Adventuring LGBTQ+ Outdoors Club

disclaimer: the text above must have come from AI; I had nothing to do with it, although I can't quibble with any of it-- RH

Explore these two jewels of the Pacific Northwest

RSVP Prerequisites
(1) At the time of RSVP, participants must have already completed at least four Adventuring events (hikes and/or social gatherings) in the past year

(2) Must be fit enough for moderately strenuous hiking (our hikes could range up to 6-8 miles, with up to 2,000 feet of elevation gain)

(3) A $200 deposit will be required to secure your spot on the trip

Trip Details

Let's escape the worst of our summer heat and head to the opposite end of the country to spend a week exploring these two beautiful national parks, which are in the far corner of the Pacific Northwest.

We'll be hiking an amazing variety of terrain-- up forested canyons to tall waterfalls, across subalpine meadows of wildflowers past glacier-capped mountains, walking through cathedral-like old-growth rainforest, soaking in hot springs and hiking out to dramatic ocean beaches.

We’ll all stay in a big house together, sharing the cooking and kitchen duty, and riding to our hikes each day in the group cars. We’ll be spending three nights in Ashford, WA (for Mt. Rainier) and two nights each in Port Angeles and Forks, WA (for Olympic). Couples will have their own rooms. Singles will have their own beds, which may be in shared rooms or the living room.

Participants will share equally in the cost of the lodging, the rental cars and gas, the shared groceries and beverages, and any other group costs. Estimated at $1,300-1,600 each, all-in, for the week, plus participants will be responsible for their own travel costs to Seattle and back.

Limited to 7-9 participants (depends on how many additional couples sign up).

Get ready for a fun-filled tubing Trip down the Shenandoah River with your fellow Adventurers!
We’ll meet at Watermelon Park River Adventures in beautiful Berryville, Virginia at 11:30 on Saturday, August 8 with a river entry time of Noon. Total time on River approx 2 to 3 hours.

When you sign up, you’ll be placed on the waitlist —maximum of 20 at this time. The first 20 on the waitlist will be notified around mid July and given a window to purchase tickets to secure their spot.

As we get closer to the event, instructions will be sent on where to meet for those wishing to carpool. Costs to include approx $30.00 per rafting ticket, $10 to your driver and the $5.00 Adventuring fee. Participants will need to bring lunch and water/drinks/hats/sunscreen/optional water shoes(no sneakers). Sorry, no alcoholic drinks on the river. We are exploring possible stops for a drink afterward, however. 😁 There will be a cooler for drinks/food.

PLEASE NOTE: Participants arriving late may miss the noon entry time and be required to enter the river at a later time.

We will begin next Saturday's hike along the scenic and historic C&O Canal at Nolands Ferry in lower Frederick County (MD), the turnaround point for last summer's Monocacy Aqueduct hike. As we head upstream, we'll pass Calico Rocks, where the colorful Potomac Marble was quarried for the pillars of the Capitol Rotunda. We'll lunch at the Calico Rocks Hiker-Biker Campsite before arriving at Point of Rocks, where the Potomac River narrows dramatically as it cuts through the Catoctin Mountains. Point of Rocks boasts a magnificent Victorian railway station that is still heavily used by MARC train commuters. We'll then retrace our steps to Nolands Ferry.

Total length of this moderately strenuous round-trip hike along the level Canal towpath will be a bit over 7 miles. Bring plenty of beverages, lunch, bug spray, sunscreen, and $5 for the Adventuring trip fee (cash or Venmo), Carpool passengers will pay their drivers $8. Attendance is limited; please be sure to change your RSVP status to "Not Going" if you sign up and later decide you can't make it.

We'll meet to form our carpool at 9 a.m. next Saturday morning in the Kiss & Ride lot of the Forest Glen Metro Station and should return by dinnertime.

(Postponed from August 2 by poor weather.) Starting from the Tenleytown Metro at noon next Sunday the 9th, we will first walk to the Glover Archbold Park Trailhead just off Van Ness Street. We’ll walk south to the Wesley Heights trail that takes us west to the Battery Kemble trail, and then head south to Fletcher’s Cove. We’ll have lunch there near the Potomac; water and bathrooms are available.