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JORDAN WRIGHT
September 18 & 20, 2011
Indian Country Today Media Network
When the urge to nourish the body as well as the spirit comes to us, we should be ready to receive the signal. Our active lives need periods of rest, relaxation and rejuvenation to stay in balance. When traveling through Indian Country there are plenty of soul-soothing places to choose from, but it’s especially rewarding when a first class spa is found within a deluxe resort.
For the thrill-seeker the casino offers a glittering nightlife and sheer exhilaration – cranking up the endorphins and getting the adrenaline flowing. Gamblers fine-tuned to the bright lights and all-night action feel their pulse quickened over a roulette wheel, gaming table or bank of slots, yet the call for periods of tranquility that appeal to our inner selves, still resonates.
So whether the heat comes off a lucky streak or an aromatic steam bath, you can satisfy both cravings at one of these four casino resorts designed to combine both excitement and healing under one big roof.
 Spa Treatment Room at Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino - photo credit Mohegan Sun Resort and Casion Mohegan Sun – Connecticut
Situated on 240 acres along the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut, the Mohegan Sun is one of the largest casinos in the world. A member of the prestigious Preferred Hotels Group, that defines its members as an elite group of independently owned properties, the 32-story hotel was established by the Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut and is a mere 15 minutes from the scenic waterfront of historic Mystic Country.
The resort’s beauty salon and full-service Spa at Elemis debuted in 2003, occupying the entire third floor in the hotel’s Sky section. Here guests enjoy signature ancient healing therapies with authentic Mohegan themes. The Ceremony of the Sacred Sun is a lime and ginger salt glow treatment coupled with a self-tanning treatment that gives an all-over glow to the skin and finishes with a soothing well-being massage.
In the Ceremony of the Strawberry Moon couples enjoy a massage lesson and Exotic Jasmine Flower Bath while being pampered with champagne and chocolate covered strawberries. In addition two spacious couples’ suites, Father Sky and Mother Earth, are equipped with massage tables, Jacuzzi slipper bath, sensory dry float bed and shower.
Among the seven different facial treatments and eight types of massage rituals, The Trail of Life Ritual offers an Elemis facial with eye zone treatment and collagen or sulphur compress, jasmine flower bath, pedicure, manicure, frangipani hair and scalp ritual and styling, along with a choice of either reflexology or full body massage.
Separate facilities for men and women, house a private steam room, sauna, Jacuzzi and relaxation room. The Great Desert Retreat and Great Fresh Water Retreat are among 26 private treatment rooms named for the moons that mark the Tribe’s seasonal changes. An indoor pool and fitness center allow guests to enjoy the spa in all seasons.
For spa reservations outside the hotel call 860 862-4520 or visit www.elemisspa.com.
 Couples Treatment Room at Wo' Po'in Spa at Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino - photo credit Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino – New Mexico
At the Pueblo of the Pojoaque Reservation surrounded dramatically by the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of New Mexico, you will discover the Buffalo Thunder Resort and Casino with its exquisite Wo’ Po’ in Spa. A mere 15 miles from Santa Fe’s historic plaza and set in the Rio Grande Valley, this splendid resort is also an art-centric destination. Throughout the water-themed property and in the spa itself are original works by well-known Pueblo artists and weavers. A stunning bronze warrior by iconic artist and sculptor, George Rivera, the tribe’s governor, greets you as you arrive at the porte-cochère.
The full-service spa and beauty salon is a serene escape designed to revitalize and renew the body, mind and spirit within 16,000 square feet of sublime sanctuary. The bright colors and geometric motifs of Native American blankets used in the spa punctuate the soft desert-hued interiors. Featuring thirteen private treatment rooms and a dedicated couples room, the spa employs its signature fragrances and skin care line both of which use indigenous flora. Treatments here are geared to reflect indigenous healing elements of the Pueblo heritage and Pojoaque philosophy that consider the experience a journey, or “poeh” meaning pathway, through past, present and future.
In the Red Earth Cocoon Wrap toxins are cleansed from the system with the application of red mud. Afterwards a native essence lotion, scented with copal, cedar, lavender and citrus essential oils is applied to hydrate the skin.
The Pueblo people believe that stones from the earth carry the spirit of their ancestors, and the spa’s Flowing Spirit Hot Stone Massage, popular with the resort’s golfers and hikers, follows that ancient tradition with the use of warm desert stones combined with native plant oils for balance and purification. Reflecting the same attention to sourcing local products, their Flowing River Pedicure employs a seasonal blend of indigenous salts before applying white clay and essential oils with a warm stone massage.
In the Sacred Earth Cocoon Wrap, a massage is followed by a warm mud application infused with birch, vetiver and juniper oils and culminates in a complete body hydration procedure. Here, wraps such as the Aloe Vera Body Wrap, can be followed by a Vichy shower for the ultimate in bliss. Afterwards don a plush terry robe and relax on a lounge among the water-spouting columns beside the indoor pool.
New for fall, the Turbinado Pomegranate Sugar Scrub ends with a luxurious shea butter goat’s milk hydration massage.
For spa reservations outside the hotel call 505 819-2140 or visit www.buffalothunderresort.com.
 Grand Harmony Spa at the Grand Casino Hinckley - photo credit Grand Casino Hinckley Grand Harmony Spa – Minnesota
Located amid the farms and fields of eastern central Minnesota, named “The Land of 10,000 Lakes”, the Grand Casino Hinckley is one of two resort hotel properties owned by the Band of Mille Lacs Ojibwe Indians. Within the resort’s 8,243 square feet lies the Grand Harmony Spa – a paean to healing waters.
Opened in 2007 the spa’s woodland theme replete with waterfalls invites guests to partake of a myriad of treatments and rituals designed to soothe and stimulate the senses with Asian reflexology, Swedish massage, hot stone applications, and aromatherapy steam rooms. Energy-increasing lemongrass or skin-hydrating milk and honey spa baths are complemented by an initial dry brush exfoliation.
Try the Age-Defying Pumpkin Body Masque amped up with antioxidants like cinnamon, clove and caffeine for cellulite reduction, or the Ultimate Body Butter Drench scented with lavender and pine. There is an extensive menu of services including seven different botanically-based facial treatments, five bath rituals and eight separate body rituals using the spa’s premier Hungarian Éminence line of products made with organic fruits like persimmon and cantaloupe. For facial contouring the spa uses the Zirhafirm line for redefining skin firmness and elasticity with the use of wild jujube and maral root.
Indulge in the refreshing Blueberry Bliss Slimming Body Wrap or Detoxifying Chocolate Wrap. Couples are invited to share the experience with a dedicated couples sanctuary called the Serenity Suite. There’s even a Late Night Remedy that includes the chocolate wrap, neck and back massage and express facial followed by a special “hangover” vitamin cocktail.
The spa uses the organic Jane Iredale line of mineral make-up and skin care. A separate beauty salon is on the resort’s property.
For spa reservations outside the hotel call 320 384-4836 or visit www.grandharmonyspa.com.
 The T Spa - photo credit Tulalip Resort and Casino Tulalip Resort and Casino – Washington
Insiders already know the AAA Four Diamond Tulalip Resort and Casino in Seattle, WA through its exceptional dining and stellar wine program. Surrounded by the waters of the Puget Sound and the Cascade mountain range, the resort is a stunning contemporary hotel incorporating native Salish artwork and The T Spa for men and women. The 14,000 sq. ft. spa blends woodland and ocean themes using natural product lines such as the organic Aroma Floria; Phiten, a Japanese line; Skinceuticals; Thalgo, a marine botanical line; and the hand-crafted organic and bio-dynamically grown Mi’kmaq Collection, created in the ancient traditions of the Miqmaq elders of the Pacific Northwest.
The T Spa brings nature indoors by the use of river rocks, dark walnut and birch, the symbol of renewal. The design theme of this full-service spa is carried throughout the elegant space with cedar saunas, eucalyptus steam rooms, and grotto showers. Sixteen treatment rooms, some outfitted with Italian porcelain jetted Jacuzzis, include three couples suites. The VIP suite features a fireplace and blankets woven with the Tulalip tribal symbol of the blackfish that grace the massage tables.
Its Lava Shells Massage, popular with golfers, uses cut and polished tiger clam shells encasing a sachet that when heated bursts through spontaneous combustion releasing herbal essences specifically selected to induce a muscle-relaxing warmth. Sweetgrass oil, hand made for the spa by the Nova Scotian Mi’kmaw tribe, is used in one of the nine massage treatments. Crushed lavender flowers and juniper berries combine with marine salt crystals in the Deep Tissue Bolus Massage. Employing an age management approach in one of 13 facials offered, birch bud extract is applied to increase skin energy. Another technique employs champagne grapes mixed with an aromatic rose essence.
For spa reservations outside the hotel call 360 716-6350 or visit www.tulalipresort.com
Jordan Wright
September 29, 2011
Special to The Alexandria Times
Signature Theatre kicks off its new seasons series, “Sex, Drama and Rock n’ Roll,” with “Sweet Tea: Black Gay Men of the South.” In this 90-minute non-stop monologue, dramatist, actor, writer and Northwestern University professor E. Patrick Johnson offers a primer on gay black men growing up in the South. It’s a powerful, unadulterated expression of pain, humor and pathos.
Johnson, an archivist, takes us to his hometown of Hickory, N.C., the “furniture capital of the world,” and into the dark past of the Deep South, interviewing more than 70 black gay men, ages 19 to 93, in a quest to explore his roots and challenge the definition of the stereotypical gay black male.
The play has evolved from his book of the same name, penned after a conversation in 1995 at a black HIV / AIDS gathering in Washington, DC, where he heard the voices of older black men.
As a child Johnson suffered his share of bullying, with playmates calling him “a mean little sissy.” Growing up in a small town divided by railroad tracks — blacks on the south side, whites to the north — he became the first African American from his town to earn a Ph.D.
“It just came on,” Johnson says of his homosexuality. One day his mother prompts him to explain it. He asks her, “Was there ever a time when you were attracted to another woman? Well, neither was I.”
Acting out his stories in vignettes, Johnson channels 14 characters with vastly different experiences, from hairdressers and transgenders to drag queens and preachers on the down low. He is a supreme mimic and muscular actor who minces, gavottes and genuflects to tell a story.
In a scene revealing the hypocrisy of the church, he becomes Jerome, a minister with questionable sexuality. Jerome doesn’t have a wife because, as he says, “I believe in the Bible.”
Adding his experiences to the mix, Johnson testifies to the “sway that lulls church babies into a gospel coma.” There were a lot of knowing “A-mens!” from the I’m-hip-to-that audience.
Scenic designer Kylph Sanford evocatively sets the piece on a southern front porch, adding a rocking chair, tree stump, trellises, wispy Spanish moss and an old tire swing that Johnson uses to great effect. It opens with Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” playing gently in the background, and a teacart with a pitcher of iced sweet tea becomes a stunning metaphor for the conflicting social traditions of the genteel South. Old black spirituals, disco music from the “Hotlanta” gay scene of the ’70s, soul music from the ’60s and gospel tunes from the hallelujah chorus tie the fast-paced cameos together.
Johnson is raw, honest and candid about himself and his subject. “Sweet Tea” is a high-voltage, frank sex talk — a fiery social commentary by a skilled mimic and performer who shares the struggles, triumphs and vulnerabilities of a rarely so deeply explored minority.
At Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Ave., in Arlington through October 9. For tickets and information, visit www.signature-theatre.org or call 703 820-9771.
Jordan Wright
September 19, 2011
Special to The Alexandria Times
Port City Playhouse, a community theatre whose work has continually expressed challenging and innovative productions with a high level of complexity, has chosen two one-acts by American playwright Christopher Durang to open the new fall season. From the company’s former home at Lee Center to a humble theatre at The Lab at Convergence in Alexandria, I have reviewed many of the group’s stellar performances that have often outshone some of the best, most elaborate stagings the area has to offer. But unfortunately, these were not in the same league as their past successes.
In The Actor’s Nightmare, a comedic mash-up, snug in Durang’s absurdist niche, our erstwhile hero George is shuffled willy-nilly by his co-stars into various roles in various plays – from Noel Coward’s Private Lives to Shakespeare’s Hamlet. George, a lowly accountant, shows up at the theatre and is mistaken for the play’s lead actor Edwin Booth, late for his curtain call. The premise calls to mind the classic actor’s nightmare of forgetting what play he’s in, what lines to use, or what role he’s playing and in which production. George who tries his best to wiggle out of the situation has his worst fears realized when numerous attempts to get his lines from the stage manager are ultimately abandoned and he begins to quote from every play he’s ever known, so the show can go on.
To his dismay, his leading lady forces his response. “Extraordinary how potent cheap music is!” she declares repetitively quoting Noel Coward. But poor George’s desperation to find the appropriate line only mounts, and the audience’s hilarity rises in sync, as he recites adages, platitudes, soliloquies, Shakespearean plays, and ultimately the Pledge of Allegiance in an attempt to mollify her.
Ric Andersen (George), an oft-praised local performer, does a bang up job as the hapless Hamlet and erstwhile Elyot and manages to keep the laughs rolling along with Aimee Meher-Homji (Ellen Terry) and Larissa Norris (Meg). Ignore the inferior production values if you can.
The twofer concludes with Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You which premiered off-Broadway in 1979 in fine company with plays by Tennessee Williams, David Mamet and Marsha Norman and later ran for many years in revivals. Ground-breaking for its time, its current relevance seems dubious. An informal poll reveals some Catholics identify with the issues and some don’t. As a non-Catholic I could only speculate as to the validity of the horrors of Catholic school and that of some of the nuns. Though I have certainly not been exempt to tales told out of school.
In any case Sister Mary Ignatius has it all figured out – heaven, hell, purgatory and limbo in living color, and if this strikes a chord with you than sign on for the ride along with The Good Shepherd. The Sister, ably played by Amy Solo returning to the stage after a 29-year absence, punctuates her rigid precepts with her mini-me, little Thomas, who spouts the catechism like a faithful pup begging for treats, that she in fact doles out to him with each rote recitation. Remy Bartell is a third-grader who bloody near steals the whole shebang with his spot on, gap-toothed portrayal of Thomas. (Oh W.C. Fields where are you? Fields knew kids and dogs would steal the spotlight and avoided them like the plague.)
When former students return for a reenactment of a school play, the Sister learns they are not the adoring children she reminisces about. They are embittered, damaged by her Draconian methods, and looking for a face-off as she talks “of the utter randomness of life”. The ending is so stunning I cannot reveal it except to say that it redeems the whole play.
Spirited acting and inferior staging make for an uneven experience. But see it if only for the message that most in the audience clearly related to.
Port City Playhouse at The Lab at Convergence 1819 North Quaker Lane, Alexandria, VA 22302. Through October 2nd, 2011. For tickets and information visit www.portcityplayhouse.com.
Jordan Wright
August 3, 2011
Special to The Washington Examiner
STAYING GREEN
 Executive Chef Rafael Gonzalez at the Four Seasons Hotel rooftop garden - Photo Credit Jordan Wright The very upscale Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia has hopped on the green bandwagon by building over a dozen raised bed planters on their rooftop garden overlooking Logan Circle. Spilling over with cute mini-veggies, glorious flowers used in the hotel’s luxe arrangements, and lush with menu-driven herbs like chocolate mint and lemon thyme, the garden-with-a-view uses other green initiatives like beehives and naturally fertilized soil from hotel compost to coddle their plants.
Executive Chef Rafael Gonzalez need only zip up to the 8th floor to pluck fresh ingredients for his exquisite cuisine. The hotel has even enlisted their chief engineer to design a wastewater-recycling program. Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia, One Logan Sq.; 215 405-2815; www.fourseasons.com/philadelphia
HELLO FARMER!
 Beck’s Cajun bar at the Redding Terminal - Photo Credit Jordan Wright The restored Reading Terminal Market, originally built in 1893 is the nation’s oldest continuously operating farmer’s market and a great stop to grab lunch and stock up on everything from Lancaster County Amish pickles and jams, crusty breads and pastries, or crab cakes and smoked meat sandwiches from family-run vendors. Try the spicy gumbo at Beck’s or squeeze in at the counter at Pearl’s Oyster Bar for a dozen of the briny mollusks and a cup of Philly’s favorite snapper soup. On the same aisle, the Fair Food Farmstand carries cheeses, herbs, grass-fed meats and organic veggies from more than 90 sustainable small-scale farms. 12th and Arch Sts.
 Kingfisher Dairy Farm whole raw milk - Photo Credit Jordan Wright In the West Philly neighborhood, Annie Baum-Stein’s groove-in-the-hood Milk and Honey Market carries Kingfisher Farms raw milk. Savor a frosty glass of the forbidden liquid here, since you can’t buy it in the DC area where it’s still illegal. Another local producer Claudio’s provides creamy ricotta, mozzarella and Italian charcuterie, and Lancaster Farm Fresh Co-op brings in fresh fruits and veggies weekly. Made to order sandwiches like the spicy Thai tofu or the Italian caprese panini go down nicely with a Boylan’s Creamy Red Birch Beer. 4425 Baltimore Ave.
Across the street, Roost, a popular chicken place also owned by Baum-Stein, cooks up roasted or fried birds from Grigg’s Town Farm. 4529 Springfield Ave.
From there it’s a pleasant stroll to The Clark Park Market run by The Food Trust. Open Thursdays from 3-7p.m. and Saturdays from 10-2p.m. Home baked peanut butter or chocolate whoopee pies share space with glistening berries and heirloom vegetables. On Thursdays the Guapos Tacos food truck sells duck, pork or vegetarian tacos topped with guacamole and cotija cheese for a leisurely lunch in the park. 43rd St. and Baltimore Ave.
DINING ON LOCAL
 The communal dining table at Fork - Photo Credit Jordan Wright
The nightly communal table at cookbook author Ellin Yin’s Fork in the bustling Old City, is where chef Terence Feury’s New American bistro cooking might feature the daily catch. Feury, named Philadelphia’s “Best Chef 2010” prepared us a whole wild striped bass with local vegetables. Serious anglers can take his guided fishing trips once a month to catch their own and learn how to prepare it. 305 Market St.
MidAtlantic Restaurant and Tap Room, in the University City area is where this hip destination resto serves its reinvented local dishes in a rustic slash modern decor. Chef Daniel Stern, former top toque at Le Bec-Fin, shows off the Pennsylvania Dutch influence with in-house made charcuterie served with exceptional raw cow’s milk cheeses from Chester County’s Birchrun Hills Farm. Order the Welsh rarebit fondue, perfect for dunking Stern’s version of the Philly hot pretzel, or the crab scrapple with pepper jelly and horseradish emulsion. A rich malted milk chocolate mousse cake is the capper. 3711 Market St.
 The Mint Julep at Franklin Mortgage and Investment Company - Photo Credit Jordan Wright The stylishly dark and intimate Franklin Mortgage & Investment Company doesn’t make loans in this former speakeasy, but it does make exquisite classic cocktails using a Kold-Draft icemaker for perfectly square cubes. Go for the ‘Serious Misgivings’ Punch – by the cup or bowl – suitable for sharing with fellow connoisseurs; or the ‘Blonde Redhead’ made with cognac, raspberry syrup rosewater and champagne. Mint juleps appear in a proper silver julep cup, and a concoction called ‘Queen Bitch’, uses Guyanese rum tricked up with Cocchi Americano, Genever gin, blanc vermouth and absinthe. 112 So. 18th St.
 JG Domestic - Photo Credit Jordan Wright Tucked into the atrium of the Cira Centre building is the raw wood farmhouse decor of Iron Chef Jose Garces’ restaurant JG Domestic. The design translates into a distinctive juxtaposition to the ultra-contemporary Cesar Pelli-designed skyscraper. The authentic Americana style, replete with trees and a wall of herbs and greenery, is a harbinger of farm-to-fork cuisine. Think of it as the East Coast’s version of the French Laundry. Begin with Iowa popcorn or hickory smoked Georgia pecans. Continue with cocktails like the Zephyr, made with gin, cucumber, orange cordial. The dinner menu features a section called “Tonight” with “Whole Animal” defining a dish crafted by using a farm raised animal in its entirety such as roast suckling Pennsylvania lamb, roasted leg and shoulder, crispy confit ribs and braised belly; or the indelibly memorable roast chicken. The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner is adjacent to Amtrak’s 30th Street Station. 2929 Arch St.
URBAN GARDENING
 Volunteers from PHS with Tai Chi class - Photo credit Jordan Wright The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society has rescued a scraggy lot at 20th and Market Streets in Center City converting it into a temporary paradise of raised-bed gardens featuring educational workshops for inner city kids. Situated beside Blue Cross Blue Shield’s headquarters the animal topiaries recycled from their famed annual Philadelphia Flower Show put this garden in a special category and reflect a kid-friendly design dynamic. Tai Chi classes and nighttime film screenings share space with arugula and heirloom tomatoes. The program donates veggies to local restaurants to create signature dishes. Proceeds from the sales of these dishes go to City Harvest, to distribute to the city’s food cupboards.
 Marathon Farm - Photo Credit Jordan Wright It takes more than guts to plant a garden in a sketchy down-at-the-heels neighborhood, it takes drive and sweat equity. This spring Patrick Dunn, formerly of the Emerald Street Urban Farm Project, commandeered the space in the Brewerytown neighborhood to raise crops and keep bees for Marathon’s multiple restaurants. A pop-up weekend farmers market caters to the locals. You can keep track of their efforts at www.marathonfarm.com; 27th and Master Sts.
 Greensgrow Farm - Photo Credit Jordan Wright In the Kensington section of Philadelphia the laidback vibe at Greensgrow Farm is courtesy of senior citizen and visionary, Mary Seton Corboy. Founder of the Neighborhood Urban Agriculture Coalition, the pixieish former DC resident, along with a battalion of volunteers, found a vacant lot, like the proverbial phoenix emerging from the ashes, created a California-hip organic gardens plus CSA, nursery and educational workshop. The engaging former political scientist turned farmer, is usually found on site dispensing savvy gardening tips to urban gardeners. 2501 East Cumberland St.; www.greensgrow.org.
LOCAL SUDS
 Philadelphia Brewing Company - Photo Credit Jordan Wright At the Philadelphia Brewing Company, housed in the 19th C former Weisbrod & Hess Brewery company, enjoy a tour and taste of their Philly-named beers, like Walt Wit, an unfiltered Belgian White-style ale; Harvest from the Hood; and Kensinger, a smooth golden ale. Named one of the nation’s top five sustainable breweries because they grow their own hops, some from an on-site courtyard garden where you’ll also spot a pedal-powered ‘spaceship’, last year’s entry in the Kinetic Sculpture Derby at the annual East Kensington Arts Fest parade. 2423-2439 Amber St.
STROKING YOUR ECO
 Terrain at Styer’s cafe - Photo Credit Jordan Wright
A few miles out of town in Glen Mills, the high end emporium Terrain at Styer’s is a must visit. The stunning store and garden center, brimming with natural spa products, garden furnishings and hand-carved kitchenware, also houses an adorable café. Dine on local seasonal delights such as Kennett Square mushroom skillet with fried egg, or cold minty pea soup in a rustic greenhouse dripping with baskets of fuschia and stag horn ferns. 914 Baltimore Pike; www.styers.shopterrain.com
GETTING THERE
Via Amtrak from Union Station to the Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station is less than 2 hours and around $50.00 each way. By car it’s a straight shot on I-95 to the Center City exit.
Jordan Wright
August 2011
Special to Washingtonian Magazine
Solomons Island – A waterside village with hidden treasures.
 Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center - Photo Credit Jordan Wright  Bronze sculpture at Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center - Photo Credit Jordan Wright The Scene
Where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay sits the village of Solomons Island. The former shipbuilding community has a boardwalk and piers for strolling, antiques shops and art galleries, and bars and restaurants for every taste and a boutique winery to seal the deal.
What to See and Do
Butterflies flit merrily through the border gardens where art and nature coexist at the Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center. Wend your way along sun-dappled paths to see dramatic bronze and steel sculptures – courtesy of a
 Fairy house  Gnome house partnership with the Smithsonian – displayed throughout the park’s lush 30 acres. A current exhibit, “Fairies in the Garden”, features artists’ fantasies of fairy and gnome houses nestled sweetly in the mossy hollows of trees. Inside the center there’s a small café and works by local artists.
For a day on the water, Bunky’s Charter Boats rents Carolina skiffs and offers fishing excursions; Sail Solomons has 22-foot Catalina capris. Or go to the Patuxent Adventure Center for kayak, canoe and Stand Up Paddleboard rentals.
Where to Eat
 Kim's Key Lime Pies - Photo Credit Jordan Wright Kim’s Key Lime Pie has creative cuisine and sublime pies in a café-like ambience. Across the road Stoney’s Seafood House, famous for its fresh fish and crab cakes, sits on Solomons Pier with beautiful views of the river.
Speed Dial
Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center, 13480 Dowell Road, Dowell, MD; 410-326-4640. Pet friendly and fully accessible. www.annmariegarden.org.
Bunky’s Charter Boats, 14448 Solomons Island Rd. S.; 410-326-3241 www.bunkyscharterboats.com. Sail Solomons Sailing School and Yacht Charters, 225 Alexander La.; 410-326-4917. www.sailsi.com Patuxent Adventure Center, 13860-C Solomons Island Rd.; 410-394-2770. www.paxadventure.com.
Kim’s Key Lime Pie, 14618 Solomons Island Road S., Solomons Island, MD, 410-326-8469. Stoney’s Seafood House, 1442 Solomons Island Road S., Solomons Island, MD, 410-326-2424
Jordan Wright
August 2011
Special to Washingtonian Magazine
River Riders
408 Alstadts Hill Rd., Harpers Ferry, WVA; 800-326-7238; www.riverriders.com
 Zipline tower at River Riders, Harpers Ferry - Photo Credit Jordan Wright Harpers Ferry offers lots of outdoor family fun, from hiking to tubing to whitewater rafting. And now, just outside of town, the outfitter River Riders has unveiled its latest adventure: a spectacular zipline canopy tour along the Potomac River.
For three hours, you can fly through the forest and navigate jungle-style suspension bridges alongside breathtaking vistas of river and cliffs. Two guides accompany amateur aerialists to seven giant tower platforms. Try to spot the nest of the resident red-tailed hawk as you soar up to 70 feet. The gravity-defying tour ends in an exhilarating finale as you rappel down to solid ground. If you’ve got more time and energy, River Riders can also set you up on the water: Ply the flatwater in a canoe or kayak, drift in a giant tube, or take on the Class III rapids on a whitewater trip.
 A successful day! Bucket list just got shorter! Hungry? The on-site Front Porch Café, which serves burgers, hot dogs, and other snacks, is your best bet. If you explore Harpers Ferry’s historic district, slide into Scoops Ice Cream Café (173 Potomac St.; 304-535-6654) and get your chill fix with 16 flavors of house-made ice cream.
 Farm products at Stoneybrook Farm Market - Photo Credit Jordan Wright On the drive to Harpers Ferry or on the way back, you can stop in the tiny town of Hillsboro at Stoneybrook Organic Farm and Market (37091Charlestown Pike; 540-668-9067; www.stoneybrookfarm.org; closed Saturdays), which carries delicious sandwiches and salads, organic produce, artisanal cheeses, and other regional farm products. Get food to go or enjoy lunch on the flagstone patio overlooking the vegetable and flower gardens.
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