Picking up where we left off…change in scenery and weather

I hope your holidays were good ones and here’s to 2023 being a kind year to us all! When I last posted we were still on the Blue Ridge Parkway and guess what? We’re STILL on the Blue Ridge Parkway but we had not only a change in scenery but a change in the weather as well.

We had just gone past 5900 feet elevation when we stopped for a moment at the Looking Glass Rock overlook.

Onward and upward when at another overlook I heard a man tell some other travelers that the road was closed up ahead because of snow and ice. Say what? I have no idea why we kept driving in that direction but we did. And as we drove we saw mid October autumn foliage change bit by bit into a winter wonderland. Let me tell you, there is nothing quite like driving on an unfamiliar road high in the mountains in weather like this!

I was anxious to say the least, especially since it was my turn behind the wheel! I carefully pulled into the parking lot of the Craggy Gardens Visitor Center to of course take photos and to ask the rangers how do we get to the other side. It was soooo cold and windy which was the opposite of where we had started on the parkway that morning.

The view behind the Craggy Gardens Visitor Center.

Since the tunnel to get to the other side looked like this (notice the tourists walking up the road towards the tunnel for what – a better view?) and the road was closed for at least 10 miles from this point…

We had to double back and find a spot on the parkway that led to a parallel running highway in order to find another entry point to the BRP. That was an interesting side trip as it took us through a lot of twisting up and down roads through rural neighborhoods before we found our way back onto the BRP and on to our next two stops, with the clock ticking away on our time to reach two places I had to see before dark.

Did we make it in time to those two sites?

Next – The Falls

Teri 🚙

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