Blue Ridge Parkway to Lexington

I have looked at the elevation profile on the route map for days wondering what the climb up to the Blue Ridge Parkway was going to be like and now I know. The hardest climb was up to the town of Afton on a county road just before Rockfish Gap, the beginning of the Parkway. The climbs on the Parkway itself were long, up to two miles, but the gradient was reasonable. Still I am glad to have the new compact gearing. Our host Howard accompanied me for the first 30 miles to the Parkway entrance. Sally and Margaret did their own 20 mile loop ride before Sally drove on to catch me well down the Parkway.



On the way to the Parkway Howard and I came upon a bike tour group riding a tour in Virginia. It happened to be on a fairly steep hill and as we approached we watched one of the men fall off his bike into the roadside ditch full of poison ivy. He wasn't hurt ---yet. We also stopped at the house of "The Cookie Lady" in Afton. She has been providing cookies to cross country riders for years and her house is full of biker memorbila. We saw her in the yard but did not spend the time to go in the house.




The weather on the Parkway was foggy to start and then some views opened up. It also rained from time to time. The balance of the week promises more rain and scattered storms. The downhill run off the Parkway dropped over 2000 feet in four miles. I was glad I did not have to make that climb. Tonight we are in Lexington after 78 miles.