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Trip to Blue Ridge Parkway

N

Niko

Guest
I am planning on a weekend trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway next weekeng. I haven't been there before and I haven't checked the maps very carefully yet. I am leaving early Saturday morning and returning Sunday evening.

I am looking for good places to stay there. Either campsites or motels in that region. I will be going there from MD and I am not sure how far south I will get. Any suggestions on places to stop at would be also be appreciated.

Niko
 
One good place is the Bear's Den campground. It's private and the driveway is on the BRP at milepost 324.8

We are the only campground in America that has NO sign at it's entrance! This is due to Parkway regulations. There can be NO commercial signs on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Follow the above directions and look for Milepost 324.8 and Road Sign that states, "BEAR DEN MOUNTAIN ROAD".

Their website

It has tent sites, camping cabins and real cabins (lodges) to stay in.



There are other m/c only campgrounds very close to the BRP that I have not tried but are well regarded.

MarkF
 
could be frost on the ground nexy weekend.take your electric vest.probably want to stay in a hotel or lodge.unless you are real hard core. have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I always stay at the Lakeside Motel in Fancy Gap, Va - it and the neighboring motels are very reasonable, there is a great diner steps away, and it is a good place to stop distance-wise coming from the north heading south.
 
BRP

Niko- the BRP's official site is here .

I have camped at Otter Creek and at Linn Cove campgrounds, also at Big Meadows (I think) on Skyline Drive. They were all very comfortable quiet sites with lots of shade and even space between the sites. I am told that all the BRP campgrounds are like that, and that there is always space available. Bring warm stuff, though, it's getting chilly at elevation.
 
I stayed at Big Meadows (I think, also) twice. Very clean and quiet. The deer were starving and on a cold, windy and raining night it was just miserable. My kinda place!

MarkF
 
BRP Lodging

If you do not want to camp, the Peaks of Otter is a good ride from Maryland. It is one of the nicest concessions on the parkway. Food, gas and lodging are available. BUT this is leaf season, so it may be hard to find a room without calling ahead. All the campgrounds on the BRP are good. No amenities, but good level sites and reasonable rates. Another good motel/hotel is at Little Switzerland. It is just off the parkway and has many special deals for motorcyclists. Rooms and food are good.
 
Do NOT Speed on the BRP

Do NOT speed on the BRP. Friend of mine got three tickets in a day and was arrested and hauled off to jail. A federal marshall appeared at his apartment one morning back in NYC and served him an appearance warrant saying he had to return from NYC to Asheville, NC for the trial. Having hired a local Asheville, NC lawyer wasn't good enough. The prosecutor wanted him to do JAIL TIME FOR SPEEDING (70 in a 45). He ended up paying $1425 (on top of $400 to the lawyer) to avoid jail time. He's banned from the BRP for a year. He's "on probation" on all federal property for a year. If he gets caught with a fire cracker on federal property, he goes to jail.

I TOLD him not to speed on the BRP. I TOLD him that they use the firetowers to enhance revenue. If you want to go fast, get off the BRP on ANY road that crosses it. The BRP is pretty boring at the posted limits anyway. The part in Virginia is a big yawn. It doesn't start getting interesting until you get south of Asheville. From there to the terminus near Cherokee is pretty nice. Again, the roads that cross it are better.
 
Flash is right about the speeding part. I don't know what kind of range you are looking to make, but from Maryland if you start on Skyline Drive then the hotel Ted mentions is a pretty good haul if you go all parkway. Alternatively, Rte 6 East from Waynesboro and Rte 60 (crosses between Otter Creek and Peaks of Otter) are fun & twisty "main" roads with lots of good riding in between, and according to the MOA site's Great Roads Database there is plenty of riding if you want to slab a little further south on I-81 then make your way back over.

Flash is also right that the parkway can be crowded, boring, cliche, full of RV's, etc etc, but it's still one of those things that we all "need" to do at least once if we can- go for it and enjoy yourself. Weather should be nice, especially if you like it on the cool side.
 
Parkway Caution

I was up there yesterday on the southern part, Ashville to Cherokee. It was absolutely beautiful, nice colors & clear skies.
A word of caution though. At the entrances & exits for the overlook areas, people would actually slow way down or stop in the road then decide if they wanted to turn or not. Apparently checking to see if the view was worthy of a stop before they turned in.
Also, there was a group of people (30 -40) on very small scooter type bikes that appeared not to have much experience on them.
They were also not able to keep them going very fast, 15 -20 mph on some up hill sections. They were riding 3 wide in some spots & not using their rear view mirrors, so don't think you can slip by. They may, for no reason, move line to line at any time.
How do I know? I thought I could get by one that was in the right 1/4 of the lane but when I was almost even with him he started drifting left. He had no idea I was there, nor did he appear to know I had been behind him for a mile or so.
Also, I was nearly run down by a car trying to get around them that came over the center lane lines.

So, enjoy, but be careful it is a little goofy up there this time of year.
 
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Willville motorcycle campground at Meadow of Dan is fantastic. You even get breakfast, with great bath houses.
 
I have to agree-Willville Campground is one of the best things about the Parkway. It's less than a mile from the Parkway on US 58 W.(Meadows of Dan, VA) and it is a wonderful place to camp out and cool-your-jets. The site is very peaceful, and owner Will Beers can tell you some wonderful roads to ride on and neat places to visit (my vote is Floyd VA, a counter-cultural outpost that has music in the streets most every weekend throughout the summer)

One warning: do not ride the Parkway after dark--there is no commercial traffic allowed on the BRP and the critters take over the road when night falls! I once made this mistake when I tried to ride to Sherando at night--saw more animals, big and small, on the road that I have ever seen in my riding career. Every turn would have hundreds of little eyes reflecting back in my headlights-some on the side of the road and some right in the middle of the road. It was NOT fun and I wondered what would have happen to me if I had contacted one of those road bumps--no traffic means nobody would find me until morning. The Parkway is a wonderful ride in daylight, but at night, it is a terror! :eek
 
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