The Blue Ridge Parkway in the Southern Appalachian Mountains has been called America's most scenic roadway. Of course it has a rival in California's Highway 1, but the Parkway is so much longer. It spans 469 miles from Great Smokies National Park in North Carolina through to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. And I drove 400 miles of it. The Parkway traces the crest of the world's oldest mountain range. It was built as a public works project during the Great Depression, and it's now being restored with Recovery Act funds. I guess good things can come out of bad times.
The road is smooth and gentle. It doesn't zig-zag, it flows. The speed limit is 45 the entire way, and no one is in a hurry. Traffic is light, and there are 'overlook' pull-over spots nearly every mile. It truly is a parkway, with mown grass strips lining the sides of the two-lane road. There are bridges, tunnels and walls built of local granite, and nature comes right up to the road. I saw deer and wild turkeys, and dodged a number of squirrels and birds. There are small waterfalls right next to the road, and crazy-looking mushrooms in the grass. Trees reach across and shade the Parkway, blurring by my open sunroof, and I had good music going most of the time. It was more than a drive; The whole experience was absolutely magical. And I'm hoping for more magic tomorrow, when I drive the connecting, 100-mile Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park on my way to Washington, D.C.
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