Talley Your Adventure – The Blog

Adventure Awaits!

At Talley Your Adventure, we don’t just plan luxury and culturally rich travel experiences—we live and breathe them. Our blog, travelingtalleys.blog, is where we share the real stories behind our adventures: kayaking alongside glaciers in Alaska, exploring temples in Japan, chasing waterfalls in Iceland, and wandering through storybook towns in Germany. If it’s unforgettable, chances are we’ve done it—or we’re planning it next. Impact-Site-Verification: 8a69d429-4a55-4b53-b8f6-72c437661af5

Nicolette brings deep experience in travel and heritage. With a Master’s in Public History, she’s worked as a Supervisory Park Ranger, Revenue Manager, and Program Analyst across multiple national parks for over a decade. Her career has taken her from managing interpretive boat tours in Alaska’s wild backcountry to overseeing large-scale visitor service projects with million-dollar budgets. And yes—she’s also a licensed 100-Ton Inland Master Boat Captain who’s led cultural and ecological tours from riverboats to remote beaches.

Clinton’s travel roots run just as deep. He’s worked in logistics and operations for the National Park Service and was a key member of the hospitality team aboard National Geographic Lindblad Expeditions. From managing guest services on remote international voyages to coordinating facility software systems stateside, he knows what it takes to deliver seamless, high-end travel experiences—even in the most unpredictable places.

Together, we created Talley Your Adventure to bring our experience, passion, and attention to detail to your travel planning. Whether it’s a fully curated group trip or a personalized vacation built just for you, we combine expert-level service with insider know-how—so you can focus on the magic of the journey.

Want us to help you on your next adventure? Head over to www.talleyyouradventure.com!

@talleyyouradventure_dv
Sakura Blooms – Inuyama, Japan

  • #NAI2015 National Conference, Virginia Beach!

    20151112_141829Hello bloggers! Hopefully you enjoyed my last post about the amazing exhibit at the Clinton Library! I will shift focus a bit towards a different department: Interpretation! I love the field of interpretation, and with the help of a lovely NAI (National Association for Interpretation) scholarship, I was able to fly from Little Rock to Virginia Beach for an entire week to learn, meet new people, and explore all the wonderful ways that people use interpretation across the country!

    The sessions are the educational part of the conference, and one of my 20151114_101558favorites ones was my very first one: You are the Voice of Interpretation! We learned through an exercise the value and importance of what we say as interpreters to our audience, and how inspiring we can be to visitors. The monumental task of educating the public about history, culture, animals, or nature is our goal, but we need to understand how impressionable we can be in the field to others. Another fantastic session was analyzing how Digital Media can actually add to guided interpretation, and not completely take it over. 20151113_154639There is much fear among the museum/interpretation field that eventually standing museums or sites will become irrelevant when technology takes over. It is up to us to make sure that we remain relevant to the public, and that can be accomplished by using technology to our benefit. For example, the video I created about the Mobile gas station at Central High NHS. In addition, a related session focused exclusively on Facebook, and the algorithm that Facebook has created to determine if your post gets viewed, or, again, how relevant you remain on social media. Now that I understand more about the algorithm, and the importance of remaining relevant in the digital world, I am ready to tackle the task even more than I already am!

    The extra experience I had at NAI include an exclusive meet and greet and 20151110_183107dinner at the Virginia Beach Aquarium, the Old Coast Guard Station Museum, and an all day guided tour of First Landing State Park! All of these adventures added to my enjoyment of the conference, and I was able to meet new friends and network at the same time.

    One of the benefits of going to these conferences is the amazing opportunity to network. Right off the bat, at the first-timers meeting, I met Marie…or rather, she introduced herself to me! Later that evening, I met my room-20151114_151032mate, Laurel. Marie focuses more on the nature aspect of interpretation, while Laurel wants to work in aquariums. Holly, another scholarship recipient, and Geoff, all introduced themselves within a short period of time, and it was fantastic to be able to talk to them about their background and experience as we navigated through our first NAI conference. I’ve been to a few conferences with friends, but this is the first time I’ve gone completely solo, and I am very happy to have walked away with new friends and memories.

    Visiting the beach, learning about nature and history, and meeting new people – what better way to spend my first time experiencing the NAI National Conference? Thanks to all who I met along the way, and those that I did not mention. It was a wonderful experience because of you!

     

  • America’s First President – George Washington and his home, Mount Vernon #FindYourHistoricHome

    Without a doubt one of the most impressive places to visit is Mount Vernon. Clinton and I arranged to be in Washington D.C. For Labor Day weekend. I had booked a hotel in advanced for a really swank looking place close by to Dupont Circle because the University of South Florida (Go Bulls!) has an alumni group that meets in a restaurant at that location. Plus, I booked a boat ride from the D.C. Harbor to Mount Vernon – directly on the Potomac! It was really cool sitting on a boat and looking out at the land and river that George Washington loved. I can think of no better way to get to Mount Vernon! We took Spirit Cruise lines and the ticket included entrance into the park and round trip to the harbor. Make sure you watch the time when exploring at Mount Vernon– once they leave the dock for the day they are not coming back!

    Mount Vernon is a lovely plot of land situated right at the banks of the Potomac River. The land had been owned by the Washington family for generations before our beloved George Washington entered the picture, who became the sole owner in 1761. One interesting fact that I learned while we were doing the house tour – even after the Washington’s “retired”, they still received enough visitors that they had specific rooms ready for certain friends and family, or even just someone passing through. It was rude to ask a guest when they were leaving, if you can imagine that attitude today! A lot of the history of the house is told from the point of view of Martha Washington, and it was very moving to spend time listening to her explain the hardships of being a wife of a famous general and leader of such a large movement. We sometimes build our Founding Fathers into these almost mythical like Heros who do no wrong and sweep in during bad times to solve our most prominent problems…but in reality these men and women of history are just human, like us. They suffer vices, they make mistakes, and they are not perfect. It puts many things in perspective when listening to the personal life of someone, and to delve a bit more into their true lives to get that bigger picture is refreshing. George Washington spent maybe 434 days total at Mount Vernon while serving his two terms as President, for instance, and while preaching for “Freedom for all men”, Washington was himself a slave holder. It is worth mentioning that in his 1799 will, Washington became the only slave-owning Founding Father to free them upon his wife’s death. At that time there were 317 slaves – 153 from Martha’s first husband, given in her dowry but legally binding to her first husbands estate and therefore not eligible for freedom under Washington’s will. Martha Washington would sign a deed of manumission in December 1800 to emancipate those slaves on January 1, 1801.

    Mount Vernon as a house is a very practical and beautiful, but the real winner is the view of the Potomac and surrounding forest. The gardens are practical and speak of the hobbies and attitude of Mr. Washington himself, including fishing, gardening, tobacco, and boat making. Living there before modern conveniences would have been a bit of a struggle for many of us today, but I can’t speak enough about the area, the view, and the loveliness of imaging the area without many of the conveniences today!

    We headed back and picked up our luggage from the hotel and heading back home via the Metro. If you are traveling around D.C. definitely look to using the Metro as much as possible – there are usually plenty of parking spots in the outskirt locations (more difficult the closer to D.C. you get) and then it is an easy ride into town. We also use Uber frequently when traveling around D.C., but we make a point to verify the driver and the vehicle tag before getting into the vehicle.

    This was the last Founding Father home that we visited while living in Baltimore, but it definitely was not the last exciting place we want to talk about! Keep your eyes focused here for another great place to #TalleyYourAdventure!

    **Disclaimer – Proper Prior Planning would have assisted the Traveling Talleys this trip. We did not pack a phone charger and our phone almost died enroute to Mount Vernon – we wanted to make sure we had the actual time to make the boat over photographing our lovely visit. We are picture-less this post!

  • Talley Your Adventure Across America – Virginia! (Jan)

    Welcome to Talley Your Adventure’s exciting new Adventure across America! We plan to talk about a dozen amazing states in America and highlight one each month. As a celebration to the 250th Birthday of the United States, Talley Your Adventure will not only showcase these wonderful states but encourage all of you blog readers to visit this year and celebrate as a citizen of this great country!

    So, where should we start? How about the current state that the Traveling Talley’s are living in – Virginia! We’ve been in the Northern Virginia area for two years now and have loved most every minute of it! What have we not liked? THE SNOW! THE COLD! We will get to that, though…let’s talk about all the cool reasons you should take a week and #VisitVirginia!!

    Historically, Virginia was first settled by English colonists in 1607 at Jamestown. You can visit the site today as it is preserved as a partnership between the National Park Service and Jamestown / Yorktown Foundation. Close by but made famous for a completely different period of time is the Yorktown Battlefield. After declaring independence in 1776, there were many clashes between the British Army and the colonists in the state of Virginia. I will admit, it is a bit difficult to visit an American Revolutionary site when there are so many Civil War parks in the state of Virginia – but you should absolutely put Yorktown on your battlefield list as the one and only selection if that is all you can do for your trip! Yorktown Battlefield was the last, and most decisive, victory that General George Washington and his Colonial Army over General Lord Cornwallis and his British Army. This victory led to the surrender of Cornwallis and the creation of the United States of America!

    The American Revolution is also on full display in many other gorgeous areas of Virginia – and least of all are the many Founding Father homes that dot the landscape! George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, and James Madison’s Montpelier can all be toured either as a group or independently and are absolutely worth the price! Pay attention to when these museums are open as they are independently owned by a trust or fund and their hours can vary. They can also close for private events. When visiting Mount Vernon, make sure to stay and watch the 4D video. It is interactive by the unique way they fuse in the cold winter months while General Washington was in Valley Forge (it really gets cold in the room and they blow fans with bubbles!) and allows for a cool walk along the property.

    A history tour of Virginia would not be complete without a mention of the many Civil War battlefields throughout the state. It is a great state to stay a couple days either in the Richmond area or Fairfax area to get a multi-day battlefield tour scheduled! Some of my personal favorite battlefields include Manassas, Fredricksburg, Spotsylvania, the Wilderness, and Chancellorsville. All of them offer hiking opportunities for you to ‘walk as a soldier’ through the battlefield as well as guided or ranger led tours of the battlefield that bring you to specific locations. Either of these are worth the time! What I love the most about Virginia battlefields rather than other states battlefields is their attention to detail on the battlefield and their willingness to allow you to walk the trail yourself without interpretation from others. I love strolling the battlefield on my own! All of these are owned by the National Park Service and are free of charge! Support your park while you are there and buy something from the gift shop!

    Viginia is part of the Appalachian Trail, with 557 miles of trails in the state alone! Even in crowded areas such as Fairfax, there are plenty of opportunities to explore nature without leaving the states. One of the best areas we go for access to the Appalachian trail is in Shenandoah National Park. Our favorite access is Front Royal via the many Scenic Byways you can travel throughout Virginia. You might have heard of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline drive, but there are others in the form of historic battlefield drives or fall color routes. Look for smaller signs along the road or ask your GPS to specifically find scenic routes to experience this beautiful part of Virginia! Along Route 7 includes the cute town of Bluemont, which hosts several wineries and breweries! During the fall season, you can join hay rides, try to find your way through corn mazes, and figure out which pumpkin you want to bring home with you at their seasonal pumpkin patches. We really enjoy Dirt Farm Brewery, which as an amazing view of not just their farm, but the mountains and skyline. Their 4 miles hike is a bit challenging but the Pumpkin Ale they serve (seasonally!) is worth it in the end!

    If country breweries and wineries are not your thing, do not worry! Virginia has an impressive assortment of food across the state. From laid back dives to Michelin style restaurants, we have consistently been happy with each new choice we make. Recently, we went to a delightful restaurant named Trummers. The service and food was fantastic and the ambiance was superb – we definitely recommend! We’ve had the fortune now of living in Virginia for two years and have sampled many of the amazing restaurants in Northern Virginia – excellent sandwich shops such as Twisted Sweets & Savory bring that Hungarian flare I always love, and Chateau de Chantilly is an excellent choice for a quick breakfast stop. Our apartment complex is within walking distance to both Sedona Taphouse and Uptown Grille – which we frequent! 🙂

    Our time in Virginia has been amazing – and we can make your trip just as sweet! Contact us for more information on how to make your ideal trip to Virginia, one of the most beautiful states in the US, during your 2026 America Tour!