RWR Day 12 – Welcome to NC

Posted by ray on May 28, 2016May 31, 2016

The first full day in North Carolina was terrific--great weather (albeit warm by the end of the run), a great guy to run with, the hustle and bustle of Memorial Day Weekend, and folks greeting us along the way. We had a challenging climb up Bluff Mountain that I handled carefully due to the issue with the left leg, but the views were incredible.

Day 1 Run

Today's run was 19 miles (unless your name is Stan Austin; Stan added another 7.2 miles to make it a marathon), Milepost 221 to Milepost 240. The weather was beautiful but warm by the end of the run. We passed the half-way point on this quest today. A fist-bump was the only celebration because Cherokee NC is the goal and there's lots more climbing to be done!

Who is Stan? He and his family (Jennie and son Noah) drove up from Matthews so Stan could run with me. He turned this run into a personal 26.2 mile run to make this the 66th month in a row that he has run a marathon. He is one great guy to run with, and it was great to meet his family!

Pat and Rick Reass found us to take a photo today.

The run up Bluff Mountain to Doughton Park was gorgeous. We could hardly keep running between taking photos.

But the day was about people: Austin and family, two guys that we ran with for a few miles early in the run, Pat and Rick Reass who stopped to get photos with Stan and me. And the Bowens who drove up to from Charlotte to bike made it a point to find us. And the Parkway was teeming with people enjoying the holiday weekend--cycling, motorcycling, hiking, visiting sites, picnicking, driving, etc. I am confident that the folks who envisioned the Blue Ridge Parkway in the 1930s wanted it to be EXACTLY like what we had today!

The run... I'm still playing everything cautiously with the left leg. Pain was there but less than previous days. Here are details about the run from my running watch.

Photos and Video

The App Ortho Photo of the Day

We placed today's photos on http://www.BRPWeather.com/. Go to BRPWeather.Com, then zoom in the Google Map to the area between the NC/VA state line to Doughton Park to see the photos. By the way, you can upload your photos to BRPWeather.com also; just click on the Photo link and follow the process--it's quick and easy!

Just two videos today: Beginning and Ending.

Location Information

What a breakfast was prepared at the Glade Valley Bed and Breakfast! We hated to leave, but... for the first time in almost 2 weeks, I'll sleep in my own bed tonight. We live near Bamboo Gap.

Parkway Attractions and History

Doughton Park has so much to offer: Brinegar's Cabin with demonstrations of mountain crafts, trails, picnicking, and outstanding long range views. In winter, ice climbers delight when the rock walls next to the Parkway freeze, forming huge ice formations.

Congressman Doughton (who was the House of Representatives member from this area in the 1930s) was instrumental in bringing the Blue Ridge Parkway to North Carolina. The park is named in his honor.

Today, as we drove home, this was the noontime scene at the intersection of Hwy 18 and the Parkway. Motorcycles were everywhere!

Next...

The Day 13 is slightly easier overall. It has some long relatively flat sections in the first half. We'll travel from Milepost 240 to 261.The extra mile is to make Monday a little quicker and easier because we hope to have a specially meeting with school kids at Grandview Overlook near Parkway School on Memorial Day. Here are details of the plan... http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/341032539