if you are interested in an East Coast Dopefest where, how and why we can make this work, and any other tidbits you might have…please let me know. I will know more in a couple of weeks but this idea of me coming to the east coast has me jazzed and want to think about hanging out with many of my buddies that I have met on line…I can think of many including but not exclusive to:

Silo (know him, banned but a sweetie)
WeirdDave (too many phone calls…no one on one)
OpalCat/UnDeadDude/Nicky – for obvious reasons
Phil and Wife
RTF if he can make it
Falcon if she’s okay and hasn’t stopped the SDMB completely

And more…Those are just off the top of this sleepy head, but wanted to throw this in the middle of the world for ideas and such. I really wish I had more information now but I want to start the planning stages of where to meet if all are agreeable and all that…the when can be later.

Please do me all a favor and pray I can make it. It may be the last time I ever see my grandmother. She is my mom’s mother and haven’t seen much of her over the last 20 years.

2

That’s not very far from where I’m at; depending on the date, I may or may not be able to make it up for a Dopefest, but here are a few things you can consider doing while you’re in the area:

DC area: If you’re going to DC, you could also consider George Washington’s home Mount Vernon, and Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, where John Brown captured the federal arsenal and incited the slaves to revolt, a big catalyst for the Civil War. The Harpers Ferry area is also popular spot for hiking and tubing on the river, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Harrisonburg area: Again, if you like hiking, there are lots of great places to go–Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway will give you plenty of places to choose from along those lines. Actually, one of my favorite places to hike relatively near Harrisonburg is Crabtree Falls, on route 56 just east of Montebello. It’s a series of cascades that, in total, fall about 1500 feet, considered by some to be the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi–it’s not one big 1500 foot drop–you hike a ways, see some falls, hike some more, see some more falls, but it’s really nice. There are also a bunch of commercial caverns to tour in the area; the most popular is Luray Caverns, which is famous for its “stalacpipe organ”, the “world’s largest musical instrument”. It’s an organ connected to rubber mallets that tap stalactites around the cave to produce the musical notes. There’s also Thomas Jefferson’s home Monticello in nearby Charlottesville.

Have fun!

3

Y’know, in the Early Bird thread on Fathom, I was just musing that I’m getting overdue for a mountain fix. Harrisonburg in September/October would be a pleasant weekend jaunt, and I can’t think of a better excuse than to finally be able to meet you, Liz.

Keep us posted, OK? :slight_smile:

4

Make it the Atlanta area at some point and you got a date. I bet a few dozen others would show our favorite echchick the town also.

5

I would also like to meet you, techie, unless you’ll be too busy playing with Nicky and Mike:) (Which I can understand, of course, as Mike is cute and I imagine Nicky is as well).

DC has lots to offer, as does Southern Virginia. And of course Maryland as well. Hell, this area is teeming with fun stuff:)