Apr 14, 2012

Kate, Chuck, Nathan, and I took a trip to Lancaster to do another little tour of breweries. We started with the big sampler at Lancaster Brewing Company. We got some snacks and spent a while there slowly sipping our sample glasses. We actually got to try the Rumspringa this time as well and it was very good.

We went around to Spring House next, where we got to try their Two Front Teeth Holiday Ale and had more of the Peanut Butter Porter. So good. We stopped by Iron Hill as well, where I abstained from the sampler and just tried the one that wasn't up last time we visited.

We finished off at the Appalachian Brewing Company on the way home. This place is awesome! The restaurant has a bunch of great food and their selections are very hard to choose from since they have so much good sounding beer. We each got a pint and tried each other's, but we should definitely come back for lunch sometime.

Another whirlwind day of beer tasting complete. It was fun being with a group and seeing Nathan again for a while.

Apr 13, 2012

Chuck and I went to pick up Jeff in the morning and then sat in traffic on the Ben Franklin Bridge for a long time before we got into the city to get our sandwiches at Sarcone's deli then went to Yards Brewery to have a beer and eat half of them for lunch. The Yards Saison is great and the veggie sandwich with long hots from Sarcone's is amazing always.

We headed up to Tyler State Park and got into a round of disc golf. I love this course; it's always been one of my favorites. I miss playing courses I really enjoy more often. They changed the layout slightly since the last time I was there, but all of the holes were the same.

I did pretty well on most of the course, shooting close to even. I forgot it was 27 holes so that was a nice bonus. 18 seems short, but once I get to 27 I'm ready to stop for a while. We had a good time. It was like the old days.

We went to Jeff's for a bit and hung out with Sam before we decided to head home. I met Ryan at the gym for a late workout and then came back to lounge.

Apr 12, 2012

Since we were on spring break I didn't work during the day. I went for a run at Silver Run and later I met Ryan for a few games of tennis and a walk. I picked up a pizza and met Kate and Chuck at my house to have some of the beers we got on the trip. Chuck enjoyed the black IPA as I knew he would.

We played a few games of cards and drank for a while until we were tired and they went home.

Apr 11, 2012

We started heading north in the morning and headed through North Carolina to Virginia. We stopped at a small brewery to try a few samples and then headed on our way to the next one quite a while up the highway. Blue Mountain Brewery had an amazing selection of brews including the Evil 8 Dubbel. I wanted to stay here.

After searching out several vineyards, Barren Ridge ended up being the one we stopped at. They offered 8 free samplings and they had a nice selection of wines. Kate got a bottle to go.

As we neared DC it rained a bit and a rainbow came into view for a little while. We found an Olive Garden to use our gift card at and had a nice dinner. It's been some time since I've been to the Garden.

One last brewery before the home stretch, we stopped at Mad Fox Brewing, where We had one of the best arrays of beer I've ever had. The place was classy too, with high ceilings and a nice set up. This led me to believe it would be a run-of-the-mill sports pub with some in-house brews. I was quite wrong. We got two growlers here. There was a Black IPA that was fantastic and their Wee Heavy was amazing. We need to make a return trip here.

The next three hours on the drive home went pretty quickly. As always, it was nice to be back home to lie down in my bed and watch some tv. It was a good trip and we came back with a lot of beer!

Apr 10, 2012

We decided to check out Clingman's Dome early in the day when few people would be there. It was a bit of a walk up to the lookout tower, but there were hardly any people on the path. It was cold and windy as well. We encountered a few thru-hikers at the top that I had a chance to talk to for a bit.

The view was amazing in all directions. It was hard to decide which way to point the camera. So I took a few shots and just stood there and took it in. Some things you can't capture; you just have to experience it for yourself. The highest point on the Appalachian Trail (and the mountains?) is one of them.

We went to Mingo Falls next, where we had a slew of stairs to climb to get up to the viewing area.

It wasn't a bad walk and the falls were pretty impressive. There weren't many people up there when we first arrived.

I climbed around under the bridge and on the rocks trying to find the best place to shoot from. The debris in front of the falls were my favorite part.

We dedicated the rest of the day to brewery visits beginning with Frog Level brewery. This places is a great space, decorated with photos from a local artist. We were the only ones in the bar at 11am and we sampled all four styles and talked to the brewer as he was currently working on a batch at his small three barrel setup just behind the bar. This a place I would frequent if I were in the area.

We went to Asheville Brewing Company next, where the standout brew was the jalapeño IPA. It was fantastic and had quite a bite. We got a growler of that one. Next we went to French Broad and got a flight of more potent beers. We sat at the bar overlooking the brewing tanks and they even had a disco ball!

Now the moment we had been waiting for: the tour of Highland Brewing! The facility was quite massive and they started us off with a sample that was replenished frequently throughout the tour with the next style. The tour was not too exciting as it's something we have heard repeatedly and the guide was soft-spoken and nervous. We got to try the rest of their offerings at the end and ended up going home with two six packs; the coffee porter and the spring pale ale.

This is the part where it became harder to taste the subtleties in everything. We went to Greenman Brewing, Wedge Brewing, and Oyster House. They each had a decent offering, though Wedge was a strange little place with a big crowd by the river.

It was a long day and when we got back we were pretty tired so we got to bed early. Lots of good breweries down there that I wish we could have more time to explore.

Apr 9, 2012

We had breakfast at the hotel and set out pretty early on our way toward Smoky Mountains National Park. We got there in a few hours and then began to navigate the narrow, winding dirt roads down to the trail.

We filled up our water bottles at a campground and found the Boogerman trail head along the road. It began with a narrow log bridge crossing the water and then a densely wooded trail.

It turned out that the log bridges were quite common along this trail. They were fun to walk across and afforded a nice view up and down the streams.

Much of the hike was relatively flat or gradually graded except for one part that was a bit of a struggle. Not too bad at any point though. We had a few small stream crossings that were fun rock hopping. I also got inside this tree.

This stream crossing was really unavoidable unless we wanted to backtrack the entire trail. The bridge was out and the water was knee-high and moving quickly. I took off my boots and tossed them across to commit myself to the crossing, then I slowly waded across the rocky stream bed as the frigid water curled my toes. I made it with relative ease and then went back to help Kate across.

After another bridge or two and the lead-up section of the trail we were all done. It was a nice hike that ended up being more exciting than expected.

We stopped at a lookout on our way back out of the park. There was no shortage of great views. It was very windy up there.

We went back to Kate's cousin's house, where they graciously invited us in for dinner and offered us their spare bedroom. The meal was quite the proper southern meal also. There was chicken and plenty of sides. It was all delicious.

We spent the evening looking up places to go the next day. We made our list and then retired to bed to read for a while.

Apr 8, 2012

I started the day off with a run around the somewhat abandoned industrial area where the hotel was located. It was a nice run, but it started getting warm quickly. After a bit more working out and a shower we headed downtown in Kate's dad's convertible and saw the sights of Charleston. It seemed like a really nice town.

For lunch we made the long, slow drive to one of the outer islands and met the rest of her family at Rita's, a restaurant and bar right near the water. The chef is part of the family, hence the reason we went. The food was good and it was nice to have a beer and relax for a while.

After we got back from lunch Kate and I went back downtown by ourselves and walked around to check out some of the places we saw. It's a really nice city to walk. There was a street fair going on so we could walk on the street without worrying about traffic.

We were told to check out the market, where I saw the work of some really great photographers, but otherwise it just seemed like a glorified flea market; overcrowded and filled with souvenirs.

We had seen Southend Brewery go by a few times as we were driving so we stopped in while we were nearby and did a sampler. They had some really good stuff, including an unfiltered blonde ale with ginger and lemongrass. I really liked that one.

After a bit more walking around along the shore we headed back to the car. My overall impression of Charleston is much like that of so many other cities I've visited: I wouldn't mind coming back, but I wouldn't want to live there.

When we returned it was late and it was decided to go across the street to Buffalo Wild Wings for a small dinner. I had the fish tacos, which were really great with the Jamaican Jerk sauce, and a Duck Rabbit milk stout. All in all, quite a good day.. don't let my face fool you.