Blue Ridge Parkway Trip - Day 8

Day 8 of our trip, Day 4 on the BRP. This is our last day on the Parkway. So many people told us the views keep getting better and better as you travel south, and they were right.

Mount Mitchell

Mount Mitchell is at milepost 344 on the BRP. I’d put this high on the must-see list. At 6,684 ft, this is the highest peak in the eastern United States. It’s a bit of a climb to the observation platform but well worth the effort. We had beautiful weather that day, and the views were astounding.

Tunnel vision

Day 8 was a day VERY heavy in tunnels. 23 of them to be exact. This can be a little funky, going from full sunlight into a dark tunnel. Take your time, and don’t outdrive your vision. Check out the walls as you go through tunnels on the BRP. Some look very organic. They literally blasted a hole through the mountain to make the tunnel, and you’re looking at the “inside” of the mountain.. In other cases they made the hole, then used concrete to reinforce and line the tunnel.

Making the cut

We stopped for lunch at the Pisgah Inn and I was able to get some very interesting footage. From that viewpoint you can really see how a ledge was cut into the side of the mountain to create the Parkway, and envision the work it took to make this happen. Look for this at about 8:20 in the video.

The Parkway ends…

…at Cherokee, NC. From the end of the BRP we headed for Seveirville, TN. The BRP to Seveirville leg took us through portions of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This was also very beautiful, AND we got to see elk.

Be sure you catch the complete BRP trip.