Flying Fox Winery

Just a short drive from Fenton Inn is a Flying Fox Winery. It was open in 2018 .

There are several rooms where you can enjoy your wine tasting.

You can try several types of white and red wines.

Selections change often.

Some of the tasting tables in a main room.

The Split Banana Ice cream and Gypsy Hill Park in Staunton VA

Another stop in nearby Staunton, is my wife's favorite ice cream place, The SplitBanana.

Located in the historic downtown area of Staunton, the town has a number of shops, artist galleries and restaurants.

If you going to have ice cream..have good ice cream and enjoy the whole process of picking a favorite and ...wow, I am getting hungry just looking at this picture here.

A list of the ingredients have many locally sourced organic items, such as Nelson County honey.

A stroll through the nearby park to leisurely eat your ice cream.  The ducks enjoy watching people, especially anyone eating food.

Sorry ducks, this one is just too good to share.

Glass Making in Staunton

Just a 30 minute drive from the Fenton Inn is the town of Staunton, the home of Sunspots, a center for glass blowing artists from around the area.

An artist loads up glass on the pipe for a demonstration.

A sign showing some of the basic tools for glass blowing.

An artist is shaping his ork with added heat from the gas torch.

Some of the many vases for sale at the center.

Several cute turtles.

A giant hand blow vase for $2000.

Decorative hand made glass works with many other artist tables in the distance.

Cedar Cliffs Hike

A hike to Cedar Cliffs near the Fenton Inn

 We hiked during the peak of the flowering Mountain Laurels.  It was a very scenic trail and fairly moderate in terms of steepness.  The trail head is on Wintergreen just near the snow tubing and adventure park. 

  

The sign marks the beginning of the trail, which starts out as a gravel road used by the ski slopes for maintenance.  It is not exactly scenic, but this quickly gives way to the trail in the woods.

Rhododendron flowers and Mountain Laurels line the path for most of the hike.  They bloom in May for several weeks and with all the rain fall we had in spring, the flowers looked amazing this year.

With all the flowers, it is like walking through the green houses at Kew Gardens.

After about 45 minutes of descent, we reach the Cedar Cliff overlook.

Looking back up towards the now green ski slopes of Wintergreen as fog rolls in.

The trail is marked clearly and well traveled path.  Much of the trail was easy walking with a few ups and downs.  If you missed the flowers, the fall colors will be out before you know it.

Hiking to White Rock Falls

One of the cascades at White Rock Falls.  I can only guess the big boulder is the whitish rock, though there were no truly white rocks around.  

There are two ways to the falls, the shorter of the two is by parking at the Slacks overlook, about 7 miles South on the Blue Ridge Parkway from the Fenton Inn ( MP 19.9)

The trail head is across the Parkway from the overlook and fairly subtly marked if you don't know where to look.  There are orange flags near the road and a small sign.  Once on the trail, the path is very well marked and cleared, with several wooden bridges across the stream.

A large fallen tree.  This ancient giant Hemlock may have been the ancestor of the many Hemlock trees in the area. 

A view out over the valley.  The woods are a mix of pines and poplars just getting their leaves in late spring.

A Hemlock tree has needles that are flat and branches that are also flat, where as most other pines have rounded needles and grow three dimensional branches and needle clusters.

A Chestnut Oak with shelf mushrooms.   

A lower cascade at the White Rock Falls where the trail crosses the stream.  We turned back at this spot, but had we taken two cars, we could have left one at the other end of the trail and continued on the trail.  As it was, we hiked for about 45 minutes to the lower falls and about the same to return to the overlook.  There was a bit more climbing on the return hike, but mostly shaded in the cool woods.  

Another cascade at the waterfall as the stream descends into the valley. It was a good afternoon hike, enough to feel like we went somewhere with out taking more than 2 hours.  Some of the best views were back at the car at the overlook, but the woods along the trail were filled with spring flowers, mountain laurel, trillium flowers, and many scenic rock cliffs to make it a very rewarding hike.

The Plunge hike at Wintergreen

Hiking the Plunge near the Fenton Inn

A panoramic view back towards Three Ridges from the Plunge rocky cliffs.

The trail head is just off Blackrock Circle,  and the hike is only 0 point 2 miles or 1/5 of a mile.  The decimal point is a bit faded on the sign.

Looking back up towards some of the large houses on Blackrock Circle.  You will note that we have been hiking down to get the view, and will climb up to get to the car again.  A bit opposite from most mountain climbing, but still great views from the Plunge.

A balanced rock on the edge of the cliff framed by some pine trees that cling to the rocks.  

Ancient stone works were made in the early 1980s when the trails were cut around the mountain.  

A natural table top and bench to enjoy the view.

Looking out over the Devil's backbone in the valley below.  A perfect spot for a zip line, but then how would we ever get back to the car?

A panoramic view on a sunny spring day.  We will have to come back and see it in the fall.

Day trip to Staunton.

Downtown Staunton has a number of restaurants and shops and just a 30 minute drive from the Fenton Inn.

The theater called the Black Friars playhouse brings to life Shakespeare in the Shenandoah Valley.

The chocolate shop called Cocoa Mill is a must stop for something sweet.

The display has many hand dipped delights.

Large variety of truffles.

Assorted chocolates could be a great gift for any occasion.

A favorite restaurant called Zynodoa offers a fresh menu and wine paring options. A number of our guests have been there and recommend the wine pairing with sampler sized plates of different menu items. It is a great way to try a variety of different foods and wines rather than deciding on just entrée. Life is about exploring and Staunton offers a fun day out on the town.