A trip to GW’s Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon, VA
and
George Washington Memorial Parkway
Virginia
I had a softball tournament penciled in for the day, but a few teams backed out and it was cancelled. Bummer, but it gave me a chance to take another weekend photo trip. Wow, and it was a great day for it.
Mount Vernon
The estate was George and Martha Washington’s former home, which has since been turned into a living memorial to the first President.
Upper Garden Greenhouse
Mansion
I chose to skip the mansion tour because I did not want to fuss with the crowd. The line to get in stretched down along the large green in front of it with a predicted wait time of over an hour. Yeah, that’s not for me. Maybe another time.
View from behind the Mansion overlooking the Potomac River
George Washington’s Sarcophagus in the “New Tomb”
Washington was originally buried with about 20 family members in the estate’s original (Old) tomb on the property. Remnants of the old tomb are still there, but it was very humble and run down. In his will, Washington left instructions to have a new tomb built, and the entire family was re-interred after its completion. Martha is resting right beside him.
16-Sided Barn in the George Washington: Pioneer Farmer Site
At the back of the property, down by the river, there’s an area created to show off Washington’s innovative farming techniques. There were a couple individuals in period dress doing demonstrations and answering questions. The center point is the reconstructed 16-sided treading barn, which Washington designed for wheat processing.
The site is full of flower gardens and orchards. I’m sure they are beautiful in early spring, but were rather bland during my trip. It’s a relatively large property and great walk. It seemed the two most popular spots were the Mansion and the New Tomb, which you have to squeeze your way in to see. Other than that, it wasn’t too bad in terms of crowds.
There’s a large museum near the gate dedicated to the first President’s life. It covers his childhood, his Continental Army service, Presidency and so on. It was very well down. Educational, and not overwhelming.
My final verdict: it was a nice trip, but I see no need to go back more than once.
George Washington Parkway
My route to and from Mount Vernon was the GW Parkway, so I stopped at a few places along the way has I headed home.
View across the Potomac to DC
Navy-Marine Memorial in the Lady Bird Johnson Park
The Pentagon
The parkway has numerous pull-offs and small parks along the route and on a nice day, it’s a very busy place. A lot of people use the paved path winding along the river for recreational purposes. There are a lot of joggers, cyclists, and walkers. It’s nice to see.
I had a little difficulty parking at the Lady Bird Johnson Park. There were only a few spaces, all of which were filled. I had to wait in my car for a short period until something opened up. If it were more convenient for me to get to the area, I wouldn’t mind using it more often. The path would be a great place to just walk off the stress from the day. The scenery is gorgeous. It’s quiet, even with all of people using it. Some of the parks are very peaceful and look perfect to sit around and relax in. Of course, there are a few great views across the river to Washington.
At one point I ended up mixed up and had to turn around. Well, my attempt to do so landed me in a back parking lot near the Pentagon. Not really my idea of relaxing. The parking was meant for the Lyndon B. Johnson Park across a small bridge. I considered walking over to it, but it was getting a little dark so I skipped it.
Today’s Flickr set: site pictures
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