Somewhere past the first big overlooks, the northern section of Skyline Drive settles into a rhythm that suits a slow day. This stretch lies north of Thornton Gap, where the ridge is narrow and the road switches from one side of the crest to the other, so that the view alternates between the Shenandoah Valley to the west and the rolling Piedmont to the east. On the western side you see the long, dark wall of Massanutten Mountain beyond the river, and on a clear day the valley floor is a patchwork of farms.
The Appalachian Trail follows the same ridge and crosses the road again and again, so you will see hikers with big packs stepping out of the woods and onto the verge, usually looking glad of a road. Give them room. The corners here are easy and the surface is good, but the real caution is for wildlife and for the overlook entrances, where cars slow without much notice. A stop at a pull-off in the early morning, with fog filling the valley like milk, is one of the great quiet pleasures of Virginia.
The forest is oak and hickory with hemlock in the cool hollows, and the understory is full of laurel and fern. In May and June the wildflowers are plentiful, and the roadsides in September turn gold with goldenrod. Autumn colour starts at the high elevations first and works down the mountain over the course of October, so the same road can look different from one weekend to the next. Ravens ride the updrafts above the overlooks, and from time to time a turkey vulture or a hawk passes below you.
Winter closes the Drive in stretches whenever ice or snow arrives, and the gates stay shut until crews have cleared it. In summer, the road is open and busy at weekends. Midweek, the sense of space can be total.
The nearest towns are well down the mountain. Luray lies about eighteen kilometres away to the south-west and Front Royal about twenty kilometres to the north, and Woodstock is further west on the other side of the valley. Fuel on the Drive itself is thin, so fill up in one of the valley towns before climbing, and bring something to drink. A small picnic and a view are all that most days need.