Becoming an Outdoors Woman Maryland

[elkriverrats]

Good Morning Ladies!
I am very excited to be attending this weekend event in western MD! Leaving early tomorrow morning and was curious to see if any members from my neck of the woods are also attending. A friend and I have been on the wait list for the last two years so this year we got our registration info in the day after it came out - still not early enough to get our first choice of seminars, it fills up so fast. Wanted to take some hiking and outdoor survival classes...maybe next year. I am taking bird watching, map and compass, outdoor cooking, and preserving the harvest. My friend will be taking some of the same and also fly tie-ing and beginning fly fishing.
The seminar ends on Sunday and we hope to meander home via the C&O Ntl Park along the Potomac River. We hope to see the Paw Paw Tunnel, Harpers Ferry, and Great Falls. We will be truck camping for this part of the trip.
If anyone has any suggestions on things to see or campgrounds it would be much appreciated.
Safe and happy travels to all!
Kelly

[avalen]

That sounds like fun!

[gypsyrose1126]

Kelly - Have fun -- I did the outdoors woman in SC - it was great. Got to try some things I never would have had a chance to do otherwise. They had one class , how to back up a trailer. I didn't take it, as did not have my trailer at that time. Boy, wish I could take it now!

[elkriverrats]

I'm all packed and very pumped up! We are hitting the road at 5am. And a chance of snow showers in the mountains WHAT! It's been in the 80s here so that will be a shock.
I would also like to do trailer backing, it's been awhile since my pop up travels and I am thinking of revamping out small boat trailer for my kayak to tow behind the MH.
Will post a trip report when home. Seems like many states offer this program now.
Thanks for the replies and have a great weekend everyone

[Bethers]

That sounds like fun. Have a great time.

[bluepinecones]

Sounds like a great adventure.
Think we only have one member who lives in MD and she is on her way to FL for the winter.

[snowball]

not heard of it but it does sound like fun
sheila

[MandysMom]

Sounds a bit like an adult version of Girl Scouts!

[elkriverrats]

It was a blast! Grown up Girl Scouts pretty much sums it up The instructors were great and the entire weekend was so well organized. We slept in cabins and ate cafeteria style. They had a social planned each evening in the lodge with door prizes, a game menu sampler and craft activity. There were city girls, country girls, and everything in between. It was SO COLD but we all made the best of it. Now I understand why it fills up within a few days of registration opening. The classes offered were diverse and hands on. The instructors volunteer their time for the MD event and they were top notch. Mine included two park managers, a professor that heads the wildlife studies program at a local college, and a park ranger. For my food preservation class we canned with a pressure canner and water bath canner then made sauerkraut. We all took home a jar of each method. Bird watching class was half instruction and half outside. They gave us bird identication books. Map and compass was also half instruction and half field. We did a small course and recorded our compass readings at each stop. We received a tool to help measure our location on a topo map. The gardening class was my fave. Only three participants so we got lots of advice about our particular gardening issues then planted garlic to bring home. It was fun to chat after the classes. Everyone wanted to know what class you took and what you did during. I realized that I could take any class they offered and enjoy it!
Following the workshop my friend and I headed to the C&O Canal Park. It's about 180 miles of driving so we had a whirlwind tour. We hiked through the Paw Paw tunnel (3000' of darkness!) and stopped at some of the locks and walked around a bit. Camped at McCoys Ferry, one of the few camp areas you can have a small rv or trailer. There are many walk in campgrounds to accommodate the cyclists who travel the canal path. Our last day we visited Harpers Ferry and Great Falls. We were told the water level was low at the falls but it was impressive to me.

[snowball]

so would you post in the recipe forum how to make sauerkraut?
have wanted to make it haven't but would like to try when I've had it fresh was so yummy
sheila