Exploring: Riverside Park

Now in its third year for the boys and me, Exploration Season has begun. Born out of a need to fill the nights when Brandon has to work home football games at his school, we take off and discover local treasures. The rules are simple: it must be within an hour of home, it must cost little to nothing, and it must be something that either we've never done before or can't do often.

Today we hit Riverside Park in Lynchburg. A place I have driven and walked by countless times since I started working in Lynchburg in 2005, but having never actually entered the park, I had no clue what hidden treasures lay inside. Until now.

Of course the boys were immediately drawn to the playground, so we burned off some energy there.

Then after a perfect picnic dinner under the trees, we hit the trail. A Virginia Civil War trail, no less. Who knew? And who could have known what breathtaking surprises awaited us around the winding bends.

First up was a locomotive in the process of being restored, just sitting down in the woods off the trail! Aden was just slack-jawed.

Then around the next curve in the path, oh what a sight. A train trestle bridge way, waaaaay above the James River. Almost made you a little woozy, knowing how high up you were. It was an amazing sight, even for my bridge-phobic self.

And then the Civil War part of the trail, the remains of a boat that was used to transport the body of Stonewall Jackson to Lexington for his burial. A piece of history, right there before our eyes. So cool for the boys to see.