Why this ride
287 km from Waynesboro to Stuart, about 3 h 54 of riding. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Blue Ridge Parkway: Shenandoah Rockfish Gap to Mabry Mill
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 287 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 54
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Shenandoah Rockfish Gap
Rockfish Gap is a mountain pass in name only, a low saddle in the Blue Ridge where Interstate 64, the town of Waynesboro, and two of the most famous scenic roads in America all meet. To the north runs Skyline Drive through Shenandoah National Park, and to the south the Blue Ridge Parkway begins its long, curving journey, about 470 miles in all, toward the Great Smoky Mountains.
Read the complete Shenandoah Rockfish Gap write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Shenandoah Rockfish Gap is where the day begins. Next is Peaks of Otter.
2. Peaks of Otter
Three rounded summits stand out of the Virginia Blue Ridge here, and the Parkway slides in beneath them beside a small lake that mirrors the lot. Sharp Top is the pointed one, at around 1,150 metres, with a bare rock crown that you can reach on foot or by a seasonal shuttle bus; Flat Top is slightly higher and, true to its name, flatter; Harkening Hill makes up the trio. The Peaks of Otter area is one of the most loved stops on the whole Blue Ridge Parkway, and it is easy to see why, because the setting is compact, green and calm in a way many bigger overlooks are not.
Read the complete Peaks of Otter write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Peaks of Otter comes up about 126 km into the recorded legs. Next is Mabry Mill.
3. Mabry Mill
Mabry Mill is the most photographed spot on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and with good reason. At milepost 176, the old red mill with its great wooden water wheel stands beside a millpond, framed by rhododendron and maple, and in autumn the reflection of the colours in the water is a postcard in itself. Edwin Boone Mabry built the mill in the early 1900s, using a gristmill, a sawmill and a blacksmith shop to serve his neighbours, and it stayed in use until the 1930s. Today the buildings are preserved by the National Park Service, and in the summer costumed demonstrators grind corn and work the forge.
Read the complete Mabry Mill write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 287 km.
Leg by leg
Shenandoah Rockfish Gap to Peaks of Otter
Shenandoah Rockfish Gap → Peaks of Otter is 126 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Peaks of Otter to Mabry Mill
Peaks of Otter → Mabry Mill is 161 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.