I've been cooped up far too long and it is time for a road trip - preferably to a destination with a military history interest within a 4-hour drive from Washington, DC.

My ideas:

-Marine Corps Air/Ground Museum (closed for relocation)

-Navy Museum at the Washington Navy Yard (closed for security reasons)

-Aberdeen Proving Grounds Ordnance Museum - 240+ armoured vehicles (nuff said!)

-Gettysburg - great civil war battlefield

-Bull Run/Manassas - very good civil war battlefield, but have been there recently

-Smithsonian Museum of American History and Air/Space Museum - very, very cool!

Any other ideas?

Don't forget the Transportation Museum at Ft. Eusthis.

Intrepid Air/Sea Museum - NYC

Droop Mtn Battlefield in the WV Alleghenies.

CRC

Fredericksburg/Chancellorsville?

Antietam Battlefield.

GunLvr

THIS Weekend! - applied military history. The 225th anniversary re-creation of the Battle of Monmouth, in Freehold, NJ, at Monmouth Battlefield State Park. The last big battle in the North in the American revolution, 1778. It promises to have thousands of Revolutionary War reenactors. Infantry, artillery, cavalry, field hospitals, generals, etc- it will all be there.

Info at these urls...

[url]http://www.monmouth225th.com/[/url]

[url]http://uweb.superlink.net/monmouth/battlefield[/url]

[url]http://www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/[/url]

I'll be with these guys- Redcoats, of course...
[url]www.najecki.com/40thfoot/40index.html[/url]

Harpers Ferry, RR Museums in Baltimore and Strasbourg,

Although a little out of the range, Petersburg and the Lees Retreat to Appomattox driving tour.  Was on it a few months back and it was pretty nice.  There is apparently a new Museum of the CW Soldier outside of Petersburg that was getting great reviews when I was there, but I didn't have time for everything.

Aberdeen is great.  Ft. McHenry is in range.  How many of the old CW forts are still in visiting condition around the DC defenses.  I see the names on maps but have never had the time to dig up more info on them.

if you are coming from DC, come down 29, hit a few battle fields, drop down to Charlottesville, hit Montecello and Ash Lawn, then you can have lunch in town (Southern Comfort, Dirty Nelly's, or Tavern), then hit 64 over to Afton Mt, catch the Blue Ridge Parkway and stop when you get tired.

If you haven't been to Gettysburg its a great study for Civil War tactics and is in pretty nice area for a drive from DC.  I'd suggest reading up on how the battle unfolded to get familiar with what happened where first.  There are several different ways to tour the battlefield.  You can even hire a guide to go along in your car if you like.

There is also a Colt Museum there that has hundreds of finely engraved SAA's other revolvers Colt built over the years.  I've never been real big on engraving, but it's a pretty extensive collection and some of the guns have interesting pedigrees.

If you want a nice ride up, go up 15N from Frederick MD then take 26 to 194 and follow 194 through Taneytown (pronounced Ta-ny, kinda like Tawny Katain)and Littlestown.  At Littlestown, turn left on 97 and it will take you right into Gettysburg.