IN COUNTRY

Front Royal In Autumn’s Splendor

By David Roffman & Brando

October 2008

Photo: Tres Bella Day Spa

On a beautiful Saturday morning, Oct. 4, we headed out I -66 to Front Royal, Virginia. Fall had definitely arrived, and with the shorter days and cooler temperature, we figured it would be a perfect day for an outing to see the colors and textures of autumn in the foothills of the Shenandoah. We hadn’t taken such a day trip in over 8 years, but our memory of our last visit to Front Royal was indeed a fond one and we couldn’t wait to get going. With our Labrador (Brando, named after James Dean) in the back seat, we were off!

Traffic was not too heavy at 8 in the morning on a Saturday, so the 70 mile drive went quickly. As we neared our destination, we were breathless looking at the purple dogwoods and the red sumac saplings so evident at this time of year. Bright red Virginia creeper vines stole the show as they wound their way up trees, along rocky outcrops, and even over the rock walls that line the Skyline Drive. And the wildflowers showing their seasonal hues brought tears to our eyes. How fortunate we are to live so close to such majestic beauty we thought.

Many of the trees are still totally green due to the plentiful rainfalls we’ve had this past spring and summer, but plenty of them are changing or have already completely changed into their autumn wardrobe. The yellows and oranges of hickories, birches and striped maples are just as we remember them eight autumns ago.

Although temperatures last Saturday were fairly nice, it’s important to remember that weather can change quickly in the mountains. And don’t forget that mountaintop temperatures tend to be a good 10-15 degrees cooler than the surrounding valleys, or even Washington D.C. So if you are planning on going to the Shenandoah mountains this coming weekend or next, remember that the temperature difference will be obvious after the sun goes down for the night.

We got to Front Royal in about 2 and half hours, after several stops.

(There are several pull-over stops along the way to take photographs, so don’t forget your camera). The town of Front Royal is in Warren County, near the junction of the North Fork and the South Fork of the Shenandoah River.

We had visited the Skyline Caverns on our last visit to Front Royal (we remember seeing a big photograph of Bing Crosby upon entering the Caverns – evidently taken about 60 years ago when ole’ Bing went through the Caverns). Front Royal is also well known as the “Canoe Capital of Virginia,” and is also the north entrance to Shanandoah National Park via the famous Skyline Drive, but we came not for canoeing or kayaking on the Shenandoah Valley River or hiking trails either for that matter, much to the chagrin of Brando I’m sure, but to visit the historical sites, find a decent restaurant, shop a little, maybe taste some Virginia wine, and call it a day.

Our first stop was at the Vistor Center for brochures and other visitor information. Whenever we go daytripping, our first stop is always at the local visitor center. Jennifer Keck runs the tourist center, a gracious gal ready to help you make your visit a pleasant one. You can go online and reach her at jkeck@frontroyal.com or call her at 540-635-5788.

We decided to take a self-guided walking tour to acquaint ourselves with some of the town’s historical sites and personalities. I learned that Front Royal was incorporated in 1788 andplayed a significant agricultural, industrial, educational, religious and military role from the early days of the Republic. By comparison, Georgetown was incorporated in 1789.

Front Royal is closely related to the Civil War. At the Warren Rifles Confederate Museum at 95 Chester Street I viewed exhibits including memorabilia of Belle Boyd, Mosby’s Rangers, Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis and others, together with arms, uniforms and historic documents. I love this stuff, my wife and Brando were not as interested. They went for a walk outside while I “dallied” in the museum for half an hour.

We wandered into a vintage clothing store, Vintage Swank (212 East Main), offering clothing, house wares, furniture, lighting and more from the 1920s-1970s. They carry an abundance of goods, from designer couture to just plain funky. We noticed over on North Royal Drive a delightful place called Tres Bella Day Spa and Boutique. My wife wandered in and did some shopping for essentials at the boutique, but Brando and I waited patiently outside. My wife said next time we come, we’ll make a weekend of it and she wants to go to Tres Bella. “Tres bien,” we told her.

By now we were hungry. We stopped off at Soul Mountain Café on East Main Street. We had heard from friends that they offer some wonderful dishes. We had the Cajun fried breast of chicken on potato roll with Chipolte mayo, and a catfish Po Boy (Cajun fried, blackened). Wonderul!

The restaurant is open from 12 to 4 Tuesdays thru Sundays, and 4 to 9 for dinners. Brando, by the way, waited patiently outside, tied to a hitching post. I brought him some of my Cajin Po Boy.

There’s also a Soul Mountain BBQ Shack on Royal Avenue...next time.

After lunch we came upon Architectural Old House Parts, a shop at 122 East Main Street. It was founded by Patricia A. Failmezger after she found that acquiring old beams, flooring, and other parts to rebuild an 1820 log house was a definite challenge. With seven years experience in real estate and an appreciation of old buildings, she completed a certificate program in Historic Preservation with Goucher College and opened this store. Here they preserve and recycle building material and parts of old houses and barns for use in historic restoration and rehabilitation projects and for use in new construction or remodeling projects. This shop was a real find for us. We can’t wait to tell our contractor friends and neighbors looking for an historic old door, or mantel, or whatever their Georgetown home needs. Their phone number is 540-636-7984, or go to their website: www.oldhouseparts.net.

To top off our day in Front Royal, we visited Vino E. Formaggio, a delightful gourmet wine, beer, cheese and specialty food store located at 124 Main Street. Here they focus on imported wines in the $10 to $20 range (which is great). They also have wine tastings every Saturday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. (and we were in luck at 4 p.m.). The managers are Tory and Dennis, and are very friendly and welcoming. We tasted a few wines, had some hand-cut cheese, bought a couple of bottles, and said our goodbyes.

It was a wonderful day in the foothills of the Shenandoah, and we vowed that our visits to Front Royal will be more frequent, and we highly recommend that if you are looking for a fall weekend getaway, then there is no more dramatic mix of valley and mountains, bound on the east by the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive, and on the west by the West Virginia border. And running down the center, stringing together, are the small towns like Front Royal and the scenic attractions.

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