This quick 2.9-mile walk along the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail is packed with everything you could want: quiet pathways, pretty boardwalks, ice cream, fountains, outdoor art, ping pong and a beer garden. All with a view of the Anacostia River.

The spooky origin story of Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve, the blazing fall colors and the fact that there’s a warming tavern meal and a cold beer just around the corner in Leesburg convinced me that there is no better place to take a walk during the stretch between Halloween and Thanksgiving.

I’ve put together a list of a few ways that my husband and I can have some adult Halloween fun that won’t leave us haunted with hangovers the next day.

As summer draws to a close, it would seem wise to put aside such warm-weather activities. But what I learned from that gorgeous Monday white water tubing with the help of the Harpers Ferry Adventure Center is that there is no better time to go than when no one else is going.

Maybe not everyone gets as excited at labyrinthian adventures through the trees as I do, but when I stumbled upon info about the Blue Hole swimming hole at Sugar Hollow while researching a recent trip to Charlottesville, I got jazzed!

This was my family’s fifth or sixth trip to the tree-climbing and zip-lining adventure land in Montgomery County, and we’d ended every trip covered in sweat, showing off some impressive scrapes and bruises, and seriously psyched about our ability to look a leaf-strewn death in the face. Visiting The Adventure Park at Sandy Spring is like being in labor – the end result is so cool you forget about the screaming and crying that preceded it.

Stepping onto the grounds of the Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens in Northwest D.C., is like being invited to take your time checking out the glittering jewels, gleaming furniture, sparkling objets d’art and beautiful gardens of the wealthiest and most glamorous woman you’ll ever know.

We went to Hershey Park recently to celebrate my youngest becoming a teen, and after a couple of turbo rides, the kids kindly asked us to leave them alone. They wandered off and we were left with a serious case of wooziness and a mild sunburn. What we were going to do with ourselves the rest of the day? Until amusement parks decide to install a napping spot, here are some suggestions for enjoying yourself at Hershey Park.

Part of the reason I started this blog was to give potential employers in the wine, spirit and hospitality industries a sampling of my writing ability. But I've also embraced this mission to discover fun activities for those of us 40-55, and I don't want to give the impression that our fun is dependent on having a drink in hand.