PLEASE NOTE LOCATION CHANGE: This tour now departs from the Holiday Inn Capitol at 550 C Street, S.W.

Crossing the Rappahannock River west of Fredericksburg, Virginia, Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant met the Confederate army of Gen. Robert E. Lee in the dense thickets of an area known as the Wilderness. After two days of bitter and indecisive combat, Grant advanced by the left flank toward the crossroads of Spotsylvania Court House.

Included in this tour led by Civil War historianEd Bearss are sites of significant activity, such as the Germanna Ford on the Rapidan River and along the Plank Road, where some of the worst fighting took place. Combined casualties in this battle are estimated at about 29,800 and included Lt. Gen. James Longstreet (who was wounded by his own men), as well as two Union generals and three Confederate generals, all of whom were killed.

Lunch is included at the Clearwater Grill in Locust Grove, Virginia.

8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. by bus from the Holiday Inn Capitol at 550 C Street, S.W. (click here for details & map), with a pick-up stop at the Horner Rd. commuter lot bus shelter, I-95, Exit 158B, at about 8:25 a.m.

Dress for outdoor walks.