It’s been a busy year. We started this as a humble Wordpress blog and expanded to our own website. We traveled up and down the East Coast — covering Maine to North Carolina. We’ve eaten jelly fish, ramps, duck fat fries and lobster fresh from the boat. And we’ve had a beer (or two) in every stop along the way. Here’s a recap of the best and worst of our first year.

The Best Bars

Novare Res Bier Cafe and The Great Lost Bear in Portland, Me.: With the help of the guys from Portland Taps, we found these two amazing beer bars. Great selection, great atmosphere (Novare Res had a cellar quality; The Great Lost Beer bar was like a log cabin in the Great North Woods).  See our post here.

Brewer’s Art in Baltimore:  I don’t understand why Baltimore gets a bad rap with Washingtonians. Bar hopping there makes for a riotous, and affordable, night out.  This bar in particular is great. Its is in the cellar of a Victorian townhouse and on tap are the bar’s own Belgian-style microbrews. Even Esquire magazine noticed; it named Brewer’s Art the best bar in the US this April. Wow!  See our post here.

Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Md.: While this is not actually a bar – and we did visit many great bars this year – it comes in 3^rd. Flying Dog has an excellent spread of beers of which you can enjoy limitless samples.  The atmosphere at one of these Saturday afternoon tasting is that of a well-behaved college house party – strangers chatting and spilling out on to the back porch. And, did I mention, its $5. See our post here.

The Best Surprises

Yeah, of course Maine was gorgeous and New York City was a captivating metropolis filled with excellent food.  These places/events were just as amazing – in ways we never expected.  

Davis-Elkins loop – Although I’ve been singing West Virginia’s praises since this blog began, I have yet to influence anyone to actually go there. I don’t give up easily.  Follow this route for a road trip, a mellow escape from DC insanity and a getaway that’s great in the winter.  There’s skiing, burritos and beer. Just do it! See our post here.

Kinetic Sculpture Race – I heard about this race from a blogger meet-up. I mentioned that we cover quirky travel, and this event sprung to everyone there’s mind. For the Kinetic Sculpture Race, groups of friends, classmates and coworkers make human-powered parade floats that can float in the bay, push through sand and coast down bumpy brick roads. It’s amazingly odd. Next year, I’ll be bringing a bike so I can better follow along with the race. See our post here.

Ohio Brew Week –The word “festival” (and its cousin “fair”) often makes me shudder. It usually means high prices, hoards of people and lots of vendors pushing useless junk (used laser disks, anyone?) However, this beer festival was the complete opposite. It was festively crowded and reasonably priced. We heard some great music and tried beers I’ll never see elsewhere. And there was a beer choo-choo. See our post here.

The Biggest Disappointments

We really wanted to love to these popular destinations, but they just fell short.

Assateague  – Although camping on the beach sounds romantic and relaxing – think: falling asleep to the sound of the waves and taking an early morning swim — the reality is that you are camping in a hostile environment. Sand is everywhere, mosquitoes swarm and the sun beats down without mercy.  I wanted to love Assateague. But Assateague didn’t love me.  After a weekend of being eaten, burnt and drenched, I submitted. See our post here.

Asheville – Maybe it was the rain, but this southern city let us down. It wasn’t nearly as outdoorsy or hippified as I hoped it would be. Although, West Asheville had a food co-op, coffee shops and dive bars, downtown was too upscale. How many boutiques does one tiny town need?  I think we missed Asheville’s heyday.  See our post.

Best beers

Saison Dupont from Brasserie Dupont: This is a truly world class beer.  If you want an introduction to the style called Saison, this is the beer to try.  My favorite brew, at my favorite restaurants with my favorite person; it doesn’t get better than that. Find it at Annabell Lee Tavern, Baltimore MD

Grand Wazoo Batch 2 at Jackie O’s Brewery: A bourbon barrel-aged sour dark ale with raspberries, definitely a one-of-a-kind beer.  This brew really showed off the range and diversity of the beverage.  It’s flavors are probably more in line with a wine than any beer most people have tasted. Had at: Jackie O’s Brewpub, Athens OH

Dale’s Pale Ale from Oskar Blues:  Our go-to summer beer.  Dale’s is a very tasty IPA that comes in a can.  Naturally, makes it perfect for camping, tubing, and backyard barbeques.   Had at: just about every trip that involved a cooler.

I am covered in mosquito bites. Wearing long pants to cover my sizzling sunburn. And my camping equipment is hanging out to dry on the back porch. The trip to Assateague, the Maryland island known for its wild horses, was not the typical camping trip.

While we did see the wild horses, camp 15 feet away from a white sand beach, spend Friday night drinking beer around the embers of someone else’s beach bonfire and scarfed down a crab feast, our Assateague adventure was one disastrous camping trip.

Besides booking your trip early through the National Park Service website (We reserved our spot in January), here are three ways you should prepare before spending a weekend camped on the island.

Trouble #1: Mosquitoes. I was warned the mosquitoes were bad on Assateague, but it’s nearly impossible to overstate how bad they were.  Within 30 seconds of leaving the car — before I had the chance to coat myself in bug spray — we were swarmed by a cloud of these bugs. After a day on the island, our neighboring campers had to head back into town for a second can of repellent.  I now have six bites on my left arm alone.

Solution: Bring plenty of DEET and long, loose clothing (it was far too hot for the jeans and sweaters I packed alongside my shorts and tanks.) Try to secure a camping spot near the water; some spots are in the bushes in the road.  The ocean breeze blows the bugs away; the bushes provide a place to live and breed.

Trouble #2: The sun. There is no shade at Assateague. There is no where to hide from the sun, not even a picnic pavilion or some scraggly trees. Even with my 60 SPF sunblock, I still got toasted.

Solution: It’s obvious. Bring a beach umbrella. And a hat. And a shirt with sleeves.

Trouble #3: The rain. It does rain at the beach. At Assateague, you camp on the sand. Your weight inevitably causes depressions — perfect for water to gather in.  At 3 am, we were woken up by pouring rain and thunder.  While I was preoccupied by a terror of being struck by lightning, I failed to noticed that water was streaming into the tent. The tent is old, and the rain tarp doesn’t fit correctly. Something that only matters in torrential downpours like this one. Within minutes, I was sitting in a pool of water. All the run off had been collected in the depressions made by my sleeping body and soaked through my sleeping pad. We spent the rest of the night in the car.

Solution: When it rains, it pours. Invest in a tent with a decent rain fly and enough room to keep belongs away from the edges.

The roughest part about camping, in my opinion, isn’t sleeping on the the ground or having to cook over and open flame. It’s remembering all your equipment. So, I’ve assembled a master list of things to bring. What else should I add?

• Equipment:
  tent
  sleeping bags and pads
  pillows (often forget)
  Flashlight, lantern, or headlamp
  duct tape
  ground tarp (forgot this last time)
• Cooking supplies:
  frying pan
  pot
  kettle
  spatula
  olive oil (in a plastic bottle)
  salt and pepper (also in mini containers)
  coffee mugs
  plates and bowls
  silverware
  chopping knife
  cutting board
  bottle opener (for beer of course)
  dish rag and sponge
  dishwashing detergent
  trash bag
  Bottled water
  (and food, of course)
• Cooking equipment;
  burner and kerosene
  cooler and icepacks
  charcoal
  lighter

1. Assateague Island: We attempted to camp at this National Seashore in Maryland last year. However, the place was booked up through October by the time I thought to plan the trip. So this year, I made reservations in January for a campsite in June. If you are interested in beach front camping and wild horses, go to the National Park Service site and reserve a camping spot now.

2. Philadelphia: Every time I drive up to New York, I pass by Philadelphia. I’ve never bothered to stop. This summer, I plan to change that.

3. Tubing: Tubing at Harper’s Ferry was my favorite day trip of last summer. We rented tubes from Butts Tubes and spent the afternoon floating down the Potomac, tipping over mini rapids and diving off rocks — all while towing a cooler of beer. (This year, I’ll remember to bring cans not bottles.) I want to expand my hunt for the best tubing in the region. I’m hoping to find somewhere as scenic as Harper’s Ferry W Va. but without the crowds of frat boys.

4. Tangier Island: Cheap seafood and weird accents are two of my favorite things in life. This Virginia island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay has both. Just be forewarned, no alcohol can be purchased on the island. Bring your own.

5. The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum: I read about this unusual destination in Weston, WV, in the Washington Post travel section this winter. It closed to patients in 1994, and now — from April to Nov. — it’s open to tourists. I’m getting creeped out just looking at the photos.

Comment with your top travel plans and suggestions.