Sherman Shifflett   If you have never been to Mountain Lake Lodge (where "Dirty Dancing" was filmed), it is worth a visit. Ava and I spent last Thursday night there. Mountain Lake is seven miles up a mountain off Rt. 460, west of Blacksburg, in Giles County. The lake sprung a leak and doesn't have much water in it now. I understand that it drains about every hundred years or so. … [Read more...]

This was a road trip I have looked forward to for several months. The temperature was 65 degrees, it was warm and sunny and my garden had dried out enough from the snowmelt that I could plant - and it was my day off. I hopped in my Jeep and headed north on Rt. 29 to Southern States. It wasn’t a very long road trip, just 3 miles, but it was a necessary trip before planted my garden. I always … [Read more...]

A road trip to Fishersville? Really? Yep, but your timing needs to be accurate. This road trip should take place between Feb. 26-28, to coincide with the 29th Annual Western Virginia Sport Show at the Augusta Expo in Fishersville. This show offers one of the best opportunities to hook up with a guide and enjoy that hunt of a lifetime. Everything from a South Dakota Pheasant hunt to an Elk Safari … [Read more...]

Lots of people didn’t take a vacation this year, for the obvious reason that business is off and money is tight within many family budgets. People are working longer hours these days just to stay even and are sometimes working two and three jobs. But with all the pressure and long hours, a little down time is needed more than ever.   I have found that it is possible to take a late fall … [Read more...]

For the second week in a row, Nags Head is the recommended destination for a CvilleBuzz Road Trip. That’s because while the striped bass fishing in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay is still slow and the fish and bait are scattered, the stripers in the sound at Nags Head are thick as thieves and hungry. It’s even better this week than the week before, says Guide Capt. Reese Stecher of Beach Bum Guide … [Read more...]

If you have been waiting to make a road trip to Nags Head, now is the time. The stripers in the sound behind Nags Head are plentiful and they’re biting. Says Capt. Reese Stecher, a Nags Head Fishing Guide, “It’s not quite like the old days, but almost as good. The fish are all over the sound.” Reese said he and a client recently caught a limit of keepers in about 15 minutes. It was almost … [Read more...]

Boy, this would be a good weekend to get out, take a little road trip and see the beautiful colors of the changing autumn leaves. It would also be a good time to visit a Virginia vineyard and maybe hear some great music while savoring a bottle of crisp, white wine. What if you could do all this and enjoy some delicious food in a beautiful Shenandoah Valley setting? You can, at CrossKeys Vineyards … [Read more...]

In the bible, God once told Moses to take off his sandals because the place on which the Great Lawmaker was standing was holy ground. There is a spot in West Virginia’s Grant County that I feel that way about. It’s holy ground, indeed, where God did some of his very best work. In fact, I think maybe He was showing off a little. This is spectacular country. The South Branch of the North Fork of … [Read more...]

  Each fall, our house in Charlottesville becomes something of a Bed & Breakfast for the ladies in my family as they come from as far away as Houston to attend Martha’s Market. Marsha, my sister in law, comes from Myrtle Beach, my other sister in law, Laura, drives in from Charleston, WV and my younger sister, Jo, is the visiting Texan. It’s an event they don’t want to … [Read more...]