We spent the day in the Shenandoah National Park, just east of
our campground in Luray, Virginia.
During the morning, we had a ranger led tour of Rapidan Camp, President
Herbert Hoover’s personal fishing camp.
The afternoon was spent at the Byrd Visitor Center at Big Meadows
followed by vista viewing at several of the overlook viewing pull-offs on the
Skyline Drive.
Rapidan Camp
Upon arrival at the
Big Meadows Visitor Center, we boarded vans that transported us down a 5-1/2
mile gravel road to Rapidan Camp. Park
rangers provided an overview of the history of President Hoover, the
construction of Hoover’s rustic fishing camp, and its use. After walking through some of the grounds, we
toured inside the “Prime Minister's" cabin and the “Brown House.”
Rapidan Camp was
built by President Herbert Hoover and his wife Lou Henry Hoover and served as
their retreat from Washington, DC during Hoover’s administration from 1929 to
1933. Rapidan Camp, later known as Camp
Hoover, was a forerunner of the current presidential retreat, Camp David.
The president’s
desire for a fishing retreat drove the search for a location within 100 miles
of Washington that was at an elevation of at least 2,500 feet. A representative from Virginia leading the
location search recommended the Hoovers create their camp at the headwaters of
the Rapidan River.
Less than three weeks after Hoover’s inauguration, the
Hoovers selected the Rapidan site.
Although Virginia offered to give Hoover the camp, the President and his wife bought
the land for $1,045 and building materials for $22,719 with their own
funds. The Marine Corps provided
construction labor as a “military exercise.”
Mrs. Hoover oversaw construction as the Marines built thirteen buildings
including a lodge, two mess halls, cabins, and a town hall. The main lodge, known as the “Brown
House”, as opposed to the White House, served as the living quarters for the
Hoovers. They also created several miles
of hiking trails, a stone fountain, several concrete-lined trout pools, and a
miniature golf course.
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| The Brown House |
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| The Prime Minister's |
Many years after he left office, President Hoover approved
demolition of several buildings in order to reduce the cost of maintaining the
camp by the National Parks Service.
Today, only three buildings remain, including the Brown House and the Prime
Minister's cabin.
When Franklin Roosevelt succeeded Hoover, Roosevelt’s need
for accessibility found the access roads difficult to get his car to the cabin,
hiking trails too rough for his wheelchair, and the waters too cold to
swim. So, the new president selected a
site in Maryland for his “Shangri-La”, now known as Camp David.
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| Tour group 1 |
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| Tour group 2 |
After completing our tour of the camp, we boarded the vans
and returned to the visitor center. We
drove our personal vehicles to the Big Meadows Lodge for lunch.
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| Man, that lunch was great! |
Byrd Visitor Center at Big Meadows
Following lunch, we returned to the visitor center to view
the Park Service videos about the park and the CCC (Civilian Conservation
Corps), who constructed much of the Shenandoah National Park.
As we departed the park heading towards Luray, we stopped at
several of the Skyline Drive turnouts to view the vistas of the Shenandoah
Valley. To the west of our location a
thunderstorm was in progress offering unique views of the Valley where the rain
was falling.
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| And the thunder rolls |
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| Wilt, I can see the geocache over there |
