A beautiful waterfall. Its literally on the side of the road. There's a pull off area with picnic…read moretables. There's fencing so you don't fall or try to get down to it. My picture/ video will look like everyone else's!

If you are anywhere near Covington or Hot Springs, Virginia…read more I definitely recommend a stop here. The view and the sound of the falls is fantastic! Just bit of warning: if you don't drive in the mountains. Go slow, sharp turns going up and down the mountain. Plus, be very careful when pulling in or out. There are blind curves on both sides.

Great place with great views!…read more Pop "Woodstock Tower" into Google Maps, and it will take you to the right spot (Apple Maps only took me to the trailhead a distance away). This will put you near a little overlook off the dirt road or if you keep going, a small gravel parking lot. Be prepared to drive on dirt and gravel roads for over a mile to get here; you are going the right way! This end of the trail has a clearly marked sign saying it is the Woodstock Tower. From either of those parking lots it's only about ¼ mile walk to get to the tower. The path varies from rocky to flat dirt. Loads of hickory nuts line the path. You could also come from the other end of the trail, which is over a mile away in the other direction. The climb up is steep but manageable (I'd recommend being more careful descending!) with metal steps. Considering she's still standing 90 years after her construction, I'd say the tower is stable. Hats off to the Civilian Conservation Corps for building this lasting landmark! The views from the top are great and worth the short walk and short climb. I met a local man at the top who shoots a lot of videos from up there. He did warn that sometimes there are black bears in the area; I never saw one my whole time, but just keep alert. It was a little cold on the mid-October day we were there and the top of the mountain did mean lots of cross wind, so dress appropriately. Unless you're weird about heights (apologies to my wife; thanks for walking out to it with us, Baby), this is a worthwhile visit. Definitely recommend!

What a pleasant surprise! We drove up the mountain on Christmas Eve and simply enjoyed the views…read more Our goal of finding the tower wasn't easy being that my bf hadn't been up there since he was a kid. Nevertheless we found it :-) I was a bit apprehensive of climbing it at first but took baby steps lol. What a beautiful scenery once you reach the top. Great experience!

Beautiful scenic ride up the mountain to breathtaking views of Roanoke…read more Dragged my husband there and he said he was glad because it was something totally worth doing. Takes about 10 minutes to drive up. The star is massive and way better than visiting the "HOLLYWOOD SIGN"

World's largest freestanding illuminating star also dubbed the Roanoke star. It really does shine…read moreon Roanoke. Nested in Mill Mountain, you can take some hikes or you can actually drive to the star. There's a nice vantage point that has restrooms and even a vending machine with soda. The parking lot has a couple of spots maybe around 20, but if it's full, you can also park at the discovery center, and it's a short walk on a paved mostly flat path to the star. When I say you're at the store, you are legitimately right in front of the star. There is a platform for a nice overlook view of the city and some of the mountains that you could potentially hike. One of the ones that I ended up doing, and that was marked was McAfee's knob If you're a biker, you can also fight up no mountain, is even a bike lane and even some bike repair tools at the discovery center

An excellent outdoor experience to enjoy when visiting Luray!…read more The maze is a perfect blend of challenging and achievable for kids and adults alike. There are some checkpoints to find along the way. While it would be nice to have a stamp like some mazes have, no such luck, so definitely take photos along the way. There are several elaborate dead-ends, so make sure you and your companions remember which ways split off. There is a tall watch tower in the middle with a full map in there. It's great to get your bearings. You can get a nice view of the whole maze. There's also a lovely fountain area with seats to take a break. Overall, it's a nice outdoor activity for a decent price. Someone very lucky, fast, and committed could finish the whole maze in abotu 30 minutes, but most should expect and hour and maybe budget in a little buffer time just in case you get lost. Have fun in the maze!

As a lover of The Shining, when I discovered there was a hedgemaze in VA, Luray skyrocketed to the…read moretop of my local bucketlist. I also decided that all my friends needed to experience it with me, so I invited all of them. Only a few could come, but we had the most fun. It was perfect. It was also boiling hot, so I was massively grateful for all the misting sprays in the maze. Our group immediately split into two at the very first left or right decision. I was in the group who took almost every wrong turn, even after we recognized that the pink ribbons seemed to mark the correct path. It was hilarious when we made it to the tower and the other half of our group was like, "I see you!!" We met up by the fountain in the middle and tried our best not to jump into the refreshing and cool looking water. We were more than ready to exit the maze at that point. They really should sell cold beverages in the center of the maze. They'd make so much money. We laughed and shouted the rest of the way to the exit, especially when the maze signs seemed to be mocking us. We figured out the secret message and received our prize. We're home now but can't stop telling everyone how much fun we had, doing something we never imagined we would do in life. Go have an adventure! Would recommend

I was looking for a scenic drive in West Virginia, and this certainly seemed to fit the bill - I…read morehad first read about it in one of those "1000 Things You Must Etc" books, and it wasn't a huge way out of the way from where I was staying in Fayetteville. I made a huge loop by going New River Gorge up to Richwood and across Hwys 39 and 150, then completing the loop by driving back towards Lewisburg and along I-64 by Grandview State Park before closing up in Fayetteville. That loop will take you at least a good 6 hours or so. The funny thing is that I considered most of that lovely drive more scenic than Hwy 150 itself, which is supposed to be the pinnacle of it all. I mean, Hwy 150 has some nice scenery, don't get me wrong, but it was about 6 pullout vistas of the same valley scene, just at different lookout points. Not as much versatility as I saw on the rest of the drive, where you might see old farmhouses, roadside waterfalls, curvy mountain climbs, etc. If pressed for time, I would have cut the Hwy 150 part of it and just taken 39 all the way until it gets to Mill Point and resume south. That was my favorite part of the highway, going through the old town of Richwood, seeing the roadside waterfalls, and stopping to see the Falls Of Hills Creek. It certainly doesn't hurt to see 150 if you have the time, and nobody's asked me to write a "1000 Things You Must Etc" book so I clearly may be breaking from the party line, but if your timeline is tight I am just throwing the idea out. Just know if you do that any road you drive in West Virginia will be lovely, officially designated or not.

In the fall, Carter's Mountain is packed with folks buying pumpkins, apple cider, apple cider…read moredonuts, cider, and wine. On a quiet week day in the spring, we were able to enjoy the steep drive up the mountain and the views that greeted us without lots of people and cars coming and going. You can still buy the cider, donuts, ice cream, and more. You also can relax and shop their very cute country store, which sells locally made jams, syrups, mixes, and other foods. They also have lovely dish towels and many other such gift items. We recommend going both in the fall to be part of the festivities as well as in the spring and summer.

Really on top of the mountain with beautiful views and lots of variety. Enjoyed the cider donuts…read morealthough they were little cake like which I don't prefer. The peach cobbler aka mode was fresh and very tasty. Definitely take a side quest and check this place out.

This is a little hidden box of treasures in town. It has art work, small crafts, local…read moreteas/honey/brews, and interesting trinkets. My family and I enjoy walking through the shop and checking everything out.

Main store in town and worth the stop. Large selection of a variety of items. Including coffee/bake…read moregoods. In addition they have a large selection of wines and beers/ciders, many local. Additionally lots of random items one did not know they may need lol Parking is very accesible, dog friendly and friendly staff. Worth it if in the area!

The gift shop is so big. Lots to see. The store is nicely designed and clean…read more I was very happy to find a Fresh Cut Card. The lady was helpful in helping to pick the right one for a birthday card. The one I had was the smaller one but she went and got me a big one. For $5 more it was so much nicer. My friend loved it. If you are in the area, you should stop in. I am visiting from NC but plan to go back in Sept and try the restaurant.

It's a cool stop in just for the experience. This is a buffet only eating experience so if you…read moredon't like fried or baked chicken, mashed potatoes, coleslaw, sweet mashed potatoes, beets or canned green beans then you are out of luck. The service of our "2nds runner" was amazing she made sure we had more food if we wanted it and was super kind and lovely. The ambiance well- it's a period place with a homestyle feel from the 1784. Yet it had a nice modern restroom. This is a tough walk if you have mobility issues. There is handicapped parking but it's still strenuous if you have poor balance. Otherwise cool for a one time!

What is big old bikes were just chilling on top of a hill while we were hiking and looking around…read moreexplore the area. There's two bikes sitting right next to each other and they're pretty cool and easy to fine. Don't try to ride him though it won't feel good on you.

Monticello is probably the most famous of all the President houses (Mt Vernon may have it beat)…read more As a self-proclaimed Presidential history nerd, I have been to several presidential homes, libraries, museums, gravesites, monuments, etc. Monticello's history is the most interesting because of many factors including Jefferson's architectural obsession, the atrocities with slavery that occurred with building and maintaining it, and the innovations and experimentation Jefferson used while living here. Monticello is a huge operation. You should definitely get a reservation. You park at the bottom of the hill (or maybe middle of it) then you go through metal detectors and are now in the cafe/gift shop/bathroom area. From there you can take the 1/2 mile walk up hill to the home or take the bus. Once you are up top, you will be put into different huddles depending on your tour time. Oh, there are several different style tours, we just did the general admission tour. Anyway, you can walk around the grounds while you wait. The whole thing is very well organized. Our tour guide took us through various rooms in the house, pointed out various artifacts from Jefferson's past, told stories and was very knowledgeable when asked questions. The group I was in was probably 20 people. The whole tour took 45 mins. Then we walked the grounds independent of the tour including looking at Jefferson's family cemetery plot. My only issue is that I went on July 1st, 2026, so the whole back (or front) had a huge tent set up for the America 250 celebration. Not a big deal just didn't get the complete feel or pics.

Great Historical Site! We went back in 2017,…read moreSo it's been a minute. We loved it. Ask questions to the guides as they are very knowledgeable!