I spent today in the mountains of central Virginia. I'm not a great driver in the mountains, so this was a real test for me. But I needed the practice because I have some REALLY BIG mountains coming up later in my journey. In Virginia's mountains, there's lots of stuff to see and do.
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| I'm the one on the left...LOL |
My first stop was at Thomas Jefferson's home,
Monticello. A docent named Brandon gave us a whale of a tour of the 200+ year old home, which is a national historic site. I saw Jefferson's Indian memorabilia, his library (he gave most of his books to start the Library of Congress), some of his inventions, and his beautifully decorated, totally functional home.
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| Some school kids get their picture made on the front steps |
The next stop was the
Walton's Mountain Museum in Scuyler. The creator of The Waltons, Earl Hamner, was raised here. The small schoolhouse where he graduated is basically across the street from his home; it has been transformed into a Waltons museum. I saw a 30-minute film narrated by the actors from the series, then toured rooms set up like their TV kitchen, living room, John-Boy's bedroom, and Ike Godsey's store. There was even a locally-confiscated still in the room devoted to the Baldwin Sisters! The elderly lady who took up the money showed me some newspaper clippings on the walls that told about Hamner's life, the TV series, and the opening of the museum in 1992. It was an off-the-beaten-path trip that I'm glad I took today.
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Earl Hamner birthplace,
across the street from the school/museum |
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| Copy of John-Boy's bedroom. John-Boy was based on Earl Hamner himself, and Earl did the narration each episode. |
I then visited Staunton, Virginia, home of the country music legends
The Statler Brothers. Though their museum has long closed, I was able to see the
monument to them in the old downtown area.
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There's a stool for each of the Statlers.
Since they weren't around, I took a break on one. Not very comfortable. |
After mailing a postcard to my niece at the Staunton post office, I drove to the
Shenandoah National Park, where I took the
Skyline Drive. This is a 105-mile highway IN THE CLOUDS! The speed limit is only 35, the overlooks pop up regularly, and the views are ABSOLUTELY BREATHTAKING!!
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The views along Skyline Drive range from 1900 to 3500 feet.
In places, you can see for 40-50 miles! |
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| Lots of deer that aren't scared easily. I even saw a baby BEAR scamper across the road!! |
