Weekend Adventure...ACE Style!

About a month and a half ago we were invited by a dear friend to spend the weekend in West Virginia at ACE Adventure Resort to celebrate his wife's 30th birthday. His plan was for Matt and I and another couple to join them as a surprise for Sally. We were honored and touched by his idea. Of course we accepted his offer.

This past weekend was THE weekend. Sally and Doug were dropping their children off with their godparents in western Virginia. Per Doug's request, Matt and I and Heather and JD drove over there ahead of them and surprised Sally when she walked in the door. She admitted that she'd had an idea that she and Doug might be going whitewater rafting but had no idea that the four of us might be involved.

We all piled in our van and continued our journey to Beckley, West Virginia...home of ACE Adventure Resort. As we wound our way through the mountain roads, admiring the beautiful landscapes, the conversation was wonderful and the anticipation of what was to come was exhilirating.

We finally came upon the Resort, nestled among the lush greenery and hills. The first thing we noticed was the large lake filled with enormous blow-up equipment (rock-climbing wall, slides, teeter-totter, etc...) as well as a zip-line running across the entire lake. We all decided immediately that we'd definitely be doing that before we left!

We encouraged Doug and Sally to eat at The Lost Paddle because we had called ahead and arranged for a birthday cake to be delivered to Doug because, although this weekend was planned for Sally's 30th birthday, it was also Doug's birthday...we fondly call it the week of the Johnsons!

Back at our site, we unpacked our things in our cabin tents (each couple had their own, side by side) and then let the guys, I mean JD, prepare a campfire. I must say it was pretty impressive. Of course we roasted marshmallows and made s'mores. YUM!

We all went to bed fairly early in anticipation of our big day the next day. The temps were in the 60's at night so sleeping was quite comfortable. I'm sure the platform beds and matresses helped with that.

After breakfast the following morning, we headed off on our whitewater excursion. Most of us had been whitewater rafting before. We were all excited to experience the lower New River. Our guide, Doug, was soft-spoken (made hearing his commands a challenge) and personable. He guided us through the rapids and ensured that we all had a great time. We lost (our) Doug twice overboard and I made a graceful exit (think back flip, legs wide open) while we were "surfing". Other than a lost can of sunscreen, a broken nail, and a small finger injury, we all had a blast and have decided that we're all going to go back, maybe next year, to attempt the Gauley (the river to tackle in WV).

As soon as we returned to the Resort, we all jumped in line for the zip-line. That was really neat. We also had a little time to enjoy some of the other inflatables before heading back to watch our trip video with the other guests. Next stop: Shower! (And they weren't bad at all - and even had electricity) After dinner we, again, enjoyed a fabulous roaring fire compliments of JD the Master Fire-starter.

It was sad to say goodbye, but we have all vowed that we are going back. Thanks Doug for including in this special weekend and Happy Birthday to my dear forever friend!