to Meadows of Dan, VA

~ A quick note for us new bloggers (writers and readers).  You can click on the pictures and they will open in a bigger window.

We got started today at about 9:45 after breakfast at the hotel.  The temps again hovered just over 50 but with a warm forecast I headed off without my Long Jane's or wool socks on.  We climbed and climbed and spent a lot of the first 50 miles or so at about 4,500'.

This was the first lake that I saw on either the road through the Great Smoky's or the Blue Ridge Parkway.  It seemed picture worthy.

Yesterday I mentioned that the tunnels didn't fit my stereo type.  I took this picture today to illustrate the angle and curve for a tunnel.

The weather looks a bit threatening here but we were in and out of cloud cover all day with no rain. The temps vary by elevation and with the cloud cover.  It got up to the 70's at times.  It is very pleasant this evening at 66 degrees.

Why?  Why would you have a blind entrance somewhere on this curve?
Answer - You shouldn't!  It was so blind that I did not see it...  How scary is that?
(I usually look over Allan's right shoulder so it must have been on the left.)

This afternoon we noticed that the road has gentler more sweeping curves and it actually has some almost straight moments.  The views are still spectacular.

When you look ahead and see this you quickly wonder how long it will take to get there.

The attendant at the information center by the Viaduct had this as her license plate.

After visiting the info center we went for a walk to check it out before we drove over it.  This is pretty much a bridge hanging off the side of the mountain.  It was the last portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway to be completed.  It was opened in 1987.

We had been riding for more than 2 hours by the time we stopped so I was ready to walk/climb a bit. Silly us it started out as a paved path and then we soon realized the short trail was mostly serpentine up and over boulders and around trees.

A view of the Viaduct from further up the trail.

While on our walk we saw quite a few wild flowers.  I am not sure what these are.  Maybe a cousin to a viole?  What do you think?

This would be the violet.

Who can tell me what these are?

These leaves were at least a foot across them and the small white flowers were delicate.  Help me out with these too.

There were many bluets scattered about.

There are rhododendron all along the parkway.  A few of them are in bloom.  Some are this shade of pink and some are much darker almost reddish.  I suspect it will be another week or more before the bulk of them are in bloom.

The roadside this afternoon was dotted with pastures and many wooden fences. There were many intersecting small roads paved and unpaved.  There were also a couple bigger highways and we went over them.

This is a good example of how the road in many places is just carved out of the side of the mountain.

On the westward side the mountains were less dramatic and more populated.

This is the mystery tree of the day.  It looks a bit like an orange dogwood.  I couldn't get a very good shot of it.  Any guesses on this one?

We dined tonight at Jane's Country Cafe here in Meadow of Dan.  The first vegetable on this list from the menu brought me up short.

There was one item on the Dessert Board that caught my attention.  I inquired as to the ingredients.  Clearly it wasn't the first time she had been asked.  Her reply was, "Everything but the tail".

I am such an adventurous eater (not really) that I gave it a try.  For me in the end it almost sounded better than it tasted.

So here we are with 'Possom Pie in our bellies at the Blue Ridge Motel in Meadows of Dan, VA.  This hotel was undoubtably built in the 60's.  How much more do I need to say.  The internet is working on the computer but not the ipad or phones.  The TV gets NBC and we will be able to watch the conclusion of 'The Voice' tonight.  Who could ask for more at $60 a night.

Today we traveled 220 miles at an average speed of about 40mph.  We were on that bike a long time. We have traveled 1170 miles thus far.  I suspect that we are probably half way.  Guess we will have to keep driving and do that math later on.  We are about 180 miles from the end of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the beginning of the Skyline Drive.