National Parks: Part II, The C & O Canal
My son and I were visiting the area near the Thomas Jefferson Memorial and the veritable hordes were so great, we found our way to the Arlington Memorial, across the Potomac to the southern shore of the Potomac River and then west on the George Washington Memorial Parkway (very scenic route). It was such a nice drive and along the way, my son, who was looking at my map, suggested that we visit the National Historic site. Why? No good reason. It was just a place that neither of us had ever been. The scenic ride along the parkway was an unexpected treat.
As I drove to the park, my son remarked just how tall the hills were becoming, especially as we headed north across the Potomac into Maryland. The homes were large and appeared architecturally significant, at least by the standards of this era. Once inside the park, and with a limited amount of time, we walked fast and I shot what photographs that I could. We did not have time to visit the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center. We did; however, sojourn down the rocky trails to the Great Falls, and to our amazement, saw some geography that was more reminiscent of the Shenandoah than the Chesapeake.
Along the rocky shores of the exposed granite boulders were whitetail deer watering as the sun began to sink in the southwestern sky. After seeing the enormity of these granite stones and hearing the power of the rushing river, I could well understand the necessity of the C & O Canal traversing the Potomac in those days before the inception of travel by rail. Across the rapids of this rocky river is situated the Great Falls National Park, that is over 800 acres, with many miles of trails traversing the hilly Virginia shore.
This article provided courtesy of our sister site: Better Travelers Now