Skip to main content

The Blue Ridge Parkway

Image
By
For over 60 years, the Blue Ridge Parkway has combined modern travel with the splendor of nature. Unlike the thousands of miles of superhighways that grace this nation, the 469-mile parkway purposely avoids altering the landscape allowing visitors to enjoy the majestic beauty of the Blue Ridge in North Carolina and Virginia. Linking two popular national parks, Shenandoah and Great Smokey Mountains, the route goes from foothills and farmlands to heights of over 5000 feet. No matter how high or low the elevation, the Parkway is full of endless and spectacular views, hiking trails, and an infinite number of natural possibilities.

In 2003, I began a Blue Ridge Parkway travelogue on my old All Things NC! website. When we shut down the original Gribblenation in 2016, I began to transfer the old pages to the blog as well as adding new stops along the way. This gateway page will continue to be updated as new stops are added from future excursions on this wonderful road.

Site Navigation: 
Virginia: 
North Carolina:
Just off the Parkway:
Parkway Related Roadtrips:
Learn more about the roadtrips behind the features!
For all photo or story inquiries - or if you have information to share - please feel free to comment or reach me directly at aprince27@gmail.com.

Blue Ridge Parkway shield courtesy of Bruce Cridlebaugh.
 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

By
Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...
Post a Comment
Read more

Former US Route 50 and the South Lincoln Highway from Folsom east to Placerville

By
The corridor of Folsom of Sacramento County east to Placerville of El Dorado County has been a long established corridor of overland travel dating back to the California Gold Rush.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor was once part of the path of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road which became the first California State Highway and later the South Lincoln Highway.  In time the South Lincoln Highway's surface alignment was inherited by US Route 50.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor also includes the communities of; Clarksville, Shingle Springs and El Dorado. Part 1; the history of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road, South Lincoln Highway and US Route 50 through Folsom-Placerville Folsom is located on the American River/Lake Natoma of eastern Sacramento County.  That lands now occupied by the City of Folsom were part of Rancho Rio de los Americanos prior to the finding of gold at Sutter's Mill during 1848.  During the California Gold Rush the lands of Rancho Rio de los Americanos were p...
Post a Comment
Read more

Abandoned US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon

By
Within the Truckee River Canyon in the Sierra Nevada range numerous abandoned portions of US Route 40 can be found alongside modern Interstate 80.   This segment of highway was opened during 1926 as a bypass of the Dog Valley Grade which carried the early North Lincoln Highway and Victory Highway. The corridor of the Truckee River Canyon State Highway would be assigned as US Route 40 when the US Route System was commissioned during November 1926. During 1958 the segment of Interstate 80 between Boca, California and the Nevada state line was complete. When Interstate 80 opened east of Boca numerous obsolete portions of US Route 40 were abandoned. Some of these abandoned segments have been incorporated into the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail.  Part 1; the history of US Route 40 in the Truckee River Canyon The Truckee River Canyon for centuries has been an established corridor of travel known to native tribes crossing the Sierra Nevada range.  The first documented wagon crossi...
Post a Comment
Read more