Gainesville, VA Outdoor Activities

A 2,000-year-old game from Asia. An Argentinean polo player. A farm in northern Virginia. What may seem like the openings to three different stories is actually the description of one place: Middleburg Polo Academy. The scenic farm ground originally set the scene to a polo boarding and training facility by seasoned polo player Daniel Tognini and his wife, Ilene. These grounds morphed into an academy in 2007, thanks to the Tognini children, who had become enraptured with polo and the eponymous collared shirts the horses wore. Striving to inspire other youths with the game he first mastered in his native Argentina, Tognini fills Middleburg’s calendar with classes, camps, and private tutorials, teaching the history of polo and techniques to help students eventually compete in the sport.

The pilots at DC Skydiving Center fly to heights of up to 2 miles before divers of all skill levels hurl themselves from the plane's side door. Before they ever leave the ground, though, students receive a safety briefing and thorough explanation of the jump process. The center’s instructors specialize in calming the jitters of newbie divers by strapping in with them on tandem dives, but they also regularly shed single tears as more experienced adrenaline junkies pull out their own parachute at the culminating point of accelerated free-fall programs. Once in the air, the small aircraft's large, panoramic windows grant breathtaking views of the capitol skyline and Blue Ridge Mountains, all of which are captured on RVT video by instructors on the descent.

The adventure-seeking staff members of ThrillZOWN organize outdoors adventures at more than 100 locations nationwide, letting customers experience the waters, air, and land of America’s diverse regions. Seasoned guides lead adventurers on whitewater-rafting trips on inland rivers, and instructors conduct lessons in surfing and filling out life guards' paperwork at coastal beaches. Other guides help guests plunge to earth safely in tandem-skydiving and tandem-paragliding flights, while aeronauts sweep them through scenic country vistas during hot-air-balloon flights. On dry land, equestrians teach customers to think like a centaur on horseback trail rides, and professional stock-car drivers guide them in laps around a racetrack.

Taking time to stop and smell the flowers has never paid off better than it does at Seven Oaks Lavender Farm. Co-owned by the mother-daughters team of Edith, Deborah, and Dianne, the farm occupies more than an acre of land sprinkled with purple lavender and other flowers. Set back from the rustic and perfumed fields, their Lavender Shop houses myriad floral products, many of which are made by the Seven Oaks ladies themselves. Visitors can pick up soaps, jellies, certified-organic teas, and candles that all bear a fragrant, lavender aroma. In addition to its everyday operations, the farm also hosts events that include fall festivals, wreath-making classes, and lessons on using lavender garlands to ward off possessed grandmothers.

Capital City Skydiving's air-riding experts take first-time and experienced jumpers to the stratosphere for jumps above the scenic vistas of Southern Michigan. Tethered to clients, they guide tandem rides to facilitate first tastes of terminal velocity before coasting in for a soft landing. To accommodate licensed skydivers with a current reserve parachute, the staff guides planes over the business's own scenic landing zone so jumpers can take to the air on their own. Beginners who wish to become full-fledged divers can opt for the Accelerated Freefall program, in which aficionados teach the skills necessary to make solo jumps such as how to handle equipment or merge into goose traffic without a blinker.