Fortunately, I slept much better (I was wide awake at 0615) and immediately started teleworking (even though the Feds had a full day off from work). I also ate breakfast at Erin's (banana bread) and did a little packing. After Austin left for work (0700), Erin asked me to do some "dad projects" and I assisted in checking the shelves in the garage (for stability), did some research in Ring Camera installation, recommended some additional projects (e.g., cleaning up garage areas and removing pine needles from gutters). Later in the morning, I took a short walk with Erin and Kiki - we were joined by a young neighbor, Cameron. At around noon, Erin went to get some lunch from Aldi while I did some more teleworking. After she brought back the food, we ate together and talked some more about my 2025 plans. I then teleworked until 1400. Packing up my car, I said goodbye to Erin and then departed for NoVA. My route was intended to be rather scenic, with plans to stop at two State Parks and have dinner with my friend, Stephanie. I used I-264 and I-64 to reach US-17 and then drove north - I crossed the G. P. Coleman Memorial Bridge at 1455. To pass the time, I listened to audiobooks and music on the way. The weather was very nice and I had great views as I crossed the York River. I continued north on the Gloucester (north) side and took some back roads to the Machicomoco State Park. Arriving at 1505, I used Erin's REI receipt for free entry and drove around the loop inside the park. The location featured a lot of fields but I noticed some places with trees - I could also see the York River behind those. I eventually found a trailhead and ended up hiking for about 30 minutes on the Forestry Trail. I was taking lots of photos - and would have kept walking - until I realized I needed to be on my way ASAP if I wanted to be able to reach Belle Isle State Park before they closed. To this end, I returned to US-17 and then drove north. Google Maps next took me on to VA-3, which (through a meandering pathway) routed me to the Northern Neck. The scenery was nice but I kept getting stuck behind slow traffic and my ETA to Belle Isle kept getting closer and closer to the time for the sunset. Even after I managed to pass all the traffic, I still didn't think I'd make it in time. When I finally arrived (1645), I encountered the Park Ranger who was locking up the gates. Fortunately, I sweet talked my way into getting inside (mostly because another person was still in there)... I reached the Day Use area on the southern end of the park just as a spectacular sunset was developing. That wasn't the only impressive thing, though, and the sky color combined with the clouds to make a beautiful dusk. I stayed inside the park until after 1700 and then texted with Stephanie to coordinate dinner at Randolph's on the River in Port Royal. Google Maps said it would take an hour to reach the restaurant and, with some luck and good four lane highways (mostly VA-3 but later US-360 and US-17), I made it there by 1800. We were able to have a very nice visit and dinner (seafood platter, which we shared) and Old Fashioned - we stayed until the restaurant closed (2000). After saying goodbye, I returned to US-17 and then drove north through dark forests. There was no traffic and I made good time to I-95. Once I was finally on the Interstate, I realized that my route to the Holiday Inn in Chantilly would take long enough to prevent me from attending the musical performance of my friend, Kim, in Arlington. So, I redirected to the Clarendon area (via I-95, I-395 and surface streets). I arrived at St. Charles School and Parish at about 2120 (10 minutes before the performance) and was able to see Kim - and listen to 30 minutes of beautiful music - before Mass began at 2200. The service lasted for almost an hour and then I was able to visit with Kim again afterwards. At about 2300, I left the church and headed towards I-66 (used surface streets) - from there, I drove west to VA-28. Again, there was almost no traffic and I arrived at my hotel, the Holiday Inn in Chantilly, by 2330. This gave me just barely enough time to check in, take my stuff to the room and then walk around near the hotel to achieve my 10K steps - with one minute to spare! After getting all riled up to finish my exercise goal, I was not ready to sleep. Instead, I did some reading and got distracted for almost an hour before falling asleep (0100). It felt great to have been able to see some friends today and continue my pursuit of the Virginia State Park Adventures Challenge; adding Machicomoco and Belle Isle (today) to Lake Anna (December 20) and York River (December 22) brings my Grand Total VA State Parks to 26!
