20: Virginia
Soon after I entered Virginia, I joined the Blue Ridge Parkway, that runs along the spine of the Appalachian Mountains. The “Blue Ridge Parkway” – like the “Natchez Trace Parkway” that I’d driven (in part) in Mississippi earlier in my trip – is a special scenic road run by the National Park Service.
 A country store in the Appalachians |
 Mabry Mill, Blue Ridge Parkway |
 Rakes Mill Pond, Blue Ridge Parkway |
 An aggressive goose alongside the Blue Ridge Parkway |
I took a short detour east from the Appalachian Mountains to take a tour of “Monticello“: Thomas Jefferson‘s mansion near Charlottesville. This mansion – designed and built by Jefferson – was where he spent his retirement (after serving as president from 1801-1809).
 Tulips in the grounds of Monticello |
 Sunset over Shenandoah National Park |
 Great Falls Park (Virginia, near Washington, DC) |