The eastern United States features two large National Parks. Shenandoah National Park occupies roughly 200,000 long and narrow acres to the east of the Ridge and Valley Appalachians in north central Virginia. The much larger Great Smoky Mountains National Park (where I am now), occupies about 523,000 acres in North Carolina and Tennessee. Both were established during the Great Depression, and in spite of the times, quickly became popular vacation destinations. All of the expected activities were present and accounted for - camping, fishing, hiking, wildlife viewing, etc. But enjoying the scenic beauty of the region via automobile was becoming more affordable and accessible with each passing year. Construction on a road specifically for that purpose began in 1931 in Shenandoah National Park. The 109 mile long Skyline Drive was completed in 1939 and offered motorists the ability to enjoy the mountain views from the comfort of their car.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt was so impressed with the Skyline Drive concept that he authorized the creation of another scenic roadway linking the two National Parks together. Construction began in 1935 on the 469 mile long Blue Ridge Parkway, so named because of the chosen route, (i.e. the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains through North Carolina and Virginia). Planners knew that building a road that long in the mountains would take a while to begin with. But funding issues, land acquisition difficulties, and World War II would slow construction to a snail's pace at times. Progress was made, however. All but 7 miles of the roadway had been completed by 1968. Following the completion of the Linn Cove Viaduct, the Blue Ridge Parkway was officially dedicated in 1987, some 52 years after construction began.

The road's southern entrance is located on US Route 441 in Cherokee, North Carolina about 1/4 mile from the Oconoluftee Visitor Center. The northern end sits 469.1 miles away at the southern terminus of Skyline Drive near Rockfish Gap in Virginia. My plan for today was to drive from Cherokee to Asheville, North Carolina (mile post 393.6).

Given the nature of the roadway combined with my inherent weakness for picture taking, I figured the 75 mile trip would take me about 3 hours. I finished my tour of the Mountain Farm Museum and made the left turn onto the Blue Ridge Parkway hoping Mother Nature would cooperate with the weather.

Turning onto the Parkway takes motorists over the Oconoluftee River Bridge as seen above. Highway engineers realized that everyone would want to take a picture of the welcome sign on the other side of the bridge and built a pull-off specifically for that purpose.

Driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway is a simple procedure: Drive (roof down, of course) ~ Pull over at the many overlooks ~ Take lots of pictures of the incredible view ~ Repeat. Motorists have around 280 opportunities to do this over the entire length of the roadway. I had 78 opportunities from Cherokee to Asheville, many of which I took advantage of in the form of 180-or-so pictures and a couple of videos thrown in for good measure. What follows is a photographic essay of my 75 mile journey along the Blue Ridge Parkway as told from the various overlooks.

And with that, my journey began.

Oconoluftee River Overlook, mile post 468.4.

Oconoluftee River is the first overlook encountered on the roadway, (actually, it's the last if you go by the official mile post, but you get the idea). The Oconoluftee River sits about 300 feet below the parking area.

The name "Oconoluftee" comes from the name of a Cherokee village that was located near here - “e-gwan-ul-ti” meaning “by the river.”

I knew my 35x optical zoom lens would benefit me greatly as it always does. It allowed me to zoom on details off in the distance like the radio towers shown in the photo above.

Ballhoot Scar Overlook, mile post 467.4.

The name "Ballhoot" refers to an old logging term. Loggers would cut down trees and send them down the side of the mountain to be taken to a sawmill, and would yell "BALLHOOT" as a warning to anyone standing below.

The "Scars" refer to the remnants of the paths taken by the logs during their journey down the mountain.

The colors seen here were particularly impressive.

Ballhoot Scar Overlook.

This overlook is also known for its exceptional fall color.

Equally as impressive was the view.

Ballhoot Scar Overlook.

So far, so good for my drama queen Jaguar.

Ballhoot Scar Overlook also features a small picnic area nestled among the trees below the parking area.

The fall colors were beautiful here also.

Elevation was starting to increase rapidly. I had traveled one mile from the Oconoluftee River Overlook, but have risen 350 feet. And it would only go up from there.

Big Witch Overlook, mile post 461.9.

"Big Witch" refers to Tskil-e’gwa, a 19th century Cherokee medicine man and tribal elder.

Big Witch Overlook.

This overlook features two small picnic areas among the impressive fall colors.

Big Witch Overlook.

The highlights of this overlook are the exceptional views of the Great Smoky Mountains.

Bunches Bald Overlook, mile post 459.5.

This area is thought to have been named for an early logger.

Bunches Bald offers a great view.

I believe the left center peak in the photo above is Rich Mountain.

Rich Mountain, 4,199 feet.

Bunches Bald Overlook.

I tried to stitch two pics together to create a panorama.

The elevation here is listed as 4,925 feet, or more than double that of the Oconoluftee River Overlook. I've risen 2,725 feet over the previous 8.9 miles

Woolyback Overlook, mile post 452.3.

I've climbed another 500 feet in elevation since my last stop 7.2 miles ago. The view just keeps getting better and better.

The name "Woolyback" is a reference to the rhododendron and mountain laurel shrubs that cover one of the lower ridges.

These shrubs give the ridge a "wooly" appearance.

I noticed a couple of interesting things at this overlook. A white building can be seen off in the distance on the left side of the photo above.

That building becomes Harrah's Casino at full zoom.

A couple of small white dots can be seen in the lower center area of the photo above.

At full zoom, the right hand dot becomes a house ! Waking up each morning to the view from those large windows would be amazing. But that location seems awfully remote for a home. Something I take for granted, like going to the grocery store, looks like it would be an all-day affair

Waterrock Knob Overlook, mile post 451.2.

Another 1.1 miles from Woolyback to Waterrock Knob adds another 400 feet in elevation.

Waterrock Knob is actually a Visitor Center, one of 17 located along the Parkway. This one is the highest of the bunch. The Visitor Center features a .6 mile walking trail to the 6,292 foot Waterrock Knob Summit which I think is the left hand peak seen in the photo above.

The trail is steep, rising more than 400 feet to the summit during that .6 mile trek !

The actual overlook sits on one side of the parking lot and offers a beautiful view to the northwest.

The overlook features a marker that provides some good information regarding highlights that can be seen in that direction.

Waterrock Knob Overlook with landmarks labeled.