Chapter Weekend Gathering 2021

By Lisa Novins

It has been a long time since the Potomac Chapter connected in person. Of course, we’ve had hiking and backpacking trips and other activities, but we haven’t been together in person, as members and friends since our annual meeting in November 2019. However, the weekend of September 30-October 3, a group of nearly 30 Potomac Chapter members gathered at Pocahontas State Park, outside Richmond, Virginia, for our first (maybe) annual, Chapter Weekend Gathering. 

If you’ve never been to Pocahontas, it’s worth a visit. Not only is it Virginia’s largest state park, but it’s just a wonderful place to explore the outdoors. Hiking, mountain biking, and paddling are all easily accessible in the park. The campground is wonderful – including the spacious yurts and tiny camp cabins. And during our weekend gathering, we explored it all. We did hikes ranging from 2 to 6 miles and hosted a mountain biking clinic that got a handful of mountain biking newcomers on their bikes. We had a paddling trip that successfully introduced several new paddlers to the park’s Swift Creek Lake.

Leave No Trace Awareness Workshops,

A cooking demonstration,

Leader training, and 

A successful final hiking co-lead and final biking co-lead!  

Even with all the activities, we managed to connect over morning coffee, campfires, and quiet evening walks. It was really wonderful to see so many friends and meet so many people in person for the very first time.  I hope next time we’ll be able to gather with more of the chapter.

What else could we have packed into one weekend?