Colonial Beach, VA (USA)

It was Presidents Day! Normally, Mollie and I would go to Mount Vernon to celebrate George Washington's birthday. This year, though, Mollie had said she wanted to get some NPS Passport Stamps at National Parks we'd never visited. It was like pulling teeth, but I managed to get her out of bed by 0800. She ate breakfast and we got ready for our adventure. We drove south on I-95 and then used back roads to get to the area near Colonial Beach (Westmoreland County), where we found the birthplace of James Madison. We next visited Westmoreland State Park (free entrance because of REI receipt!) and took a walk to Fossil Beach. We couldn’t find any fossils but Mollie found a deer antler. At around 1145, we ate lunch (The Art of Coffee) in Montross - it was really good! We then drove back to the George Washington Birthplace National Monument and Mollie got another NPS Passport Stamp. We explored the grounds (lots of sheep) and then walked to the Log House, where we saw a George Washington impersonator and ate birthday cake with him (1300). We walked back to the Visitors Center and watched a movie. We drove a short distance to the family cemetery, which we explored before leaving for home. On the way back, we stopped at the birthplace of James Monroe. There were new buildings and displays added since I’d last visited. We made our way back to I-95 and got into a huge traffic jam that caused us severe delays. We were able to reach home at 1615 - Mollie told me she really enjoyed our active and patriotic day!