Afternoon: Welcome to Staunton! Rooms should be ready by 4:00pm. Register with Road Scholar in the lobby 4:00-5:00pm and receive your program materials.

Dinner: Dinner in the hotel dining room

Evening: Orientation in the classroom.

Lodging: Stonewall Jackson Hotel

Meals Included: Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the hotel

Morning: Become a naturalist and experience the forested mountains of historic Virginia. The Blue Ridge Mountains are the east range of the ancient Appalachians, home to mists and fog, landscapes and breeze, a delicate flower and a busy songbird. Seventy-five years ago the north end of the Blue Ridge was gathered into Shenandoah National Park, and during the Depression, atop the ridge through the park was built a winding road called Skyline Drive, today a National Scenic Byway. Explore the pioneering people and the culture that developed in these upper Virginia Mountains. Learn of the personal sacrifices residents made for the park. Study the venerable mountains that tell a fantastic tale of origin and the web of life that dwells there yet. Shenandoah National Park was authorized in 1926 and dedicated by President Roosevelt in 1936. Land was acquired through "eminent domain" and we'll learn the history of the Park's creation, including the families and communities that were "displaced." Classes focus on the people who pioneered and lived in that area, and the ecology, natural history, and folklore of the Shenandoah. With numerous overlooks above the rolling hills of the Piedmont to the east and the Shenandoah Valley to the west, the 105 miles of Skyline Drive connect at Afton with the 470 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway, the most visited unit of the National Park Service, reaching the Great Smoky Mountains in North Carolina. Two field trips led by our naturalist/instructor to Shenandoah National Park include drives along the Skyline Drive and Blue Ridge Parkway, stopping at overlooks and taking advantage of a number of the trails for short hikes. Evenings include classes and entertainment, with a special performance of Appalachian music, with talented musicians using traditional instruments. Class this morning: Origin of Mountains (Note: This is a sample schedule. Actual schedule may differ depending on availability of instructors. )

Lunch: Lunch in the hotel

Afternoon: Class: Pioneering People of the Shenandoah

Dinner: Dinner in the hotel

Evening: Free evening to explore downtown Staunton, see a performance at the Blackfriars Playhouse next door, or take a trolley around town.

Lodging: Stonewall Jackson Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the hotel

Morning: Led by our naturalist/instructor, a field trip by bus to Shenandoah National Park. Part of the drive will take in the wonderful views of first the Blue Ridge Parkway and then of Skyline Drive. We will take advantage of opportunities to stop at overlooks and, depending on conditions, at one or more of the Park trails for short hikes. The Park is largely forested, with more than 100 species of trees and more than 1,100 species of plants, including 18 varieties of orchids. The variety of ecosystems within the Park include old growth hemlock forests, hardwood/deciduous forests, meadows, marsh and bogs, and pristine wilderness. To the west, the famed Shenandoah River flows at the base of the mountains. Our naturalist will help to find and identify many of the trees, wildflowers and birds that we encounter. For a list of some of the species in the Park, visit www.ohranger.com/shenandoah/flora-fauna.

Lunch: Lunch in the hotel

Afternoon: Continued classes/field trip to explore Shenandoah National Park.

Dinner: Dinner in the hotel

Evening: Class: Ecology of the Shenandoah National Park

Lodging: Stonewall Jackson Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the hotel

Morning: Class this morning: People of the Shenandoah National Park

Lunch: Lunch in the hotel

Afternoon: Your time is your own after lunch. The Woodrow Wilson Museum and Library is a few blocks away, the Frontier Culture Museum is a short drive away, and the shops and attractions of downtown Staunton are close by.

Dinner: Dinner in the hotel

Evening: Class: Folklore of the Shenandoah

Lodging: Stonewall Jackson Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the hotel

Morning: Expect a moving panorama on our field trip today, as we travel by bus through the Shenandoah Valley—with the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Alleghenies to the west—to enter Shenandoah National Park. We’ll cruise Skyline Drive, with stops for selected overlooks and short hikes.

Lunch: Lunch at the Park

Afternoon: Field trip to Shenandoah National Park continues

Dinner: Dinner in the hotel

Evening: Enjoy a delightful evening entertainment of "Music with the McKenzies" - this husband and wife duo perform Appalachian music with authentic period instruments, great voices, and good humor!

Lodging: Stonewall Jackson Hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the hotel

Morning: Classes on the ecology of Shenandoah National Park.

Lunch: Early lunch in the hotel

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch