The Blue Ridge Parkway

We entered the Blue Ridge Parkway at Roanoke. It's convenient from I-81 but not the most scenic way to start off a ride on the Parkway. Roanoke's urban sprawl approaches the Parkway, and portions of the parkway near Roanoke look rather suburban. It wasn't always like this.

But as we drove to higher elevations, the Parkway took on the look that I loved as a child, natural and beautiful.
Frank asked how is the Parkway different from Skyline Drive. I thought of three things:

1. The Parkway has no admission charge.
   
2. There are wooden guardrails along the road instead of stone walls.
   
3. It is not in a national park, although much of it is inside national forest boundaries.