Blue Ridge Parkway
North Carolina, Virginia
🟢 🔴 hikes
Free entry
A Blue Ridge Parkway experience is unlike any other: a slow-paced and relaxing drive revealing stunning long-range vistas and close-up views of the rugged mountains and pastoral landscapes of the Appalachian Highlands. The Parkway meanders for 469 miles, protecting a diversity of plants and animals, and providing opportunities for enjoying all that makes this region of the country so special.
Activities
Topics
No entrance fee.
Hours
The road is open 24 hours a day, weather permitting. Road closures due to inclement weather occur most frequently during winter. Sections of the road may also be closed during road maintenance projects. Check our road closure map to verify that the parkway is open before traveling. Visitor centers and other facilities have hours and seasons that vary. Most picnic areas, campgrounds, and visitor centers are closed from the beginning of November until early May.
Conditions
Weather now: ⛅ Partly cloudy, 81°F
🌧️ 86°/65°
🌧️ 75°/63°
☁️ 85°/56°
Things to do
Spot an Elk on the Heintooga Spur Road
Become a Blue Ridge Parkway Junior Ranger
Stargaze at Waterrock Knob
Watch Peregrine Falcons at Devils Courthouse
Watch for Hawks at the Mills River Overlook
OVVI Junior Ranger
Hawk Watch at Harveys Knob
Visit Adney Gap
Campgrounds
Visitor centers
Blue Ridge Music Center (Milepost 213)
Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center (Milepost 384)
Craggy Gardens Visitor Center (Milepost 364)
Doughton Park Visitor Center (Milepost 238)
Folk Art Center (Milepost 382)
Humpback Rocks Visitor Center (milepost 5.8)
James River Visitor Center (Milepost 63.6)
Linn Cove Viaduct Visitor Center (Milepost 304)
Linville Falls Visitor Center (Milepost 316)
Moses Cone Manor House and Visitor Center (Milepost 294)
Museum of North Carolina Minerals (Milepost 331)
Peaks of Otter Visitor Center (Milepost 85.6)
Rocky Knob Visitor Center (Milepost 167)
Waterrock Knob Visitor Center (Milepost 451.2)
Not an official safety source — always defer to NPS.gov and rangers for life-safety decisions.
How Blue Ridge Parkway connects
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