trip prep…

getting ready to take a trip on the blue ridge parkway with my father-in-law at the end of the month. we’ve been talking about riding the parkway for a while and now it’s time to make it happen…

the past week or so i’ve been trying to figure out the details – when we’re going , how far we’ll travel each day, where we’ll stop overnight and other rides we might be able to fit in during our journey. the original plan was to make travel the parkway in two days. knowing we’d want to ride the snake as well as the tail of the dragon. to help plan the trip i ordered the latest version of the blue ridge parkway maps from america rides maps.

the maps arrived today and i was pleasantly surprised. from the start i’ve been impressed with the maps. i also know the maps have expanded and upgraded. but i didn’t realize how much until i got the latest versions of the map.

the new maps contain more routes as well as more detail. detail in both the crispness of the maps themselves and the number of amenities like gas stations, restaurants and lodging along the suggested routes. the routes are well marked on the map with descriptions on the back of the map. the maps, seven in total, are well labeled to indicated how all seven maps fit together. making it easy to pick up a road or route on an adjacent map.

i know wayne put a lot of time and effort towards creating these maps. his effort is definitely paid off with these maps.

well, i better get to finalizing the details of the trip. with the help of these maps it shouldn’t be too tough.

blue ridge parkway...

29 September 2008

very late on this post...

after visiting appalachian state, we decided to take the long way home - along the blue ridge parkway... since we were leaving a day earlier than originally planned, we figured we could afford the time. if it got late, we'd just pick some where to stop and pick up the next day.

it was interesting riding along the parkway. it was sunny and warm on one side of the mountain and cool, cloudy and threatening rain on the other. depending on which way we were heading, we'd either be in the nice warm sun or contemplating pulling over to gear up in our rain suits. the conditions would change with each turn we took. thankfully we never hit the rain...

our first stop along the blue ridge. the pictures just don't do it justice...

our second stop at the e.b. jeffress park. again, beautiful and the pictures don't do it justice.

at the park, there were some trails leading down to a waterfall. we decided to spend a little time and check it out...

there were so many overlooks and centers to visit. if we would have stopped at each one, it would have taken us a week to get home.

we did decide to stop at the blue ridge music center. not sure what i was expecting, but this wasn't it. although it was interesting and introduced me to the origins and history of the music in the area.

after getting off the parkway, our final scenic stop was lovers leap in stuart, va. this picture doesn't give you a good feeling for the drop off just over the wall...

a quick stop for some food and fuel...

we ended up making it home that evening - a little late and a lot chilly. but definitely worth going out of our way. this trip has bumped up the priority of riding the whole blue ridge parkway... maybe i can swing it next year...

to wrap things up, a map of our path along the blue ridge parkway...