Tazewell is a small town in the mountains of south-west Virginia, the eastern doorstep to a road known as the Back of the Dragon. The route, Virginia State Route 16, runs for about thirty-two miles from Tazewell to Marion through the Jefferson National Forest, over Brushy Mountain and Walker Mountain, and it has an estimated four hundred and thirty-eight curves, a number that riders repeat with satisfaction. The name was borrowed from US 129 at Deals Gap in Tennessee, but the Back of the Dragon has its own character: it is a quieter road, with fewer crowds and more forest, long climbs and descents, and hardly any buildings or junctions.
The town itself is modest, a brick-fronted main street, a courthouse and a handful of shops and cafes, in a valley of green pastures and low ridges. Its history is that of the Appalachian frontier. Settlers pushed into this country in the late eighteenth century, and the Crab Orchard Museum, on the edge of town, preserves a pioneer settlement with log buildings and a collection of Native American and early settler artefacts. The surrounding hills are coal country, and in the nearby valleys the mines have shaped the local economy and culture for generations.
On the road toward Marion, the scenery is lovely. The forest is thick with oak, maple, hickory and rhododendron, and in spring the redbud and dogwood bloom along the roadside, while in autumn the ridges blaze with colour. The corners are tight and constant, a mix of hairpins and fast sweepers, and the surface is mostly good, though patched and gravelly in places. Wildlife is plentiful, with deer and sometimes black bears, and fog can settle in the hollows. Marion, at the far end, is the place of the legend of Hungry Mother, after which the nearby state park is named, a tale about a woman and her child lost in the wilderness.
Tazewell, about four thousand people, has fuel stations, a grocery store and a few simple restaurants, so it is a good place for a meal and a fill-up before tackling the road. Richlands, about twenty-four kilometres away, is the nearest town with more services. Try a country breakfast, with biscuits, gravy and sausage, or a plate of barbecue and beans, which are staples of the area. The route is best on weekday mornings in spring or autumn, and many riders go there and back, since it is hard to resist the second run.