Author Archives: John M

Sugarloaf – a photo hike

Posted on May 31, 2014 by John M

Here is a series of photos presenting views seen along the trail during a hike at Sugarloaf Mountain, Maryland, on May 30, 2014. Sugarloaf Mountain is a relatively low (1,282-foot) mountain located at 7901 Comus Road, Dickerson MD 20842. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Inc., nature, outdoors, Stronghold, Sugarloaf Mountain, West View parking area, White Rocks, wildlife | 10 Comments

Blue sky, mountain meadow

Posted on May 19, 2014 by John M

Finally managed to get the hiking group up onto the Appalachian Trail last weekend, and what a wonderful visit! Sky Meadows State Park is only about an hour’s drive from the I-495 Capital Beltway, which makes it what I think … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Alexandria Walking & Hiking Group, Appalachian Trail, Battle of First Manassas, Bluebird, Delaplane, Goldfinch, Indigo Bunting, Mosby's Rangers, nature, outdoors, Piedmont Station, Sky Meadows, Sky Meadows State Park | 8 Comments

Two urban hikes

Posted on May 16, 2014 by John M

Last week the weather forecast for the weekend was for rain both days, all the way until Thursday-ish, when the weather mages started changing their tune. As it turned out, both days turned out to be beautiful, but the evening … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Bartholdi Fountain, Court of Neptune Fountain, King Street, Man Controlling Trade, Neptune Fountain, old town alexandria, outdoors, Peace Monument, Rhyton, Senate Fountain, Washington DC, weather forecast, Wilkes Street | 4 Comments

Sunny days

Posted on May 5, 2014 by John M

This past weekend our hiking group spent two sunny days giving the District of Columbia some loving! Saturday was the early morning visit to the U.S. National Arboretum that I mentioned in my last post, and the sunshine and light … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Atlas District, azalea garden, azaleas, District of Columbia, East Capitol, enjoyable hike, H Street, outdoors, U.S. National Arboretum, Washington DC | 2 Comments

Swimmingly

Posted on April 29, 2014 by John M

Yesterday I drove up to Washington DC for a walk in the U.S. National Arboretum to take a peek at how this year’s azaleas are coming along. My conclusion is, swimmingly! Swimmingly in both a figurative and a literal sense … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Arboretum, azaleas, Mount Hamilton, nature, outdoors, U.S. National Arboretum | 7 Comments

Ups and Downs

Posted on April 23, 2014 by John M

Last Saturday I had a trip planned to the Shenandoah National Park (SNP), a repeat of the combined hikes at Dark Hollow Falls and Hawksbill we did last June. Since this was to be the first trip to SNP in 2014, … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, History, Photography | Tagged Civil War, Fraser Preserve, Great Falls National Park, nature, outdoors, Potomac Heritage Trail, Potomac River, Rowser's Ford, Scotts Run Nature Preserve, Seneca Park, Shenandoah Mountains, Shenandoah National Park | 2 Comments

A last look at the falling blossoms

Posted on April 15, 2014 by John M

Last Sunday I scheduled a 4-mile walk on the National Mall for the last day of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, to see the long-anticipated blossoms at their fullest bloom beginning to fall in flurries, like light pink petals of snow floating on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged cherry blossom, Cherry Blossom Festival, cherry blossoms, Enid A. Haupt Garden, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Martin Luther King Memorial, Mary Livingstone Ripley Garden, National Cherry Blossom Festival, outdoors, Smithsonian Arts and Industries Building, the National Mall, Washington DC, World War II Memorial | Comments Off

W.R. Hutsell’s World War II in Europe

Posted on April 13, 2014 by John M

Getting another classic Hutsell MS-DOS strategy game up and running Background Quite some time ago I wrote about W.R. Hutsell’s VGA Civil War Strategy, a wonderful little MS-DOS gem that is available as a free download at Hutsell’s Games. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Games | Tagged DOSBox, get it to play, Hutsell's Games, MS-DOS, VGA Civil War Strategy, W.R. Hutsell, wargame, World War II in Europe | Comments Off

Finally

Posted on April 7, 2014 by John M

After the dreary last weekend in March, with the unexpected snowfall on Sunday, this past weekend finally propelled us forward into Spring, and we celebrated with a nice walk around the National Mall in Washington DC on Saturday. We started … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Enid A. Haupt Garden, National Cherry Blossom Festival, National Mall, Tidal Basin, Washington DC, washington monument | 10 Comments

Snooping around

Posted on March 28, 2014 by John M

Yesterday I took a lunchtime stroll around the National Mall to get a look at the preparations for the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival. It’s always more fun walking with friends, so a half-dozen folks joined me in the Enid A. Haupt … Continue reading →

Posted in Hiking, Photography | Tagged Cherry Blossom Festival, Enid A. Haupt Garden, Floral Library, gun control, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, National Cherry Blossom Festival, outdoors, Potomac River, Storm the Hill, the National Mall, Washington DC | 4 Comments