I am not now, nor have I ever been, a morning person. When I get less than my customary 8 hours I am a royal bitch. Needless to say, today was one of those days. Even though I was up 2 hours before departure time I couldn't seem to get my act together. I had spent the past few years staying up late and sleeping in until I woke up unless I had an appointment. Now suddenly I had to adhere to a schedule and an early one at that. What have I gotten myself into? I barely had time for a cup of coffee let alone time for it to work its magic. I was going to have to streamline my morning routine drastically.
It wasn't long before the magnificence of the scenery softened my mood. It's hard for me to be grumpy when I'm surrounded by the beauty of nature. It's my happy place. But it was very cold when we started our day. Every time we passed a sheer rock wall, that is normally weeping the snow runoff, it was covered in icicles. All the Mountain Laurel leaves were curled from frostbite. I wanted to get pictures but there were no pull offs nearby. It was sad to see all the trees that have been killed due to an invasive species. From a distance they look to be covered by spiderwebs. We hoped to see some wildlife but we only saw one deer and one squirrel the whole day.
The overlook views were breathtaking or maybe it was just because the wind was blowing and it was in the 30s. Either way the views are gorgeous and the BRP needs to be on every bucket list. Just let me know when ya'll are going so I can stay home. We really enjoyed the open roads and no traffic.
Google Maps has always been my travel buddy but for some reason it is anti-BRP. Everytime we came to an exit it tried to re-route us. I have avoid highways checked but it still keeps on re-routing. We just ignored it until it was finally right around Linville Gorge. The road was closed due to maintenance but the Parkway people did a very good job with the detour signs and we were back on the BRP in no time.
A little further down the Parkway we decided to stop and grab some food and serendipity struck again. We found a little restaurant called Thompson Seafood and Country Cooking in Deep Gap NC just off 421 S which I highly recommend. The food was great and so was the staff. And if you're looking for a long lost movie DVD to add to your collection they have several shelves of used ones selling for a buck apiece. What a bargain!
We ended the day around 4 in Hillsville VA. Today's trip was 202 miles of glorious scenery. It made the five and half hour trip fly by. The hotel had only no smoking rooms but they were on the ground floor so we only had to step outside to smoke. I made a few laps around the complex to stretch my legs and managed to get my Puppy Fix too!
Anyone who knows me knows how much I love my dog, Molly. And this will be the longest we've ever been separated. I'm sorry to say I cheated on her today and I know it won't be the last time on this trip. Today it was a Golden Retriever that wanted to play ball. I'm a sucker for that copper colored fur! I just can't resist running my fingers through it!
Tomorrow it's back to the BRP and on to Skyline Drive.
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