Between moving twice in two years, Jess and I are expecting, and acclimating to working in Colonial National Historical Park.  Jess and I have not been able to get outside nearly enough.  From backpacking and mountaineering to simply driving to a lake to listen to the waters dance.  Although moving to this area has been a constant reminder of the wild we belong… And this is a good reminder to have from time to time.

Originally, we planned to hike to Lake Drummond, but with a lack of time and having spent most of the day running errands, we opted to drive to the Lake.  We will certainly be back to experience this peaceful place on foot sooner than later, but until then, here is a story of our latest adventure and experience.  I had heard of the Great Dismal Swamp at some point in life, but I could not pinpoint when…  I presume it was in childhood, while watching educational PBS TV Shows or my Mother talking about it with me….Something she most likely read about and would now love to see..  I learned many things watching these shows or listening to my parents’ interests and thoughts. 

I was excited to add this experience to my Adventure Resume and share such a unique experience with Jessica and our yet-to-be-born Son.. Brae.  We took the opportunity to take Maternity Photographs as Jess is showing at this point in pregnancy!

To get here we drove on relatively narrow roads, all of them dusty and made of gravel.  The washboarding was not bad and the pot holes were shallow.  A Canal paralleled the road… Only giving way once we were at Lake Drummond.  The Refuge seemed still but in movement.  As if it were a place that once could pause his or her life and take a deep breath.  A fitting place to introduce our little Brae to his first taste of nature’s quiet.

For those who want a reprieve from the monotony of life, for the Wilderness Person who is stuck in the city, or just anyone who needs a moment in nature.  Let me suggest the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge.  A place unlike others in the Hampton Roads Region.  An oasis of quiet within the noise of life.

-Sky