One-day tour of the Virginia Appalachian mountains
Your tour guide: David Roach of Silver Spring, Maryland
Starting from the square in downtown Harrisonburg, Virginia, you'll go west into the mountains of Virginia and West Virginia, through Highland County, Virginia, and back to Staunton, Virginia, over all paved roads. The distance from Harrisonburg to Staunton is about 130 miles and should take about three and a half hours' driving time. However, you'll want to stop at numerous points to enjoy the scenery and to picnic or dine, so allow most of a day for this trip. From Washington, Baltimore, or Richmond, it's a pleasant weekend jaunt with an overnight stay in Monterey, Warm Springs or Hot Springs.
1. Go west on U.S. 33. You'll pass Shenandoah Valley farmland for about 10 miles, until you come to Rawley Springs, where you'll begin to climb up Shenandoah Mountain.
2. In another 9 miles, you'll arrive at the top of Shenandoah Mountain and cross into West Virginia.
3. After winding back down the mountain for 6 miles, you'll come to Brandywine, West Virginia, where U.S. 33 goes to the right (north) toward Franklin. Turn left here onto West Virginia route 21.
4. After about 10 miles of meandering alongside the South Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River, you'll come to the lovely village of Sugar Grove. At the general store and post office, go straight ahead onto West Virginia route 25. Immediately, you'll start climbing again, up to the top of Hoover Mountain. Be sure to pause long enough on the way up to look back down toward Sugar Grove.
5. Between 3 and 4 miles after you leave Sugar Grove, you'll come to Moyers, which is little more than an intersection. Turn right here to stay on route 25.
6. In about 5 miles, you'll come to a "T" intersection with U.S. 220, just after you cross over the North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River. Turn left onto U.S. 220 South.
7. In about 4 miles, turn right off of 220 onto West Virginia route 17. You'll begin climbing (gently) toward Snowy Mountain.
8. In 2.7 miles, turn left onto West Virginia route 26 (it's the first road to the left off of 17). Now you'll begin a serious climb -- but not a long one -- up to the top of Snowy Mountain. In one mile, you'll come to the top and reenter Virginia, where the route number changes to 640.
9. In about 3 miles from the West Virginia border, you'll arrive in the town of Blue Grass, Virginia. Turn right at the "T" intersection to stay on Virginia route 640. Follow 640 to the south as it runs down the beautiful Blue Grass Valley, one of your tourmeister's favorite places on earth. At one point about 1.5 miles outside of Blue Grass (the town), route 640 goes to the right and route 637 goes straight ahead. It doesn't matter which of these roads you take, as both go to U.S. 250.
10. After about 8 miles of the Blue Grass Valley, you'll arrive at a stop sign at the intersection with U.S. 250. Turn left onto U.S. 250. You'll begin climbing Monterey Mountain; don't forget to stop at one of the pulloffs on the way up to enjoy the view of the Blue Grass Valley.
11. In 5 or 6 miles, you'll come down the other side of Monterey Mountain into the town of Monterey. There are gas stations here as well as a few restaurants (The Maple, High's) and the Highland Inn, a quaint, turn-of-the-century hotel with a dining room.
Interlude: There are many scenic drives out of Monterey in any direction. To the south down U.S. 220, for example, you'll come to Warm Springs in about 28 miles and then Hot Springs, site of the Homestead resort, in another 4 miles. From there, you can continue south to Covington, Virginia, where you can get on Interstate 64. The Blue Grass Valley continues south below U.S. 250. At its southern end, you'll pass through Mill Gap; turn left onto route 600 to follow Back Creek down to Virginia route 39, where you can turn left for a scenic 12-mile trip into Warm Springs. There are hotels and motels in Monterey, Warm Springs, and Hot Springs.
12. Continue straight ahead on U.S. 250 East. As you leave Monterey, you'll climb to the top of Jack Mountain and then descend into the Bullpasture River Valley, site of McDowell (the small town and Civil War battle site). 13. From McDowell, U.S. 250 East takes you up over Bullpasture Mountain, then down into the Cowpasture River Valley, over Shaw's Ridge, through Head Waters, up to the top of Shenandoah Mountain, down past Ramsey's Draft and West Augusta (site of the Calfpasture River) and east into Staunton, Virginia. It's roughly 50 miles from Monterey to Staunton and about 25 miles from Staunton back to Harrisonburg via Interstate 81 North. 
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