July 21, my road will lead to the Blue Ridge Parkway

The day was not promising, overcast with drizzle. Not my favorite, but I finally got motivated, got packed up, got my raingear on and headed for the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I think the camo duck tape is much better than the yellow since it blends in better.

Fog. I couldn't see a thing. But I decided to go to the visitor center five miles in. The weather did not get any better, and I put on my flashers. By the time I reached the visitor center, I was wondering if I should have my head examined. Why was I on a road where I could run into something, or something could run into me, or a deer could cross my path and it would not be a good crossing.

Unbelievable fog.  I determined it was not in my best interest to continuue on in it.

At the center I talked with the ranger for a bit, and decided to turn around and go back and then head south on an Interstate for a bit. I'd try to get back on the parkway then.

While trying to get to the parkway I saw a sign for something called the Natural Bridge, so I stopped.

Before going to the bridge, there was a butterfly display. Yep, sounds a little lame. But I went in and it was something to behold. It's live butterflies in a rain forest type of setting, and they're flying free. There are also some that are in the various cocoon stages, and I saw one that was hatching, with its wings moving, but not yet fully ready to fly.

Some butterflies are well-suited to blend with the environment.  Butterflies taste with their feet, their top speed is about 12 mph, and they can see red, green and yellow.  Other interesting facts include a butterfly's wings are covered with thousands of tiny, overlapping scales, they cannot fly if their body temperature is less than 86 degrees and a group of butterflies is referred to as a "flutter."  All cool facts I did not know.

There's a set up where butterflies hatch from their coccoons.  This one was coming out, his wings were fluttering, but he wasn't quite finished with his transformation.

There were many beautiful butterflies.

They were not fearful of us at all; in fact, we were told to watch where we stepped because sometimes there's be some on the floor.  And there were.

And finally, check yourself before going through the second door to make sure none of the butterflies have escaped.  I did not aid and abet any butterflies in their flight for freedom.  It was a very cool exhibit and I was glad I'd gone and wandered through it.

From there I had to walk down 137 steps to get on the pathway to the bridge. I enjoy rock formations, and this one promised to be a good one. It was, although I had to walk a ways, still in my boots and rainpants. That was a mistake. I should have lost the pants and changed into my sneakers. Oh well. Too late. By the time I got to the bridge, I also wanted to walk up to the Monacan Indian display, then on to Lace Falls, about a mile and a half back. So, had to do it. Wanted to see the falls. I was sweating like a pig. The rainpants act like a sauna, so I must be losing weight with all the sweat that was pouring off of me.

There were some beautiful old tree formations.  Even if they're dead, they're still beautiful.

A stream runs through the area, adding to the uniqueness of the natural bridge.

The natural bridge is solid grey limestone.  It's 215 feet high (55 feet higher than Niagara Falls), 40 feet thick, 100 feet wide and spans 90 feet between the walls.  It contains 450,000 cubic feet of rock.

The Natural Bridge area is framed by the Blue Ridge Mountains. It was owned by Thomas Jefferson, traversed by Civil War soldiers and surveyed by a young George Washington. In fact, there are initials carved in the rock by Washington. You can't see them anymore, but they're there (or so I'm told).

The perimeter of a Monacan Village is called a palisade.  It is to protect the inhabitants from wild animals and others who might try to wrest their villages or land from them.  The village is circa 1700.  The Monacans were a Siouan-speaking people who migrated to this region from the northwest.

The round house, called an ati or wigwam, was a single-family dwelling.  It's covered with bark and mats, and like this one, could be thatched with cattails.

Lace Falls,on Cedar Creek, originates 180 miles away, at the Alleghany River.

I met Galen and his wife, Joyce, at the bridge.  Galen and I walked and chatted on the way up.  They were very nice people who hope to visit Alaska, and I enjoyed meeting and talking with them.  He had a lot of information about the area that he was willing to share with me.

After having a lunch of a pretzel and cheese, topped off by Hershey's ice cream, I got back on the road to try to run the parkway again. I stopped to gas up and saw several bikers taking off rain gear. I asked one of them, a guy, about the weather. He wouldn't even acknowledge me. WTF????? Good thing I was being ladylike or I might have asked him if he had a problem with female bikers. Rather, another lady must have seen my look of disgust because she answered the question. They'd had some pretty heavy rain and fog for about 15 miles.

I made it onto the Parkway again.  This time to run a lot of miles, and enjoy it immensely.

I was going for it. I finally made it onto the parkway for more than 5 miles. The Blue Ridge Parkway is set up high, with drop offs on both sides, leading down mountains covered with trees. The foliage is incredible, so dense you cannot see through it in many places. I stopped to take photos that cannot do any justice to what I saw.

This was a dam with a reservoir on the other side.  Beautiful gems like this one are up and down the Blue Ridge Parkway and if you don't stop you could miss one.

The sides of the road are green right up to the pavement. They must cut it because it looks like someone's lawn. The trees are like canopies covering the road in many places, the air is fresh and clean, and there are flowers growing along the road here and there. The curves are gentler than some of the ones on Skyline Drive.

I walked a few of the trails and there was still fog but it was quite cool although a little eerie.

I really like this road. I've seen the photos, but they do not do justice to what it is in real life. However, there are a lot of trees and branches down alongside the road. I'm wondering if there was a storm because a lot of trees look like they've split. Strong winds or something. Mother Nature at her finest.

I saw two groundhogs, and two deer … a doe and a small buck. There's always something to see. Funny. I'd met a guy at the Harley shop yesterday and he told me he'd ridden a couple hundred miles of this road and it was trees, and more trees. He wondered how many trees he needed to see. In other words, he was bored. I can't imagine that. There is always something different around the next bend, an animal, a funny-looking tree, an overlook. The twists and curves are a wonder for those of us who love the open road but not the straight road. He must be a city guy, preferring to run tavern-to-tavern. That's not my style. Ride, baby, ride!!!

At a crossroads there were a couple of guys stopped, so I stopped to see if they were okay. They were trying to figure out where the next gas stop was and didn't have a map. They were using a GPS. I had a map so they got it all figured out. They said I could ride with them, I said “really?” and so off we went. Greg and Doug, from Pennsylvania and Colorado, nice guys both.

Greg and Doug striking their tough guy poses at the motel in Fancy Gap.  The motel was not fancy.

We stopped at a small motel in Fancy Gap, Virginia, just off the parkway at Mile 200. We joined up for dinner, and then here I am. No phone service, but I have Internet. Go figure.