The ABCs of Recreation Options, for the Dilettante and the Dedicated
Thursday, April 21, 2005; Page LZ48
C.M. Crockett Park in Fauquier County is an excellent place to stargaze, for the beginner or for the advanced. Depending on the time of year, expect to see constellations, planets, star clusters, galaxies, nebulae and possibly a few meteors and satellites. Volunteers usually bring a variety of telescopes and binoculars. Observation dates for the rest of this year and the beginning of next: May 14, June 11, July 9, Aug. 13, Sept. 10, Oct. 1, Nov. 5, Dec. 10, Jan. 7, 2006. 10066 Rogues Rd. (Route 602), Midland. 540-788-4867. www.fauquiercounty.gov/government/departments/parksrec/index.cfm?action=crockett or www.novac.com/crockett.
A game played by volleying a shuttlecock -- a small, cork hemisphere to which feathers are attached -- over a five-foot net with a light racket. Like tennis, it is played by two or four people. The game probably originated in India (where it was called poona), although it may have been known earlier in China, and it remains hugely popular among the Asian and British immigrant communities. In Loudoun County, aficionados play year-round from 4 to 6 p.m. Sundays at Harper Park Middle School, 701 Potomac Station Dr., Leesburg. Fees vary from $3 for those who come every week to $6 for the occasional player, plus $1 for the shuttlecocks, which covers the cost of keeping them in a humidifier to prevent the feathers from drying out. Lessons and pickup games are available, but mostly it's coached games during which instructors can stop play at any time to discuss and work on techniques. The level of play is fairly high, but all ages and abilities are welcome. 703-737-8940.
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Sportrock-Sterling, an indoor rock-climbing gym, features about 10,000 square feet of climbing on 40-foot walls, including a bouldering area and a lead cave that overhangs almost 30 feet. 45935 Maries Rd., Sterling. 703-212-7625. www.sportrock.com/locations/sterling.asp#. Members only on Mondays; open to the public the rest of the week.
Mighty Mike's in Sterling is considered the place to throw these small, pointed missiles because there are 14 dartboards up at any time (compared with two or three at other bars). The bar is league friendly, and many dart players hang out here even when they aren't playing with their teams. Seventeen teams of differing skills meet here at 8 p.m. every other Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The Washington Area Darts Association holds two tournaments a year here. $10 for a lifetime membership fee, then $20 per season, per team. 22330 S. Sterling Blvd. 703-421-8920. www.wadadarts.org.
The Morven Park Equestrian Center is available weekdays for schooling, depending on the weather and scheduled events. Bring your horse and practice riding and jumping in rings with all-weather footing, a combination of sand and bluestone. There is also a cross-country schooling course, consisting of a large field with solid wooden fences, water obstacles and ditches. Reservations are required. Prices vary but start at $20 per horse/rider combination. There is no coach on site. If you don't have a horse, equestrian events are held almost every weekend, including hunter shows, dressage shows and pony club competitions. Many events are free. 41793 Tutt Lane, Leesburg. 703-777-2890. www.morvenpark.org.
Spend a quiet day fishing on Lake Brittle, where you can catch largemouth bass, red-eared sunfish, shell crackers and other small pan fish. You can launch your own boat onto the 77-acre lake (if it has a motor, it must be electric rather than gas) or rent a motorboat or canoe. You can also fish off the pier. A small picnic area is available to enjoy the lunch you bring or catch. Open seven days a week Memorial Day through Labor Day; schedule varies during the rest of the year. 4354 Lake Brittle Dr., Warrenton. 540-347-6888. www.fauquiercounty.gov/government/departments/parksrec/index.cfm?action=lakebrittle
Two days after then-President Clinton granted civilians access to a Defense Department network of satellites in 2000, a man hid a notebook inside a watertight ammunition container in the woods near Portland, Ore., and posted its longitude and latitude coordinates on the Web. Before you could say Lewis and Clark, the game -- or sport -- of geocaching was born. Players around the world were investing in a hot, new high-tech toy, a hand-held Global Positioning System receiver, checking clues on the Internet and searching for his container and similar hidden treasures. According to www.geocaching.com, that single Web posting has morphed into a worldwide scavenger hunt encompassing more than 127,000 "caches" in 210 countries -- and 64 in Loudoun County, including two in Claude Moore Park in Sterling. www.loudoun.gov/prcs/parks/claude.htm.
Have you ever gone hiking at night? Claude Moore Park in Sterling organizes about six night or moonlight hikes a year. Night hikes give you an opportunity to see animals, such as raccoons, barred owls, bats and varieties of insects, that you probably wouldn't see during the day. Also, a night hike allows you to use more of your senses and experience the nighttime sounds and scents of the wilderness. The 1 1/2-hour hikes, suitable for families with children over 5, are guided by a naturalist on certain trails in the park's 357 acres of hardwood forest, cedar forest and man-made ponds. No flashlights are needed; your eyes will adjust to the light of the stars and perhaps even the full moon. Most hikes cost $3.50; reservations required. 21544 Old Vestals Gap Rd., 703-444-1275. www.loudoun.gov/prcs/parks/claude.htm.
The Washington and Old Dominion trail is well suited to in-line skating -- it's mostly flat, is paved with high-quality asphalt and is relatively free of debris -- although there are some sharp turns and downhill patches. It's usually 10 to 12 feet across, so there's enough room to build up a good stride. The last 22 miles of the trail run through Loudoun, from Route 28 to Purcellville, and the last 10 miles, bordered by trees on both sides and overlooking fields and farmland, are particularly scenic. Skaters are reminded to wear helmets and other padding for safety, to stay on the right on the trail and to give audible warning when passing pedestrians and other users.
This sport -- mock battles between two knights who charged at each other with leveled lances in an attempt to unseat the other -- probably originated in France in the 11th century and flourished in much of Europe in the 12th to 15th centuries. Though the lances were blunted, knights were often seriously wounded or killed. Tournaments were mounted only by royalty and nobility; ladies of the court would sponsor individual knights, for whom jousting became a ritual of courtly love. Knights were considered gentlemen and were required to abide by the ideas of chivalry and fair play. The sport has evolved to a challenge in which riders try to spear rings that graduate down to the size of lifesavers rather than try to knock one another off their horses. The National Jousting Association will hold a tournament at Trinity Episcopal Church in Upperville during the Hunt Country Stable Tour on May 29, and the National Jousting Championships will be held Oct. 8 at Franklin Park in Purcellville. www.nationaljousting.com.
Goose Creek is a shady steam with about 50 navigable miles that pass horse farms, historic mills and other bits of old Loudoun. You can go any time after a good rainfall, but the best time is in late spring, April or May. The trick is finding a place to launch your kayak because much of the creek is bordered by private property. You can access it via Keep Loudoun Beautiful Park at Route 7 and Golf Club Road just outside Leesburg.
It's the oldest sport in North America, dating to the 1400s. It didn't become widely known until the 1600s, when Jesuit missionary Jean de Brebeuf saw the Huron Indians play it and, in a report to his superiors, likened the long-handled stick used to move a small rubber ball across the field to the "crosier" carried by a bishop at religious ceremonies. Thus, the name "la crosse" evolved, which later became simply "lacrosse." Eastern Loudoun Lacrosse, Fauquier Youth and Western Loudoun teams play in the Northern Virginia Lacrosse League. nvyll.sportscombine.com.
Okay, it's a half-marathon, but it's for a good cause. The 11th annual Run for the Shelter, to raise money for the Loudoun Abused Women's Shelter, takes place Sept. 25. Races begin at 8 a.m. at the 4-H Fairgrounds, 17558 Dry Mill Rd., Leesburg. One race is a half-marathon (13.1 miles); the other is a 5K. A maximum of 1,000 runners allowed. The timing of the race, one month before the Marine Corps Marathon, makes it an excellent opportunity for runners who want to see how their training is coming. 703-391-1490. For registration, sponsorship or volunteer information, visit www.loudounroadrunners.orgor www.lcsj.org.
This basketball-like game was invented in the United States but is much more popular in other countries and is played almost exclusively by women, seven to a team. Almost all the members of the Ashburn-based Northern Virginia Netball Club are foreigners, and they play both for exercise and to keep in touch with a pastime popular in their homelands. 202-253-9868 or go to www.novanetball.com.