The grass may be greener somewhere else, but the autumn leaves are reddest right here.
On Monday, catching up on a week’s worth of Saratogians after a vacation ooh-ing and ah-ing the changing leaves in the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, I found this front page news: Saratoga National Historical Park has been named one of the top 10 most photogenic parks for fall foliage by the National Park Foundation.
Guess I didn’t have to travel 1,300 miles to see the yellows, golds and burnt oranges of autumn — and we definitely had to head back north for the bright reds.
Still, I recommend Skyline Drive and visits to the places we stopped: In Virginia, Charlottesville (home of Jefferson's Monticello home and the University of Virginia, which he founded as a little retirement project, plus wineries and a downtown pedestrian mall with lots of tempting restaurants) and Lexington (dubbed the "coolest" little town and home to Washington and Lee University and the Virginia Military Institute, where the museum dedicated to alum George C. Marshall explains the Marshall plan for a new generation and displays the Nobel Peace Prize for a man who earned it before receiving it).
Also, if you haven't been to Gettysburg, Pa., in a couple of years (or ever), the new museum is not only a great alternative to the driving tours on a rainy day, but it's a really cool, interactive way to learn about the Civil War, the people and the battles.