Fall Paddling on the Eastern Shore of Virginia

Click to view a slide show of recent kayak trips on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

We're seeing more waterfowl migrating through- ducks, geese, hawks- that we don't see in the heat of summer. Saw two bald eagles perched in some tall trees on Onancock Creek yesterday (perhaps they're scoping out a nesting site!). One swooped down and plucked a fish out of the water with his talons.

Five Fall Hikes to Inspire

A great hike can be more than a walk in the woods. These five Virginia hikes provide opportunities for clarity or contemplation—as you sit by a waterfall, watch the moon rise over the ocean, or bask in the rush of reaching a summit. For a dash of fun, we’ve included a haunted hike for Halloween!

1. The Haunted Hills of Bull Run

2. Run with wild ponies on Mount Rogers, Virginia’s tallest peak

3. Peaks of Otter: Just steps off the Blue Ridge Parkway

4. Overall Run, Shenandoah’s tallest waterfall

5. False Cape State Park: Beach hiking to a remote campsite.

For dozens more hikes in the Old Dominion, check out our award-winning guidebook Hiking Virginia.

Pet Getaway at Keswick Hall, Virginia

Even though she belongs to travel writers, our mutty-mutt rescued from the local shelter 3 years ago, doesn’t travel much. So she was quite confused when we pulled up to the circular drive of Keswick Hall in central Virginia and handed over the keys for valet parking.

Miss Coco (as in "Chanel") was even more sedate when we led her into the elegant lobby of the Tuscan-style mansion and the woman behind the desk exclaimed: "This must be Coco!"

On hearing her name, Coco's head cocked as if to inquire, “Do I know you? Do you have something for me? A treat perhaps?”

This elegant, sublime golf resort not only takes pets no matter their breeding, but welcomes them, embraces them, courts them, in fact, with a Pampered Pooch Package.

In our room a huge bowl of Milkbones, a plush pillow and matching bowls were waiting.

We posed her for photos on the private terrace with her ‘luggage,’ ordered from the Doggie Menu, delivered by room service, and gave her a rubber duck to play with.

But we know what a dog wants most is exercise, so only after a sunset spin around the golf course did Coco really settle in for the night, nestled on her special Keswick plaid pillow.

Read the complete story in November's special pet issue of Hampton Roads Magazine.

Paddling in Waller Mill Park, Williamsburg

For a change of pace from sea kayaking, we’ll take you to a little-known spot on the outskirts of Williamsburg, Virginia.

Waller Mill Park has hiking and biking trails and quiet, shady spots for picnicking. But the real lure for us paddlers is the 343-acre lake, where a rare natural history treat awaits.

You can launch your own boat, or rent one very inexpensively: the canoes and kayaks are just $5 an hour.

From the dock, head out to the open water, turn right and look for an opening that passes beneath a bridge. From here, follow the left shore closely, turn into an inlet, and scour the banks and shallows.

You’re actually following an ancient ridge called the Yorktown Formation. Look along the base and you’ll begin to see dozens and dozens of Virginia’s state fossil: Chesapecten jeffersonius!

These huge scallop shells, as big as a man’s hand, are actually fossils, more than four million years old when much of the Virginia Piedmont was a vast inland sea. You’ll see them layered in the banks, and strewn about on the lake bottom.

These fossils have been noted in the earliest annals of American history. Jamestown settlers reported seeing Native Americans using Chesapecten shells as bowls and scraping tools. Learn more about Waller Mill Park here.

For a fun place to stay nearby, check out the Great Wolf Lodge and its huge indoor-outdoor water park.