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MILEPOST 0–105

A Blue Ridge Sampler

Driving south from Rockfish Gap presents visitors with a quick introduction to the natural, cultural, and recreational resources the Blue Ridge Parkway has to offer.

During the first 63 miles, these resources are closely linked to transportation. A remnant of animal-drawn transportation is encountered at milepost 5.8, where a trace of the Old Howardsville Turnpike can be reached from a trail to the east of the Parkway. Humpback Rocks, south of the Humpback Rocks Visitor Center, is a landmark on the turnpike that stands watch over the Parkway. When the area along the Parkway was explored and later settled by Europeans, draft-drawn carts were the only means of getting into these mountains. During that period, Rockfish Gap (milepost 0.0) was an important route between the Rockfish and Shenandoah valleys.

Farther south you find the restored James River and Kanawha Canal Lock No. 7 (milepost 63.6). This was one of 90 locks built to move boats up the James River from Richmond to Buchanan in the 1800s. River travel was an important link to the mountains for a time, but it was soon eclipsed by the railroads.

Today, railroad tracks operate at each end of this 63-mile section. At milepost 0.0 in Rockfish Gap, the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad passes under the gap in a tunnel. The remnant of a logging railroad at Yankee Horse Ridge (milepost 34.4) shows one of the major forces for change along the Blue Ridge. With the coming of the railroad, the building boom taking place along the East Coast gained access to two important natural resources of the mountains—coal and lumber—and consequently a third, manpower. The tracks along the James River use the same path once taken by the James River and Kanawha Canal (milepost 63.6) for some of its route.

Recreational resources of the Parkway are not limited to parking overlooks—numerous trails offer everything from leg stretchers to the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail. The area around Peaks of Otter has been a place of respite and recreation since the 18th century. Before that time, Native Americans—Algonquin, Sioux, Iroquois, and Cherokee—used this area as a hunting and camping ground as they followed the well-worn elk, buffalo, and deer trails across the ridges. Archaeological evidence indicates that more than 8,000 years ago, prehistoric people found wildlife plentiful in the Peaks area.

“archaeological evidence indicates that prehistoric people lived in this area more than 8,000 years ago”

The first “hotel” in this former farming community was Polly Wood’s Ordinary, an inn that furnished simple lodging and meals for travelers from 1834 until 1860.

A few years before Polly Wood’s inn closed, another hotel was built. Hotel Mons was constructed in 1857. It burned in 1870 but was soon rebuilt and continued to accommodate 40 guests and staff until 1936. The building was dismantled in the early 1940s.

The Peaks community was established in 1766 when Thomas Wood settled in the cabin on what is now known as Johnson Farm. Wood passed the farming tradition from generation to generation until 1852, when the Johnson family bought the original four-room cabin from James Joplin, a Wood descendant. Until Polly Wood’s Ordinary opened in 1834, local homeowners would occasionally take in guests. The Johnsons were very much involved with the communities of Mons and the Peaks, and they (and the Bryants who succeeded them) often took overflow guests from Hotel Mons. The Bryants lived at Johnson Farm through the 1930s, when the area was purchased by the National Park Service. At that time, more than 20 families lived in the Peaks area.

A nearly 30-year break in the lodging tradition occurred during Parkway construction, but the tradition resumed with the opening of Peaks of Otter Lodge in 1964.

Another interesting fact about this section of the Parkway is that it features the lowest point on the Parkway and the highest Parkway elevation in Virginia. This section reaches its lowest elevation at the James River at 649 feet and climbs back up into the Blue Ridge, reaching 3,950 feet on Apple Orchard Mountain at milepost 76.7.

At Rockfish Gap, the towns of Waynesboro and Staunton, Virginia, are west on US 250. In Staunton, the Museum of Frontier Culture interprets the agricultural traditions of the area. East of Rockfish Gap is Charlottesville, Virginia, with the University of Virginia; President Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello; and other attractions.

At milepost 45.6, Buena Vista and Lexington, Virginia, are west of the Parkway. Lexington’s historic downtown is closely linked to the Civil War, a heritage highlighted at Washington and Lee University, the Stonewall Jackson House, and other attractions.

At milepost 63.6, Lynchburg, Virginia, is east of the Parkway. Lynchburg’s City Market, Bateau Landing, and museums are popular attractions. The Lynchburg Visitor Center is located at 216 East 12th Street and offers regional travel information.

0.0

Rockfish Gap—I-64 and US 250

This gap has long been an important route between the Rockfish and Shenandoah valleys. Construction of the Crozet Tunnel, as it was called, began in 1858. After eight years of work, without the benefit of dynamite or heavy machinery, the two ends of the tunnel met 510 feet beneath the gap. Confederate General “Stonewall” Jackson marched his troops through the tunnel to join Confederate forces in Staunton during the Civil War. Today, the C&O Railroad line passes through the gap in a tunnel, and the gap is dominated by the highways.

Rockfish Gap was often mentioned on the popular 1970s television show The Waltons. The fictional family lived nearby and would occasionally travel through the gap. Author Earl Hamner, Jr., whose writings were the inspiration for the series, grew up in this area.

“Rockfish Gap has long been an important route between the Rockfish and Shenandoah valleys”

Today, this gap provides good opportunities to watch for hawks during their migration.

A chamber of commerce information center at the gap features a relief map of the area and information on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Skyline Drive, and surrounding attractions. US 250 leads 4.5 miles west to Waynesboro, and I-64 leads 21 miles east to Charlottesville.

0.2

Afton Overlook

Rockfish Tavern, once located near this overlook, was a popular stagecoach stop. Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and others met here in 1818 to select Charlottesville as the location for the University of Virginia. The town of Afton is 1,100 feet below in the valley.

1.5

Rockfish Valley Overlook

This river valley was home to the Tuscarora tribe in the 1700s. Following their defeat by settlers on the Carolina coast, they moved northward, settling here. They later pushed farther north and became the sixth nation in the Iroquois Confederation.

2.9

View Shenandoah Valley

During the winter, you can see the immense lands of Beverly Manor from this viewpoint. This land was part of a Great Valley land grant given by the colonial government of Virginia. The 118,000 acres of the manor were settled by Scots-Irish immigrants.

5.8

Humpback Rocks Visitor Center

The stone visitor center (open May through October) houses restrooms, an information desk, rural life exhibits, and an interpretive area focused on the area’s pioneer life and outdoor recreation features.

The Mountain Farm Museum is the highlight of this stop. Outside, several preserved buildings are located on the path that leads south from the visitor center. This area was once known as the William J. Carter Farm, after the man who bought a farm in the late 1800s for $3 per acre with Confederate money. The Carter Farm buildings have long since disappeared, but Parkway planners moved period buildings in from other areas and arranged them on the site for this mountain farm exhibit. The 0.25-mile trail leads past a cabin, weasel-proof chicken coop, root cellar, barn with bear-proof hogpen, and springhouse. The cabin was built in 1890 by Billy and Nannie Ramsey at milepost 51.4 of the Parkway, and they used the cabin for the next 30 years. On summer weekends, rangers in period clothing are at the farm to give demonstrations and answer questions. This outdoor exhibit is wheelchair-accessible.

American Elk

Many large mammals have disappeared from the southern Appalachians, including the woodland buffalo, the wolf, and the mountain lion. The last American elk, also known as wapiti, was shot in 1855. Traces of these great mammals, often weighing as much as 1,000 pounds, can still be found in place names. Elk Valley, Banner Elk, and Elk Park are just a few of the places named in honor of this animal.

In 1917, with the buffalo, elk, mountain lion, and wolf gone, and the deer, bobcat, and bear quickly disappearing, elk were reintroduced to their former habitat. That year, more than 100 elk were transported from Yellowstone National Park and released in several locations in Virginia. In the Peaks of Otter area, 25 elk were reestablished. In 1935, more elk were brought to Peaks of Otter, and at one point the area boasted a population of 85 elk.

Unfortunately, times had changed. The lower elevations (the elks’ winter habitat) blanketed with timber were formerly apple orchards. Farmers, finding the marauding elk in their orchards, shot them on the spot. The elk were also attacked by a brain parasite, common to the white-tailed deer but fatal to the elk. By 1971 the elk had once again disappeared from Virginia.

“the rocks at Humpback Rocks were an important landmark to early settlers”

The Humpback Rocks Visitor Center is named for the prominent rock outcrop just south on the Parkway. The rocks were used as a landmark to guide teamsters carrying goods over the mountains on the Old Howardsville Turnpike. The turnpike was a major trade route in the mid-1800s and remained in use until the railroad came in 1880. The trace is still visible across the Parkway to the southeast of the visitor center parking lot.

6.0

Humpback Gap Overlook

An interpretive sign in the parking area describes how early settlers cleared trees to make room for farmlands in the mountains. Settlers girdled the trees to kill them, then planted their first crops of corn among the dying trees to get crops going as soon as possible.

The Appalachian Trail passes through this overlook. Go south 0.9 miles on the A.T. to Humpback Rocks. It is a tough climb to a rewarding view.

8.5

Humpback Rocks Picnic Area

Picnic tables, as well as water fountains and restrooms, are scattered among the trees in this wooded area.

8.8

Greenstone Overlook

The 0.2-mile Greenstone Trail leads to an example of the volcanic rocks that metamorphosed to form the dominant geologic feature at the northern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The catoctin greenstone gets its name from the distinctive green tint of the old lava flows. Enjoy fine views from this self-guiding trail, which interprets the geologic formations by way of small metal signs along the path. You can also see remnants of “hog walls” built in the 1800s.

9.6

Dripping Rock Parking Area

In this introductory section of the Parkway, Dripping Rock parking area points out the diversity that Parkway planners had in mind as they created the Parkway. Unlike the big views you often see at overlooks, Dripping Rock is in a wooded setting. Though many parking areas offer long-range views, expect the occasional counterpoint such as this one in a forest and fern-filled setting. The white blazes on the trees mark the path of the Appalachian Trail through here.

10.4

Rock Point Overlook

Catoctin greenstone can be seen just below this overlook.

Agriculture along the Parkway

As you drive along the length of the Parkway, you will notice that thousands of acres alongside the scenic route are farmed, growing a variety of traditional crops, including tobacco, cabbage, and other produce. When the Parkway was designed, planners created a route providing visual variety for those touring its length. As the planned route passed through many existing farms, the park service developed a program to allow farmers to lease portions of the right-of-way to continue to farm it. Not only did this program allow farming to continue, but it also maintained the original agricultural character of many areas of the Parkway and reduced maintenance costs.

The land is granted to farmers under special-use permits. Farmers are required to follow the stipulated good land-use practices, which include crop rotation, erosion control, and limited grazing (they must follow rules in accordance with the carrying capacity of the land). The farmers own everything they produce.

The National Park Service also purchased scenic easements on the land to promote traditional land uses along the Parkway. While a scenic easement does restrict uses of the land to agriculture and other compatible uses, ownership stays with the original owners.

10.7

Raven’s Roost Parking Overlook

The broad rock ledge at this overlook is an ideal roosting site for ravens and a popular location for hang gliding and rock climbing. (A permit is required for hang gliding.)

11.7

Hickory Spring Parking Area

Hickory trees provided settlers with hardwood for tool handles. Hickory lends a distinctive flavor to smoked meat.

13.1

Three Ridges Mountain

The high point (3,900 feet) on Three Ridges is 3 miles south.

13.7

Reeds Gap—VA 664

The Appalachian Trail passes through the dirt parking area in Reeds Gap on the east side of the Parkway. This gap sits at the head of Reeds Creek.

15.4

Love Gap

This gap is named for the Love, Virginia, post office, which was located nearby until 1944. The post office itself was named for Lovey Coffey, the daughter of the first postmaster at this office. The post office’s name made it a popular stop each February with people mailing Valentine’s Day cards.

16.0

VA 814

Sherando Lake Recreation Area in the George Washington National Forest is 4.5 miles west of the Parkway on VA 814. The park has a 22-acre lake for swimming, boating, and fishing and a 7-acre lake that is limited to fishing. The tent and RV campsites here, unlike those on the Parkway, have hot showers in the bathhouse. For more information, contact the Pedlar Ranger District at (540) 291-2188.

17.6

The Priest

The 0.2-mile Priest Overlook Trail leads to a bench with a view of Priest Mountain, which is part of the Religious Range just east of the Parkway. Other peaks in the range include The Friar, The Cardinal, and Little Priest. The Priest was named for the de Priest family, who were early settlers in this area. This overlook offers an exhibit on hickory trees.

18.5

White Rock Gap

An unmarked dirt parking area is on the west side of the Parkway. On the opposite side, you will find the trailhead for White Rock Falls Trail. From here go 1.6 miles to the falls, and another 0.9 miles to the other trailhead on the east side of the Parkway just north of Slacks Overlook (milepost 19.9).

19.0

20 Minute Cliff

This landmark’s name comes from farmers in the valley below who said that during the June and July corn-chopping season, they could watch the sun on this cliff to know when they had 20 minutes until sunset.

19.9

The Slacks Overlook

White Rock Falls Trail, just north of the parking area on the east side of the Parkway, leads 0.9 miles to the falls, 2.5 miles to White Rock Gap, and 4.5 miles to Sherando Campground in the George Washington National Forest.

22.1

Bald Mountain Parking Area

This is not a southern bald like those found on the Parkway in North Carolina. Here, there is no mystery as to why trees had trouble growing on the rocky mountain soil. Time and weathering have given the mountain more trees than when it was first named.

23.0

Fork Mountain Overlook

Fork Mountain can be seen between the north and south forks of the Tye River.

26.4

Big Spy Overlook

The 0.1-mile Big Spy Trail leads up a gentle grassy hill to a view of the Shenandoah Valley and loops back to the parking area. Big Spy and nearby Little Spy served as lookout posts for Union sympathizers during the Civil War.

27.2

Tye River Gap—VA 56

Drive 0.75 miles east to Montebello and 6.5 miles west to the town of Steele’s Tavern, where Cyrus McCormick demonstrated the first mechanical reaper in 1831. The invention revolutionized agriculture by reducing the number of laborers required to harvest crops.

29.0

Whetstone Ridge Visitor Center

This area was once known for its fine-grained sandstone used to make sharpening stones. District office with public restrooms, parking area, and picnic tables. Access the 12-mile Whetstone Ridge Trail here.

31.4

Stillhouse Hollow Parking Area

This hollow was named not for an illegal moonshine still, but for a tax-paying apple stillhouse, or distillery, that made legal liquor before Prohibition came with the 18th Amendment to the Constitution in 1919.

34.4

Yankee Horse Ridge Parking Area

A 200-foot section of the Irish Creek Railway, including a low trestle, can be seen at this overlook. This narrow-gauge rail line was originally built by the South River Lumber Company to gain access to stands of trees that had been left virtually untouched until the turn of the 20th century. The railbed has been preserved, but the tracks seen today are a reconstruction of a 50-mile line built in 1919 and completed in 1920. This track carried more than 100 million board feet of lumber to the mill. The last timber-cutting in the area was near Crabtree Falls in 1938, after which the region was logged out.

The 0.2-mile Yankee Horse Trail leads from this overlook to 30-foot Wigwam Falls and loops back to the parking area. The falls get their name from Wigwam Mountain, where local tradition says a Native American hunting camp was once located.

37.4

Irish Gap

As the place names along this section attest, many of the region’s settlers came from Ireland. Irish immigrants played an important role in the construction of the James River and Kanawha Canal (milepost 63.6). A common adage of the day stated that all you needed to build a canal was “a pick, a shovel, a wheelbarrow, and an Irishman.”

38.8

Boston Knob Overlook

The 0.1-mile Boston Knob Loop Trail offers you a chance to stretch your legs. The trail is surrounded by dogwood trees and wild azaleas that bloom in spring. A picnic table is located here.

40.0

Clarks Gap

The gap is named for the Clark family, who received a land grant for service in the War of 1812.

43.0

Irish Creek Valley Overlook

Also named for the Irish immigrants to this area, Irish Creek is a local white-water rafting and kayaking spot.

44.4

Whites Gap Overlook

Jordan Toll Road crossed the Blue Ridge near this overlook. This stage route was an important traverse point on this ridge south of Rockfish Gap.

44.9

Chimney Rock Mountain Overlook

View of Chimney Rock Mountain, one of many geologic formations on the Parkway named for its appearance.

45.6

Humphries Gap—US 60

Four miles west to Buena Vista; 11 miles west to Lexington; 22 miles east to Amherst. This is a good spot to watch the annual hawk migration.

45.7

View Buena Vista

Buena Vista, Virginia, lies 1,500 feet below the Parkway. In 1847, the Battle of Buena Vista in the Mexican- American War was fought with weaponry made from iron forged in the town, then known as Green Valley. The town’s name was changed to herald its connection to the successful assault.

47.5

Indian Gap Parking Area

The 0.2-mile Indian Gap Trail is a loop leading to an interesting group of truck-sized boulders.

48.9

Licklog Spring Gap

The name licklog is used to identify several gaps and other geographic features along the Parkway. It referred to an area where farmers would rub salt into a notch in a downed log to give their livestock that ranged in the mountains a source of the salt they needed in their diets.

49.4

View House Mountain

Across the Great Valley, Big House and Little House mountains can be seen in the Alleghenies and make up the 950-acre House Mountain Preserve.

50.5

Robinson Gap

This gap is named for John Robinson, an Irish immigrant who fought in the American Revolution.

51.5

Unmarked Parking Area

The Appalachian Trail crosses the Parkway at this small parking area.

“George Washington supported building a canal system along the James and Potomac rivers”

52.8

Bluff Mountain Overlook

An interpretive sign at this overlook describes the George Washington National Forest, the largest national forest in the East. It is now adminstered jointly with the Jefferson National Forest.

The ghost of Ottie Cline Powell reportedly haunts the summit of Bluff Mountain. In the fall of 1890, four-year-old Ottie went into the woods to gather firewood for his schoolhouse and never returned. Extensive searches didn’t turn up the boy’s body. It was found five months later well away from the school, on top of Bluff Mountain.

53.1

Bluff Mountain Tunnel

This 630-foot tunnel is the northernmost tunnel on the Parkway and the only one in Virginia.

National Parks and Forests

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a linear national park that passes through several national forests. So what’s the difference between the two? National parks primarily provide for preservation and are under the U.S. Department of the Interior. The National Park Service interprets the natural, historical, and cultural significance of its parks and provides myriad recreational opportunities. The U.S. Forest Service, which manages the national forests, is under the U.S. Department of Agriculture and is charged with administering the country’s timberland. While national forests also provide a host of recreational opportunities, their multiuse ethic is geared toward a working forest, where trees are grown and harvested for timber.

For more than 180 miles of the Parkway’s length, the scenic route passes through the George Washington and Jefferson national forests in Virginia and the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests in North Carolina.

53.6

View Rice Mountain

Wooded views with picnic table.

55.1

White Oak Flats Overlook

The 0.1-mile White Oak Flats Trail offers a chance to walk alongside a small stream.

“panther, painter, catamount, and cougar are all names used for the mountain lion (Felix concolor)”

55.8

Dancing Creek Overlook

This parking area is situated on the banks of a creek with a table available for picnicking.

57.6

Upper Otter Creek Overlook

Naturalists often hear that water moccasins are seen on Otter Creek, but it is usually the northern water snake that visitors see. It is a dark-colored nonvenomous snake that will readily bite if cornered.

58.2

Otter Creek Flats Overlook

The unique two-bay design of this overlook is charming and unusual. Picnic tables are situated on the banks of the creek, although the shallow banks, or flats, are prone to flooding in heavy rain.

59.7

Otter Creek Overlook

Several unconfirmed sightings of mountain lions have occurred in the Otter Creek area in recent years. The big cats were previously believed to have disappeared from this area in the 19th century. Mountain lions are sometimes reported by visitors to the Blue Ridge, but the feline’s return remains unconfirmed.

60.4

The Riffles Overlook

This parking area is at a 20-foot, chutelike cascade on Otter Creek.

60.8

Otter Creek