Virginia - Blue Ridge Mountains

We get an early start and after missing the entrance and getting into a sticky situation getting turned around we finally make it to the Blue Ridge Parkway.

It was  a public works project started during the Great Depression.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is the first and longest rural parkway in America.   Run by the National Park Service, the Parkway extends 469-miles through the southern Appalachian Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina, and links  Shenandoah National Park and Great Smoky Mountains National Park

We get on the Parkway just in time to stop and see Mabry Mill

I had been here before but with my little Van I was able to park out front.  With the Reflection we had to park in the RV overflow in back.  I never saw that all this was behind the Mill.

We have the whole place to ourselves so Tucson gets to run free.

The water supply flume system.  Ed and Liz Mabry started  building the Mill in 1905 with the help of a neighbor using hand tools.  In 1908 the gristmill was in operation and people from up to eight miles were bringing their corn to be ground here.  

Millstones

 an old soap making operation

 a nice boardwalk leads us to the front of the Mill and the Restaurant and Gift shop which aren't yet open for the season.

 Mabry Mill is one of the most photographed sites on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Several hundred thousand travelers visit the Mill each year,  It is starting to get crowed - 2 other couples have shown up - time to move on.

It is a beautiful day for a  scenic drive.

and such fun driving a 36' 5th wheel


 The views are spectacular

Time for a lunch break so we pull into the Smart View area.  There is a short hike to a cabin here.    When I went into the 5th wheel to put lunch together I found that a cabinet door over the stove had opened and spilled some of my microwave dishes out onto the floor on that Spiral Curve.  I lost one small corning square casserole and lid.

 The road to the picnic area is closed but there is a trail running through the pasture along the parking area outside the gate.  Tucson gets a good head start.

 It is a nice large picnic area

 The cabin finally comes into view

 and it is a smart  view!

Looks cozy but a bit drafty

Further down the road we pass by this castle in the distance.

 It turns out to be a Benedictine Monastery.
  They began construction in 2005.  When finished it was more than 11,000 square feet, complete with a chapel, library, communal kitchen, crypt and a cloistered courtyard.  If we had had just a car we might have found our way down there but it is just as well because they have chosen a solitary life and we should just leave them be.

The views go on for miles.  It is kind of nice that the trees haven't leafed out yet because we can see so much more.

 
 Roanoke Valley overlook

I had brought Tucson out with me to see the view and stretch his legs.  I had him on a leash.  He kept whining and looking down the hill.  I thought maybe there was a squirrel or groundhog but he was really persistent.  I looked closely where he was focused and found the reason for his intense whining.

 I had checked to see if we would come across any low tunnels.   The website says there are only two tunnels on the Parkway and I don't see any of concern.

 Well we must have gone through at least 6 - fortunately none were an issue

 A vulture soaring over the valley

 and this guy went soaring off to the side of the road.  Thankfully he soared to the inside

 We stop to check out the  James River and restored lock

 Tucson as usual leads the way

We get to cross the River

and the battery on my camera dies and my phone is in the truck.  Guess you will just have  to take the trip and see it for yourselves.

All the campgrounds on the Parkway seem to be closed.  We pull into Otter Creek visitors center and it is closed as well.  We park in one of the parking spots nearby and hope for the best.  Another camper pulled in and asked if were staying the night and we said we hoped so.  They then proceeded to set up camp down the parking lot with lawn chairs in the driveway.  Nothing like being discreet.  Fortunately no one came and booted us out.  The next morning Parks people were there working on the campground.  Apparently someone with a truck managed to get by the locked gate and was camping in the campground.