Park-to-Park Beauty

Park-to-Park Beauty. Shenandoah National Park. , Shortly after Congress authorized the creation of two new eastern national parks, Shenandoah and Great Smokey Mountains, President Franklin Roosevelt saw great opportunity in constructing the first "national rural parkway" to connect the new parks. The recent popularity of the automobile and leisure driving had made Skyline Drive, Shenandoah's mountaintop road, an instant success. New Deal programs provided labor and funding, and the National Park Service began construction of the Blue Ridge Parkway in 1935.

In the decades since, hundreds of millions of motorists have traveled through Shenandoah and along the 469 miles of the Parkway to the Great Smokies, enjoying the varied scenery and protected landscapes of the central and southern Appalachian Mountains.

North to Shenandoah Wilderness , Just north you will find the entrance to Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive. Shenandoah encompasses nearly 200,000 acres of protected forest habitats. Skyline Drive is your portal to great hiking, spectacular vistas, picturesque waterfalls, wildlife, and sweeping views of Wilderness nestled in the ridges between Virginia's Shenandoah Valley and rolling Piedmont plains.

South to Blue Ridge Parkway Splendor , If you drive south onto the Blue Ridge Parkway, you can take in the pastoral mountain countryside and the traditional culture of the Appalachians through the landscape, music, and art. You'll see a tremendous diversity of plants, animals, and habitats, and have many opportunities to hike, camp, picnic, and visit the neighboring communities of Virginia and North Carolina.