Staying Alive on the Skyline Drive

Magnet #15

When my nephew Brad and his fiance Katherine announced that their wedding would be held on August 1, 2009 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, it seemed like the perfect destination for them. Meeting as freshman while attending Wake Forest University and being hard core “Demon Deacon” fans, they wanted to marry in the chapel on campus.

I’m pretty sure we aren’t the first ones to assume that Wake Forest University is located in “Wake Forest”, North Carolina. It wasn’t until the wedding invitation arrived that we fortunately discovered that Wake Forest University is actually located in Winston-Salem, over a 100 miles from the actual town of Wake Forest. Boy, did we dodge a bullet.

Once on the right track, I got busy figuring out how to get to the wedding by car. Not sure where Winston-Salem is located, I opened up my trusty Rand McNally atlas. Sure there are plenty of interstate options but the most appealing to me was the one that would take us through the mountains.

Skyline Drive runs 105 miles through Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, joining up with the Blue Ridge Parkway, 469 miles long, ending in Cherokee, North Carolina. Essentially cresting the top of the Blue Ridge Mountains, both roadways are known to be incredibly beautiful to travel by car, and by bike, as we witnessed incredulously. In no time, creating an adventurous road trip interesting enough for our 15 year old Henrik came together, maybe too easily.

On Tuesday July 28th, we pulled out of our driveway at the usual 5 am. Topping 6’7”, Henrik rode most comfortably sitting in the third row with his legs stretched over the folded down second row seat. Always a good sleeper, I’m pretty sure he was out like a light by the time we turned left out of our driveway.

This was one trip we hadn’t planned to the last detail so when we saw signs for Harpers Ferry, West Virginia mid morning, it seemed like a great idea to explore the town. Famished, we were mostly looking for a good breakfast spot. Not to be confused with the historical Harpers Ferry National Park close by, the town of Harpers Ferry is a quaint, sleepy looking village with a well preserved train station. Thankfully, we also spied an open diner. Peering inside, the place was jumping; always a good sign that the food might be good. The only memorable moment about having a delicious country breakfast that morning was that our waitress was all of 11 years old. I’m guessing with family businesses, there are no child labor laws. Who were we to complain? She did a bang up job.

After rolling out of the diner, feeling fat and happy, we crossed the highway to take the official tour of Harpers Ferry National Park. If you have the time, for $20 a carload, I recommend taking the shuttle to visit the historical area where John Brown’s raid helped ignite the Civil War in 1859. For more information, go to nps.gov and search specifically for Harpers Ferry National Park.

After our tour, it was time to find this Skyline Drive I’d heard so much about. It turns out there are four entrances. With only our paper map, we didn’t quite know which entrance to take so we boldly chose to take the first one.

It was like entering another dimension. Instantly, the world seemed to slow down, especially the traffic. Warning: If you have a lead foot, this may not be the road for you. For most of the just over 100 miles, the speed limit is a whopping 35 mph. This is a car trip where you can truly sit back, toodle along with the windows down and the sun roof open. You’ll be amazed by the beauty of your surroundings and of the road itself, built in the 1930’s. I couldn’t help but marvel as to the manpower it must have taken to complete this remarkable roadway. The seemingly endless, still intact, perfectly laid stone walls aligning much of the roadway are awe inspiring.

When needing to stretch our legs, we pulled into the parking area for the Stony Man Point Trail. The hike wasn’t too strenuous (I say this because I was able to do it) and the views at the top were spectacular!

Our accommodations for the night was a rustic, and I mean rustic, cabin built in 1910 in the Shenandoah National Park. Picture “open space” before it became so popular in the 1990’s. In the large great room we discovered a living/dining/sleeping area complete with a queen bed, romantic wood burning fireplace, and a table big enough for a family of 10. Henrik was given the bedroom with a door for being such a good sport. At the rear of the cabin we found a nicely supplied yet basic kitchen and a no frills small bathroom.

We always enjoy having cocktail hour on a porch and our cabin had two; one in front, one in back. With our beers in hand, Pete and I eagerly retired to the front porch to unwind from the day's drive. Unfortunately, we weren’t alone for very long. Before we could finish our first frosty, we became entangled with the mountain mosquitoes in a game of hide and go seek. Determined to not be bested, we dashed between the two porches at least three times before finally admitting defeat to the pesky blood suckers.

Too late, we realized we had forgotten one very important item if staying in the woods—-DEET.

We found out during the night that we weren’t exactly alone inside our cabin either. Just after midnight, Pete and I both woke to the sound of a metallic SNAP, causing us both to bolt upright. “You hear that?” I shrieked, sitting in the dark, suddenly very much awake. Our hearts beating a bit faster, Pete turned on the light.

Looking around, it didn't take long to discover the "trapped" mouse, it's life cut suddenly short while trying to grab some dinner. Feeling relieved it was only a sprung mousetrap and not something bigger skulking around for scraps, we both returned to sleep soon after Pete disposed of the trap with its captured prey.

We woke to the pitter patter of raindrops on our antique cabin’s roof early morning July 29th. Deciding to “pack it in” early, we woke Henrik from his deep slumber (how is it that teenagers can sleep through everything?) and continued on our way south. Our destination that day was Blowing Rock, North Carolina. At the main lodge of the Shenandoah National Park, I picked up a brochure for Grandfather Mountain where the highest swinging bridge in America is located. Now THAT sounded like fun. Deviating from a direct drive to Blowing Rock, I insisted we just had to find that bridge.

Despite the rain, low clouds, wind, and general gray haze enveloping us as we ascended the mountain to the bridge, the views were still incredible. Once we arrived at the swinging bridge, we couldn’t see the outlying segment of the Appalachians well. Nevertheless, the views seemed somewhere between surreal and serene. I can’t imagine how beautiful it must be to cross the bridge with the sun shining but let me tell ya; when it's gusty, foggy, and misty, it’s downright fun and spooky.

Travelers Tip: I definitely recommend a side trip to Grandfather Mountain located just 1.5 hours from beautiful Asheville, North Carolina.

To make our car ride more interesting, Mother Nature decided to open up her skies for our day's drive. Between the hard rain, and decreased visibility, the three of us were so focused on the lines of the road itself, we almost missed the sign that said ROAD OUT- DETOUR.

“This is unbelievable”, we said to each other as we pulled over to take a deep breath and get our bearings. Refocused, Pete turned the car right as directed. As co-pilot, I got busy studying the map, trying my best to not get carsick as we navigated the twisting roads off the beaten track.

The detour didn’t cause us too much of a delay but in the process we somehow ended up on a coal truck speedway. Believe me, it’s quite a thrill to see a loaded down MAC truck carrying maybe up to the 80,000 pounds barreling down the mountain toward your car's bumper in your rear and side mirrors. All you can do is pray that the truck has had its brakes recently inspected.

Jumping out from the pages of a Stephen King novel, the trucks seemed to appear out of nowhere. We’d lose one, only to be tailed by another for more thrilling miles downhill. By the time we reached Blowing Rock, we were practically jumping out of our skin from our adrenaline filled mountain ride. Relaxing doesn’t come to mind, but the car trip passed quickly and our roller coaster loving son never complained about being bored.

We stayed in Blowing Rock for the night—-a charming village with loads of shops and restaurants. Despite our not having a reservation, we easily found lodging close to the downtown area. I hope to return there someday. It’s definitely worth a revisit.

Blowing Rock is close to our next evenings lodging destination, the Inn at Biltmore. Perhaps it was due to the 2008 stock market setback, but I was actually able to secure a reasonable rate at this luxury hotel for the night. But the inn isn’t the main attraction of course.

Biltmore, touted as America’s largest home, has a mere 250 rooms! This “house” is something to behold. I’ve visited three times and each visit is as fascinating as the first. There are several tours to choose from and I highly suggest going all out and including the Back Stairs Tour giving you rare access to areas where the staff lived and worked. Biltmore is an amazing maze of rooms, hallways, tunnels, and secret spaces that will keep you interested and intrigued. Think Downton Abbey on steroids.

The view from our room

Our stay at the inn was lovely and comfortable. This is a perfect special event getaway. You can easily pretend you are a Vanderbilt as you are treated to top notch service and attention. For our budget though, one night was enough.

Oh, yes, the wedding; the whole reason for this boondoggle. We arrived in Winston-Salem around 11 am on Friday July 31st and quickly met up with family. That afternoon, we toured the beautiful campus of Wake Forest University and as a special treat, we attended the rehearsal dinner in the field house located at the stadium. Very fun!

Saturday August 1, 2009. Bradley Matthews and Katherine Senter were married in the campus chapel on a bright, sunny and actually not too hot day, a real blessing. It was fabulous to be surrounded by family and get reacquainted with my brother Beau’s friends whom I hadn’t seen in a long while. I can safely say, a good time was had by all.

Long time family friends with my mother, Else Matthews

Family Photo with my Uncle Pete Rettig and his family from Detroit

The next morning, we left for home, taking no tourist detours. We loved our drive via the Skyline and Blue Ridge Parkways. If you are in need for a real wind down, take a drive on either or both. Just make sure your brakes are in good shape and your windshield wipers are in excellent working condition. Otherwise, you may be in for more of a thrill ride than you ever bargained for.

It would be a year before we embarked on another long distance trip. I can safely say though, that this next one impacted how we would travel for the rest of our lives.