Day 3 - 352 Miles

Today was an early start, although kickstands at 7:00am turned into more like 7:20am, sort of like scooter time. We left Richmond heading west on I-64. Joseph has been blowing fuses on his starter, and the local Harley shop will get him in to take a look. Dennis and Frank will stay behind and meet up at the hotel tonight.

A thick mist hangs in the air, and visibility becomes more difficult when we head north on US 522. The slower speeds make it harder to clear my face shield. The sun barely cuts through the mist, leaving a spooky feel to the rolling fields and farms along the gently twisting two lane.

After a few stops to take on and release fuel, we finally get to the start of Skyline Drive, a twisty curvy highway along the ridge of the Shenandoah Mountains. The winding road has a speed limit of 35 mph, and in some places its obvious why. The sunlight peeking through the tree covered road makes a mosaic on the road making it difficult to distinguish the bumps and cracks from the shadows.

We've split in two groups. I'm taking the detour to Luray Caverns, the other group will continue on the 100 or so miles of Skyline drive towards Fisherville, our lunch destination. These caverns are huge. I've toured caverns in NC, TN and Bermuda, and this by far is the largest. Also makes for huge crowds, and I sort of miss the tour guide, now that they use self-guided headsets. I tried my hand at photos without the use of flash, or a tripod, shaky, but OK. The highlight I think is the The Great Stalacpipe Organ. A custom console that actuates rubber mallets, via solenoids on stalagmites to produce a complete range of tones like a pipe organ.

We were treated to lunch by the Fisherville Methodist Church. BBQ and homemade potato and macaroni salad were a welcome treat after a long morning. The highlight by far was the homemade ice cream. Thanks to Larry "Pastor Disaster" and the rest of the church for lunch.

We continued along the Blue Ridge Parkway towards Roanoke. The ride gave us ample opportunity to take in the vistas from the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Surprisingly there was little traffic. I expected much worse for a weekend. The cooler temperatures at the higher elevations made for an enjoyable afternoon.

Dinner was compliments of Moe and Christine's Uncle Charles and Aunt Anna. They have retired to Roanoke and built a gorgeous and inviting home. It was a great end to a long day driving.

Some slides for today: