175 miles on the Blue Ridge Pkwy & Skyline Drive ~ ask me anything

[In_The_Wind]

no billboards, no fast-food, no traffic lights

[swag]

1. Are you drunk with beauty?

[In_The_Wind]

8. it was awe inspiring

I turned around more than once to take pictures ... and also just to sit and drink in the unspoiled beauty of nature

[Joe_VB]

2. Did you hike or drive? That is the question.

[In_The_Wind]

11. I saw several hikers but I wasn't one of them

I was driving home from North Carolina and I've seen I95 & I85 too many times so I took route 15 most of the way until I picked up the B R Pkwy.


15 was like a roller coaster ride up & down hills at 55 mph *wheeeee*

[GoddessOfGuinness]

20. 15 is a pretty nice road in places, too.

I love that stretch of road in any season. The last few years we've tried to drive along Skyline Drive in the winter, it was closed...a major bummer. I guess they don't have the funding to patrol and maintain it properly.

[In_The_Wind]

27. I did notice the gates to close the road

much of the Skyline Drive is exposed to the elements from both sides of the road and would be treacherous during the worst parts of the winter :scared: NO guard rails LONG DROP-OFFS

[madinmaryland]

3. What are you doing on the internets?

Go forth and enjoy the beautiful country of the shenandoahs!

[In_The_Wind]

16. I did enjoy it all day yesterday!

But I left the keeper of my heart Miss Frodo at home so I couldn't stay away long ... although I was giving some thought to camping out there last night but the little bees were too much in-love with me every time I stopped for a while to gaze at some of the true natural beauty before me.

[SouthoftheBorderPaul]

4. per hour!?!?! (nt)

[In_The_Wind]

17. 35 mph for the last 105 miles

[Jara sang]

5. My trail clubs cabin is at about mile post 17

It is so beautiful up there.:hi:

[In_The_Wind]

21. the drive was my present to me

the only sad part was one very big *sigh* when I thought of my last trip there 32 years ago ... I paused for a while to think about all of the very special friends I've known who are no longer with us and promised myself to contact one of my companions from an earlier journey on the very beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway

[Taverner]

6. Take me! take me!

BRPW is one of my must dos in life...

[In_The_Wind]

25. I'll be making the trip again ... bring your own toothbrush & a duffel

climb on-board

I've decided to visit the South more frequently.

[youspeakmylanguage]

7. Stop by Blowing Rock, NC!

I went to college in the next town over. It's right off of the Parkway.

[barb162]

23. My neighbor had a vacation house there and she always said it

very nice. Is it a one day or two day type stop (enough to do for 2 days?)

[youspeakmylanguage]

28. It's an afternoon stop...

A good place to get lunch, browse some antique shops, and admire the scenery.

[In_The_Wind]

38. which end of the Parkway ?

I'll be back down that way again soon.

[youspeakmylanguage]

40. Wow, I'm not even sure... (n/t)

[In_The_Wind]

58. I was planing my next trip south & Blowing Rock, NC isn't on my way

but the google searches make it look very pretty

[Patiod]

9. How blue was the sky?

I remember going there on a family vacation and being smitten with the depth of color of the sky.

[In_The_Wind]

39. the sky was the palest blue

there was a white mist hanging over the valleys making me very happy to be up above all of that

[bertha katzenengel]

10. Mrs. V. and I are going camping up there before year's end.

Can't wait!

[In_The_Wind]

41. totally excellent !

I wouldn't mind camping out in the Smokey's again. I haven't done that in well over 30 years. I wish you both the best of weather ... clear days and nights that are just cool enough to enjoy. :thumbsup:

[NuckinFutz]

12. Lucky !!!

I was there in late April. Places like the Parkway are my church. I can always feel God there. I'd love a chance to go back.

[In_The_Wind]

46. Were the Mountain Laurels in bloom?

Spring in the South seems to last forever!

[pdx_prog]

13. do you hear John Denver singing in the back seat?

[In_The_Wind]

47. it would have been appropriate

however I was listening to Madonna, Annie Lennox, Dixie Chicks, Donovan, Clapton, Meat Loaf, Grateful Dead, Seal just to name a few ... it was 4 days on the road.

[Brewman_Jax]

14. Beautiful country

my brother and his wife vacationed there years ago when he was stationed at Norfolk. He still talks about the view.

[In_The_Wind]

48. it was a lovely day

it's always nice when I visit the South .... it's just so darned hard to leave.

[Withywindle]

15. Did you drive by my parents' house around milepost 200?

Fancy Gap, VA.


My dad was a Park Ranger on the BRP for 25 years. :hi:


He is a leftyleftyLEFTY. One of us. My mom too.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

18. That always seemed like a dream job to me...

Maybe the pay stunk, but the fringes...

[Withywindle]

35. Oh yeah....

He spent an awful lot of time in a car, though. And it's a law enforcement gig, really. Bulletproof vest and guns and all that. He even had to carry his gun everywhere when off-duty just like cops do. There's a lot of crime in the National Parks. Park Rangers are part of the FOP now (partly due to my dad; he did a lot of lobbying to join the union and was Executive Director of the Park Ranger Lodge for a while).

[GoddessOfGuinness]

43. "There's a lot of crime in the National Parks"

That's a crying shame...

[Withywindle]

52. I know, isn't it?

Think about it, though: isolated areas by definition. Sometimes close to international borders (lot of drug smuggling and exploitation of immigrants going on in the SW, for example) and/or urban centers--a lot of the gun/drug trade for Richmond and DC and Baltimore and Charlotte, etc., might pass through the Smokies/BRP/Shenandoah. There've been some rapes and murders on the Appalachian Trail too.

[In_The_Wind]

49. actually I did drive past milepost 200

I'm sure some people must have seen my Democratic Underground bumper sticker while I was in the Park. Tell your Dad ... I'm still impressed! The place is just as beautiful as it was on my last visit. I wish I could say that about more places.

[underpants]

19. BEAUTIFUL drive

I'll bet it was great

[In_The_Wind]

50. It was GREAT !

slooooooooooow at 35 mph but worth every extra hour ... I didn't want to push all 700+ miles into one day's drive ... so slow was better than camping out in a hotel room for 2 or 3 extra hours.

[barb162]

22. I have been wanting to do that trip for a long time

around the time the leaves turn

[In_The_Wind]

54. are you heading ALL the way up here for leaf peeping

you might want to check this out if you have time www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=3462859 psst ... I'm buying the first round of drinks

[barb162]

24. name the nice towns that deserve a stop

[ernstbass]

31. Stop at Mabry Mill in Va shortly before entering NC

They make buckwheat flour at the mill - you can eat buckwheat pancakes at the restaurant. There is a winery nearby - Chateau Morisette which serves wonderful gourmet meals and decent wines. In NC, stop at Blowing Rock and Grandfather Mountain.

[In_The_Wind]

51. I was just passing through

I'm happy to see that it looks like your getting some ideas from other DUers.

*WARNING* If you smoke - bring your own ashtrays, it seems like the "smoking rooms" in hotels don't really want you to put that cigarette down until it's finished.

[Marnieworld]

26. Umm, stupid question but where is this?

I've heard of the Pacific Coast HIghway but not this one.

[In_The_Wind]

30. in land on the east coast ... south of the Mason-Dixon line

I 81 is to the west and much further east is I 95 & I 85

[Marnieworld]

33. Darn. I wish I knew two weeks ago.

I just got back from a PA to NC trip on Thursday. I drove too. I took 95 and 85 to Raleigh-Durham area. It would have been nice to go a pretty way even if it added a little time. What's the actual highway name on a map? It sounds heavenly.

[Withywindle]

37. That is the actual name.

The Blue Ridge Parkway and the Skyline Drive are Federal (or is the Skyline a State Park; I can't remember) scenic highways that run through western North Carolina and western Virginia. They're two different official things, but they meet.

The BRP is a National Park, actually, with very strict rules about what you can build along it, and what kind of vehicle can go on it (NO commercial vehicles). Lots of scenic views and historic sites all along it.

[In_The_Wind]

44. Try going through Maryland - Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel ......

if you want a coastal trip, head on down Route 1. I've seen Ocean City, Maryland go from a quaint little seaside town in the early 70's to miles of hotels and arcades today. Personally, I liked it better before it grew up.


I've always enjoyed driving the roads that are usually overlooked by most travelers. Drop me a PM before you start out again. I'll see if I can come up with some memories of places to see or avoid like South of the Boarder.

[MrScorpio]

29. Isn't it just marvelous?

Another great reason to be here in Virginia

[In_The_Wind]

34. Miss Sugar & I could have joined you for afternoon tea

had we known ... we did talk about going for a drive on Saturday afternoon ... before I started building martinis, ending any idea of going out ~ we ordered a pizza

[sundog]

32. wow... color me green

that stretch is beautiful... even more amazing in october

[In_The_Wind]

36. maybe I'll drive Sugar back home after the Woodstock meet-up in October

I seem to remember discussing mountain tops & ocean views with you




I'm glad I could bring back a pretty memory for you

[demnan]

42. One evening my brother and I both had a tough day at work

and we got in his car and he drove from Woodbridge to Front Royal and onto the Parkway just a short distance. We experienced sunset looking over the beautiful Shenandoah valley at a little farm. And we heard the cows lowing in the valley. What a wonderful experience!

[In_The_Wind]

55. OMG ! That's such a beautiful way to let go of a bad day!

I was in Front Royal yesterday. I really do want to see it again! Nature is wonderful, getting away from the cities is so rejuvenating

[seemunkee]

45. I've hiked a good part of that

I've been meaning to take the Mini for a cruise down Skyline drive. Maybe in the early fall before all the leaf gawkers clog things up.

[In_The_Wind]

56. If I were younger, I would enjoy hiking through the Smokey's

I was pleased to see that acid rain hadn't taken more of a toll on the forest.

[all.of.me]

53. amazing, isn't it?!

i drove the entire length in 1987, just toodling along at my leisure. it was amazing. i ended up living near the parkway in tennessee for a while. beautiful country. just beautiful.

(i don't have a question!)

[In_The_Wind]

57. yes ~ I concure

it is amazing!> I promise pictures of the Skyline in a day or two.