The Blue Ridge Parkway

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We wanted to drive a portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway while visiting Asheville. The scenic Parkway runs along the mountain ridges from Virginia, where it connects with Skyline Drive and Shenandoah National Park, through North Carolina to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We started at the Folk Art Center near the Asheville entrance to the parkway. The Craft House contains an exhibition of folk art and a craft store. From the Folk Art Center, we continued north along the scenic mountain road. It was very reminiscent of Skyline Drive, which we've driven many times. I stopped at several of the scenic overlook pull-offs for the view and photos. The bluish haze you'll see is why this is called the Blue Ridge. Late March was still very early in the year and not everything was open and the trees bare. Park information for the upcoming season had not been put out and the Visitor Center near Mile 365 was closed. We ventured as far as Little Switzerland at about Mile 345. A mountainside cafe was open at Little Switzerland where we enjoyed lunch with a view of the valley below. (It was one of the few places that were open for business at this time of year.)

We enjoyed our trip to Western North Carolina. The only drawback was that late Mach was just a bit too early to fully enjoy it. Winter snows had left but spring greenery was not yet out.

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Photos

Green Knob Overlook
Green Knob Overlook and Catawba River Valley, Blue Ridge Parkway. Milepost 350.8. 4761 feet (1451 m).
NC105

Mt. Mitchell Overlook
Mt. Mitchell Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway. Milepost 349.9. 4821 feet (1469 m). NC104

Balsam Gap Overlook
Balsam Gap Overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway. Milepost 359.8. 5320 feet (1622 m). NC102a