Blue Ridge Parkway — Part 2

Happy and I had a bit of an adventurous night camping out. The wind came up pretty strong, we had intermittent periods of rain and the temperature dropped a lot. When I rousted her from her truck house this morning, she was wearing her "I don't like it" face, but a brisk coffee-walk perked her right up. We packed up and hit the road just as the day started to clear and temps came up from the 40s.

Yesterday I mentioned that many of the "overlooks" are blocked by trees. Here's a perfect example of how it's still a good view, but it could be a lot better with a little pruning!



On the other hand, there are still plenty of spectacular, unobstructed views to be had. Ironically, many of the very best views do not have overlooks available and the best you can do is lift your foot from the gas pedal and take a peek as you drive by.



The hardwood forests continued throughout southern Virginia, but seemed to be well past their peak once into North Carolina. I'm guessing recent weather has taken its toll on them and they've gone from green to bare pretty quickly. The NC evergreens are still going strong, of course, and are markedly more prevalent.





So far I've shown you forest views and overlook views, but there's a third view that is common on the parkway: Open areas across gaps and saddles. This picture isn't very good due to the lighting creeping out my camera shooting through the windshield, but it gives you the gist of it.



We have stopped in Boone, NC, and checked into a motel. The temps are predicted to get down into the low 30s tonight and neither of us really feel like dealing with that. Tomorrow we will continue south down to the Asheville area... Stay tuned!