Blue Ridge Parkway

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway that stretches from Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. The parkway provides 469 miles of scenic beauty along the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Blue Ridge Parkway has several visitors centers, campgrounds, and exits to cute little towns along the route.

We started the Blue Ridge Parkway on a foggy morning in Shenandoah National Park and hopped on and off the parkway all the way to the Smoky Mountains.

This time of year is especially pretty because of the fall leaves. There are endless beautiful views along the drive. The road is a well maintained two lane highway.

One of our favorite stops along the parkway was Asheville, NC. If you like handmade crafts and art then Asheville is the place for you! Asheville is dedicated to crafts and art with hundreds of shops to explore and places to take classes to learn a new craft.

This is the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway. There were tons of handmade items such as Jewelry, Quilts, Furniture, Wood Crafts, Pottery, Clothes, and so much more!

Along with driving and seeing the beauty of the mountains, there's plenty of hikes along the parkway. We especially love hiking to waterfalls and there were several we got to see!

The Blue Ridge Parkway isn't the only National Parkway in the USA. A National Parkway is a highway for recreational driving along a historic route that's maintained by the National Park Service. Other National Highways include the Natchez Trace in Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee, Colonial Parkway in Virginia, Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, and John D. Rockefeller Jr. Parkway that connects Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.