I spent my Sunday doing a spontaneous day trip with my fiancé and another friend.
With Labor Day on Monday, we thought we should take advantage of the long weekend by going on a last minute excursion to Leesburg, VA & Harpers Ferry, WV. Despite living in nova my whole life, I had never been to Harpers Ferry, which is only like an hour and a half away. The boys and I thought it would be fun to check it out along with making a short stop to Leesburg for coffee and bagels.
Stop 1: Goose Cup
Coffee Shop in Leesburg, VA
This was our first time checking out Goose Cup and it is definitely going on the list of great coffee shops in the area. First of all, the name is incredible. We have no idea what the story behind goose cup is but Stephen and I call each other goose so we automatically loved it.
The coffee was fantastic. I got an iced vanilla latte and the vanilla syrup is made in-house and is the right amount of flavorful, while not being too sweet or overpowering for the coffee. The boys got a plain iced latte and a cappuccino and both loved them.
The vibe is awesome. Many plants, lots of natural light, modern branding. It felt weird to walk in to this trendy, modern coffee shop in the middle of historic Leesburg but in the best way.
The only downside is that it was pretty pricey, my iced vanilla latte was $8... which I feel like is a little higher than average.
Overall, great experience though and we will definitely be coming back.
Stop 2: BKD Bagels
Bagel Shop in Leesburg, VA
Okay so bagels are one of my favorite things on the planet. If I could eat a bagel every day of my life, I would. Stephen and I love to try new bagel places whenever we travel. I have to say BKD Bagels was up there as far as top bagels that we've had. This was another first time experience for us and we will definitely be going back. I got the B'E'LT, which is a bacon, egg, cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo bagel and it hit the spot. They have multiple locations but the Leesburg shop is in a historic house and is a very homey vibe.
Stop 3: Shake & Bops
Coffee Shop in Leesburg, VA
At the last second, Stephen decided that he wanted to show us this fun spot that he found a few months ago and I'm so glad we checked it out. It was this adorable small coffee shop full of plants and comfy seating. I got an iced matcha latte which felt like the perfect drink for the shop's decor. If this shop was closer to me, I would totally go there to work and hangout often. Just such a calming environment and the worker was very friendly!
Just a pretty painting at Shake & Bops that I felt like photographing.
After our stop in Leesburg, we headed to Harpers Ferry.
The drive was about 45 minutes due to traffic, but it was a beautiful drive through the Loudoun hillsides. There are a ton of wineries along that drive that have gorgeous views and I think it would be fun in the future to check some of them out.
Stop 4: Harpers Ferry
When we arrived in Harpers Ferry, the parking situation was a little confusing. We ended up going to park in the visitor center for the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. Our goal of this outing was to mainly walk around the town instead of hiking but there was very limited parking in the town. Luckily, there is a free shuttle from the national park visitor center to the town. However, there is a $20 fee to park in the national park.
Once we parked, shuttled and walked over to Lower Town, we decided to walk across the bridge (pictured on the left), and view the beautiful scenery that way. If we had prepared better for hiking, we could have kept going past the bridge, along the trail to get up to the top of the rocks. Definitely something on the bucket list.
We then walked around the town which has a ton of little shops and restaurants. There is history everywhere and so many museums and old ruins to check out as well. It's very a beautiful place to visit.
One thing to note: I have a heart condition that can be exacerbated by stairs or steep inclines. One thing that I didn't know about the town is that it is built on a very steep hill so to walk around requires walking uphill quite a bit. It was a struggle for me, so just something to keep in mind.
Overall, we had a very fun day. Highly recommend checking all of these spots out!
I really want to explore more of the local parks and historic towns. We are so lucky to be surrounded by them in Northern Virginia so it's definitely something I want to take advantage of.
