Chris spent his high school years in Middlesex County, about 45 minutes from our home. As he still has friends there, we have had multiple occasions to visit, giving me a glimpse into what makes him who he is. After almost 10 years together, I decided that it was time he got to see where I grew up, Floyd County.
We left early for the five-hour trip, arriving around lunchtime. I haven’t been home since my parents left about 15 years ago. I felt the tingle of excitement and anticipation as we exited the interstate on to the road to Floyd. Just before we reached the town I made a left turn to drive by the house I lived in. When my parents sold the house, the new owners renovated it and turned the house into a bed & breakfast. The house was beautiful, but it was a shock to see most of the trees that had surrounded the property were gone. As we drove into town, it was fun to see a lot of the businesses that were still there from my childhood, as well as some new ones. We drove to the property where I lived during my early teens. I wanted Chris to see the view of Buffalo Mountain that I once enjoyed every day. The house I lived in was moved further back many years ago, but the road to it was no longer there. The property where the house originally sat is now a daycare center or pre-school. It was very nice to see that the old dairy barns that I played in as a child were now a market. We had lunch at Blue Ridge Cafe, a restaurant I remember visiting once or twice, and then explored some of the “new” stores around the corner before heading out to Buffalo Mountain.
Buffalo Mountain is the highest peak in Floyd County. As a kid, it was privately owned but the owner didn’t mind people enjoying the mountain. I remember a family friend taking a group of us to the top in his Volkswagen Van. We followed the steep and treacherous road up the back of the mountain all the way to the top. The view was spectacular, unlike anything I had seen in my life up to that point. Unfortunately, the very steep ascent wrecked the van’s transmission, making it a very pricey excursion. The next time I went up, I made sure we parked at the bottom and hiked up. We climbed to the top of the fire tower on that trip.
At some point, I heard that the ownership had changed hands and the property closed to the public. While researching what we wanted to do on our trip, it pleased me to discover that Buffalo Mountain is now a Natural Area Preserve. The road to the top is no longer open. Instead, there is a trail that winds its way up the mountain. The fire tower is gone now, but the view is just as spectacular as it was that first time. On our way back down the mountain, we heard the sound of a large animal moving not far from the trail. Chris caught a glimpse of the tail end of a mountain lion as he quickly scurried away from us. It was a little scary to get so close to him without seeing him, even with Chris’s ever-vigilant eye.
After our hike, we drove 15 minutes to Mabry Mill on Blue Ridge Parkway, a place that I was in awe of as a child. They have upgraded the park a bit and added a visitor’s center, but otherwise, it is very much as I remembered it. I have fond memories of a festival there, held in the fall, where I watched them make apple butter. After. we drove to Claytor Lake State Park to set up camp. We enjoyed a leisurely evening sitting by the campfire. It had been a long day and we had a big hike planned for the morning, so we made it an early night.
In the morning we had breakfast at Chip & Jo’s and then drove up the mountain to the parking area for McAfee Knob. We crossed the road and started up the trail. It is four miles from the parking lot to one of the most photographed spots on the Appalachian Trail. The trail is somewhat strenuous in some spots, but overall it is not a terribly difficult hike, albeit long. There is not a lot to see (at least not in May), as most of the views are not visible through the foliage. We leapfrogged a few other hikers, some who were on a week-long hike, but did not come across any through-hikers. When we finally arrived at the top, it was everything I had heard. It was an absolutely amazing view. I couldn’t talk Chris into taking a picture with me anywhere near the edge, although it was actually much safer than the way it looks in pictures. As we followed the long trail back down the mountain, we turned off on to a fire road to save some time. The change of scenery was nice and the massive rocks lining parts of the road were astounding.
Hungry, we made our way back down the mountain (unfortunately behind a large truck moving at 10 mph) and went to Mac and Bob’s Restaurant for lunch. After only a few bites, we started to feel ill so we packed up the food to eat later. When we got back to camp we lay down to take a short nap. When we woke up it was dark. We both felt a bit better but decided that we would call it a night. We were sleeping peacefully when we were abruptly awakened by the neighbors yelling. They were in a heated argument complete with several episodes of someone spinning their tires pulling out of their campsite. Eventually, the brouhaha died down and we were once again able to sleep.
In the morning we packed up camp, feeling much more like ourselves, and stopped at Omelet Shoppe for a surprisingly great breakfast, before driving to Cascade Falls in the George Washington National Forest. The two-mile hike is a relatively easy hike. The lower path follows along the stream for most of the hike with an amazing display of flora and fauna. We rounded a bend in the trail to catch the first breathtaking glimpse of Cascade Falls. There is a nice flat area near the bottom of the falls for wading (swimming near the bottom of the falls is not recommended). Cascade Falls is hands down our favorite waterfall that we have seen to date. We sat enjoying the view and had a lovely conversation with a nice gentleman we had seen fishing while we were on the trail. I would have liked to continue up the trail to see the view at the top of the falls, but it was still closed due to some storm damage earlier in the year. We followed the upper trail back to the parking lot for a different view and to save some time.
As we headed home, we got caught up in a major traffic slow down on the interstate and realized that we would not make it to our dinner spot before they closed. Chris looked up an alternate place to eat in Waynesboro. Just as we arrived at the restaurant, our son, whose girlfriend lives in Waynesboro, called to talk about his day. When we told him where we were they met us for drinks after dinner. He travels a lot for work so we don’t see him as often as we once did. It was nice to touch base with them on their turf. The visit was a lovely way to end a wonderful weekend.
Cost of trip – camping $57.65, 3 tanks of gas $93, firewood $24.
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So glad Chris got to see where you grew up!