They range in elevation from a minimum of 289 feet above sea level along the James River in Nelson County, Virginia, to Yancey County, North Carolina’s 6,684 elevation at the top of Mount Mitchell.
Population? Nelson ranks last in all in Virginia with about 11,000 residents, while North Carolina’s Buncombe County is seventh among that state’s county ranks with about 269,000.
Size? Virginia’s Augusta County is the state’s second largest at 967 square miles while North Carolina’s Mitchell is the state’s fourth smallest at 221 square miles.
Signed on the parkway? Only Haywood and Jackson, North Carolina.
And what do those counties have in common? They’re among the 29 Virginia and North Carolina counties that host the gentle and flowing path of the Blue Ridge Parkway, which was integrated into their identities beginning in the 1930s as the nation worked to build a linear park to connect Shenandoah National Park to the north with Great Smoky Mountains National Park to the south.
And what do these counties offer, aside from embracing America’s most scenic drive?
Well, the very core of this magazine’s coverage area, for one. And several wonderful small cities and towns, with Roanoke and Asheville leading the way and a bounty of others also offering warm and intriguing welcomes: The likes of Staunton, Waynesboro, Lexington and Lynchburg in Virginia (though it should be pointed out that Virginia is the only state in the country where cities are not part of counties).
And in North Carolina: Boone/Blowing Rock, Black Mountain, Hendersonville, Brevard, Waynesville and Cherokee.
And mountains! The highest in many of the 29 counties is accessible, along the Appalachian Trail (especially in Virginia) or other trails. It’s a happy little discovery that The Greatest Day Hiker Of Them All and I have bagged the highest spot in at least eight of the 12 Virginia counties, and have a start on North Carolina with at least four of the 17.
More work to do, but hey, somebody’s gotta get out on the parkway and its host counties and get it done.
The story above first appeared in our May / June 2024 issue.
