Autumn in the Appalachians; fall colors ripple across the highlands of Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and North Carolina - Fall Vacation Planner

Travel America, July-August, 2003 by Charles Doherty

TAWNY OAK LEAVES FORM A RUSTLING CARPET along trails littered with acorns. Chipmunks and squirrels scamper about, storing nuts for the winter ahead. On a crisp October morning, the hiker might discover a deserted log cabin or crumbling cemetery, reminders of the hardscrabble mountain folk who settled this land.

Autumn in the Appalachians brings pleasant temperatures, relief from the summer tourist crunch and the South's most impressive fall foliage spectacle. Scores of harvest festivals spotlight mountain crafts, vittles and old-time music.

Trees start turning in late September and continue through October. Sumac, black gum and red maple accent piney slopes with balls of scarlet. Sugar maples paint the hillsides in fiery swaths of gold. The yellows of birch, tulip poplar, sassafras and hickory blend with the maroons of dogwood and sourwood to create a patchwork quilt that blankets the rounded heights and gentle valleys of the ancient Appalachian range, a chain that stretches from Newfoundland to Alabama.

Unlike the Rockies or Alps, the Southern Appalachians have a homey, down-to-earth quality. Few peaks rise above 4,000 feet.

VIRGINIA

In western Virginia, Shenandoah National Park, just two hours from Washington, D.C., is one of the most popular destinations for leaf-peepers. Perched in the clouds, it encompasses a quiet wilderness atop crests of the Blue Ridge Mountains. At numerous overlooks along 105-mile Skyline Drive, motorists get out to drink in views of hazy bluish ridges and the Shenandoah River twisting through farm fields.

Skyline Drive wriggles but has no hairpin turns; rock walls have been built above sharp drops. Because the speed limit is 35 m.p.h., driving the length of the park takes a day if you stop to hike, picnic and take pictures. Weekend traffic can be hectic, so weekdays are recommended for carefree vagabonding.

Skyland Lodge, located at the highest point (3,680 feet) on Skyline Drive, offers motel rooms and rustic cottages with good views of the valley. A special treat in the dining room is blackberry ice cream pie topped with fluffy meringue and blackberry syrup. Naturalist-led hikes and guided horseback rides start at Skyland.

At Waynesboro, Skyline Drive joins the Blue Ridge Parkway, which winds 469 miles to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee. Wooded areas are broken up by rocky fields with grazing cattle, bundles of hay, tipsy barns and split-rail fences.

Along the parkway, near Roanoke, is Virginia's Explore Park, a haven for nature and history buffs. Visitors can talk with costumed interpreters at the Indian Village, replica Settler's Cabin, and an original farmstead, barn, and schoolhouse that have been moved to the site from surrounding areas. Active types take to Explore Park's hiking and mountain biking trails or enjoy canoeing, kayaking, and fishing on the Roanoke River.

Another major parkway stop in Virginia is Mabry Mill, a collection of pioneer buildings centered around a water-powered gristmill that local residents used until the 1930s. Visitors today go inside the mill to watch the gears, belts and pulleys as corn and buckwheat are ground, then scooped into souvenir bags that are weighed and tied. The weathered wooden mill presents irresistible subject matter for artists and photographers, especially in fall when flaming trees frame the mill and dapple the pond with their leaves.

A 60-mile skip west of the parkway takes the traveler to historic Abingdon. Settled in the 1770s, it is the oldest town west of the Blue Ridge. On Main Street stands Camberley's Martha Washington Inn, a white-pillared brick mansion with rocking chairs on the long veranda. All 61 guest rooms are furnished with 19th century antiques and reproductions.

As you travel northwest from Abingdon to the Virginia-Kentucky border and the Cumberlands, the mountains get higher and rockier, the roads curvier. A dramatic drive full of hairpin turns leads to Breaks Interstate Park, which overlooks a gorge carved by the turbulent Russell Fork of the Big Sandy River. Dubbed the "Grand Canyon of the South," Breaks Canyon is the deepest (1,600 feet) gorge east of the Mississippi. The park embraces both Virginia and Kentucky.

KENTUCKY

Several hours southwest of Breaks, Cumberland Gap National Historical Park is a large tract of wilderness where Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee meet. From a visitor center with exhibits on Daniel Boone, the Indians and westward expansion, drive the steep road to Pinnacle Overlook for views of the famous mountain pass.

The most prominent feature of Kentucky's Eastern Highlands is Daniel Boone National Forest, which stretches the length of the region. The forest's Red River Gorge Geological Area abounds with natural arches and bridges, palisades and unique vegetation. At Natural Bridge State Resort Park, named after a 65-foot-high sandstone arch with an opening 78 feet long, visitors enjoy the scenic wonders from the hiking trails and skylift.

The Country Music Highway in eastern Kentucky has chocolate-brown signs honoring country music stars who were born in counties touched by the scenic, 150-mile stretch of U.S. 23. Native sons and daughters include stars like Ricky Skaggs, Loretta Lynn, Crystal Gayle, Naomi and Wynonna Judd, and Dwight Yoakam.