Blue Ridge Parkway Tour 2011
Minis and 469 Miles of Curves
In June 2011, an enthusiastic group of MINI owners gathered for an annual MINI/Mini event that many enthusiasts have yet to experience. Each June for the last three years the Tar Heel MINI Motoring Club has sponsored the Blue Ridge Parkway Tour (BRPT). It’s a run that lasts three days and covers 469 miles of the most scenic twisties in the eastern United States. Sound fun? You are right!
The Blue Ridge Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) is one of the most visited sections of the National Park System. The BRP has been called “America’s Favorite Drive” and stretches 469 miles from Rockfish Gap near Waynesboro, Virginia (Milepost 0) to just outside of Cherokee, North Carolina (Milepost 469). The Parkway was originally suggested to connect the Shenandoah National Park at the north end and the Great Smoky Mountain National Park at the southern end. Construction began in 1935 near Cumberland, North Carolina. The last 7.7 mile section to be built was the Linn Cove Viaduct that was not completed until 1987. The Viaduct was built from the top down to protect the fragile habitat on Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina. The BRP changes elevation in a serious way, at the lowest it is less than 500 feet above sea level and at it’s highest point it is 6,053 feet above sea level.
Tour – Day One
The Blue Ridge Parkway Tour 2011 began with 64 MINI’s at the northern end and wandered in a spirited sort of way to the south. Most participants arrived in Waynesboro, Virginia on Thursday evening and met for a wine tasting and dinner. One of the ladies was celebrating her birthday, so her husband and one of the event planners arranged for a surprise birthday cake after dinner. After the birthday cake, participants gathered on the patio to receive swag bags and their event t-shirts. Friday morning everyone gathered outside of the hotel for a driver’s meeting to receive route, radio frequency and safety information. After the short meeting it was off to the north end of the Parkway for pictures at the Blue Ridge Parkway sign. Several hours later the group made a pit stop at Panera Bread for lunch in Roanoke, Virginia. While waiting in the parking lot several attendees’ were interviewed by a local television station.
After lunch it was back to the twisties and the beauty of the Blue Ridge. One of the most interesting places we stopped was Marby Mill (Milepost 176.2). Marby Mill was originally built in 1910 with a gristmill, sawmill, and blacksmith shop. The Mill is the most photographed place on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Locations like the Mill made for some interesting places to stop, stretch the legs and get refreshments. Of course, at these stops there are lines for both men and women. The ladies always seem to find it funny that the line for the men was longer than theirs.
Evening finds us pulling into Sparta, North Carolina and the Alleghany Inn. Once everyone was checked in it was time for some relaxation and then off to Brown’s Restaurant for dinner. I have been asked by some of the attendees to plug Brown’s hushpuppies; apparently some of us really enjoyed them. After dinner it was back to the hotel for the MINI debugging, the drivers meeting and drawing for prizes that had been donated by a number of MINI product vendors. In such a small town news travels fast, locals were cruising through the parking lot (some in restored cars and trucks) of the hotel to see all of the MINI’s.
Tour -Day Two
Saturday morning everyone gathers at a local gas station (the parking lot was large enough for all of us). The plan for the day was to make our way to the Moses H. Cone Memorial Park (Milepost 293.5) and then to the Julian Price Memorial Park (Milepost 295) for a picnic lunch. There were a number of stops/slow downs for photographic opportunities including a photo session as we crossed the Linn Cove Viaduct (Milepost 304.4). Then there were stops at Linville Falls Visitor’s Center (Milepost 316) and a run up to the top of Mt. Mitchell (Milepost 355). The peak of Mt. Mitchell at 6,684 feet is the highest point east of the Rockies This day’s end found us in Arden, North Carolina just outside of Asheville. After dinner we again gathered at the hotel for the drivers meeting and more prize drawings.
Tour – Day Three
Back on the BRP we played in the tunnels and had photos taken as we exited the tunnels. We stopped at Devil’s Courthouse (Milepost 422.4) and those that wanted to could climb to the top while others made some loops through a nearby tunnel for more photos. One of the last stops was the Richland Balsam Overlook (Milepost 431.4), at 6053 feet above sea level it is the highest point on the Blue Ridge Parkway Motor Road.
Once we reached the end of the Blue Ridge Parkway a number of us headed into Bryson City, North Carolina for some ice cream at Soda Pops. Soda Pops is a favorite spot of many who frequent the area for the MINI’s On The Dragon. Part of the group actually made another excursion over to Deal’s Gap, North Carolina to run The Dragon before heading home.
The Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation takes care of raising funds to support the parkway beyond what the federal budget can provide. The Foundation has an “End to End” program where you can apply for a certificate commemorating your completion of the Parkway. The Foundation also published a FREE iPhone application (BRPTracker) that lists each landmark with milepost and elevation. The app also lets you enter notes and mark the landmark as one you have visited.
Information and Parkway Map:
http://www.nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/upload/blrimap-2.pdf
http://www.nps.gov/blri/index.htm
http://blueridgeparkway75.org/more-than-a-road/
http://www.tarheelminis.org/forumdisplay.php?77-2011-Blue-Ridge-Parkway-Tour
Side Bar listing sponsors:
Barry at MC2 Magazine – http://www.mc2magazine.com/
Kellen at CravenSpeed – http://www.cravenspeed.com/
Aaron at OutMotoring.com – http://www.outmotoring.com/
Phil at Detailer’s Domain – http://www.detailersdomain.com/
Chris at Sneed’s Speed Shop – http://sneedspeedshop.com/
Jack at MINIBee’s Motoring Merchandise – http://www.minibee62.com/
Zippeegear – http://zippeegear.com/
