C is for Cascades

This past weekend we were in Blacksburg for the Virginia Tech/North Carolina football game so I decided to plan my C Adventure in the Blacksburg area. Doug had mentioned a hike to the Cascades was something he always meant to do so that’s what I decided to go with.

The long weekend started off bright and early on Thursday morning; our flight to Raleigh departed Boston at 7AM. The JetBlue experience was wonderful as always. Those seat back TV screens with DirectTV are wonderful. We landed in Raleigh before 9 and headed straight to Cracker Barrel to load up on pancakes, eggs, and of course hash brown casserole. Then we made the 3-hour journey to our hotel outside Blacksburg. Later in the afternoon we arrived on campus and walked downtown for our “tailgate” meal. This time we decided to hit Souvlaki, a Blacksburg institution which serves delicious pitas and subs. After eating we walked around downtown and the campus as it was a beautiful, warm day. There’s not much to say about the game, the Hokies lost - their second loss in as many games and their third loss of the season. Needless to say, we won’t be seeing them play in the ACC Championship game again this year.

After a rough night’s sleep, we got up and “enjoyed” a continental breakfast at the hotel of cold donuts. Then we were off for the short drive to the Cascades trailhead. It paid off arriving early, as on the way back down the trail the masses were starting to arrive. The hike ended up being just what we needed after a tough loss and we were able to recharge our batteries. It was a beautiful trail through rhododendron tunnels and along a picturesque stream, leading up to the Cascades waterfall at the end.

After the hike, we checked in to hotel #2 in Blacksburg and freshened up before heading to the new Bull & Bones for a real carnivore’s meal. The BBQ sauce on the ribs was great, and Doug especially liked the sweet potato casserole.

Saturday dawned warm and rainy. Our plans were to head out early and hit the North Carolina Zoo on our way back to Raleigh for our late afternoon flight. We arrived at the zoo in the late morning and braved the drizzle for a few hours. The NC Zoo, which we’ve visited once before, is a wonderful zoo which features North American and African animals in a hilly, woodsy setting. On our way back to the airport, we stopped at Red Robin for lunch; we love their wraps and bottomless fries. As we taxied down the runway in Raleigh I happened to look out and see a plane with the logo of the San Jose Sharks on the tail. Sure enough, the Sharks were in town to play the Carolina Hurricanes the next day.

All in all not the best record for us this year at Hokie games. We witnessed two loses and one win. However, the win was perhaps the most exciting game we’ve seen in person.

The C Adventure was a success if I do say so myself. I look forward to finding out what Doug has planned for D!