By Charles Leocha

Travel columnist

updated 2:48 p.m. ET July 10, 2006

The cherry blossoms are gone, and Congress has fled the muggy corridors of power, but the nation’s capital has much to offer visitors in summer. Combined with a pleasant drive through the Virginia countryside, a four-day road trip along the Potomac makes for a capital idea.

It’s an itinerary that combines history, nature, architecture, museums and shopping in an easy drive. It starts in Washington, D.C., follows the Potomac River west to Harpers Ferry, then drops down into the Shenandoah Valley to Charlottesville before returning to Washington.

Day One — Washington, D.C.
The nation’s capital has two new museums to add to its usual collection of impressive monuments and imposing government buildings. But first visit an old landmark, the Thomas Jefferson Building, which houses the Library of Congress. The building, located just behind the Capitol, is a favorite stop on school trips, but in summer it is less crowded, giving visitors more room to appreciate the architecture and the lavish decorations, which were created by more than 50 American artists. Reopened in 1997 after an extensive restoration, the library harks back to a time when public buildings were constructed to impress and inspire, not just to serve their useful purposes. Check out the dome: It’s plated in 23-carat gold.

On the National Mall, the new National Museum of the American Indian, which opened in September 2004, is housed in a dramatic building across from the National Gallery of Art. Its rough limestone façade is curved and cantilevered like a Southwest cliff dwelling; on the south side, crystal prisms throw rainbows of light across the lobby floor at midday. The collection, which has nearly one million artifacts in rotation, is organized according to Indian cultures rather than history, and there is a good emphasis on contemporary American Indian arts and culture. The museum will sponsor a three-day national powwow at the MCI Center (601 F St., N.W.) August 12-14.

On your way west out of town, check out the National Air and Space Museum’s new annex, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, near Dulles Airport. The center, which opened in December 2003, gets rave reviews from aviation and space nuts and kids of all ages. It houses the space shuttle Enterprise and the SR-71 spy plane, as well as a wonderful collection of commercial airplanes and military jets. This new annex is on the way to Leesburg and Harpers Ferry, so travelers can visit it at the end of Day One or at the start of Day Two.

Day Two — Leesburg and Harpers Ferry
Enjoy the drive along Route 7 through rolling countryside to Leesburg, and then on to Harpers Ferry.

Leesburg is a historic town little nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. In appearance, it is little changed from Civil War days, yet it has more than 30,000 square feet of antique shops and home decor stores, as well as scores of upscale factory outlets. The town also has a collection of excellent restaurants. Have lunch here, then spend the late afternoon at Harpers Ferry. The town sits at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, part of the larger Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. The view from here takes in West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia. Thomas Jefferson called it one of the most beautiful views in the world.

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