Blue Ridge Parkway North · Rockfish Gap to Buena Vista

The first miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway, one way: from Rockfish Gap at milepost 0 the route follows the Parkway south past Humpback Rocks, Ravens Roost, Reeds Gap, Tye River Gap and Yankee Horse Ridge, and leaves it at US-60 to drop into Buena Vista. It's 49 miles, with no entrance fee. It ends at US-60 on purpose: farther south the Parkway is closed at the James River bridge (mileposts 63.5 to 63.9) for rehabilitation. There's no fuel on the Parkway, and in winter snow and ice close its gates.

The Blue Ridge Parkway starts at Rockfish Gap, milepost 0, right where Skyline Drive ends, and this route rides its first 45 miles south. At milepost 5.8 is Humpback Rocks, with a visitor center and the Mountain Farm, a group of log buildings brought in from farms in the area in the 1950s to show mountain life in the 1890s. Ravens Roost, at milepost 10.7, is an overlook with a stone wall and a view west over the Shenandoah Valley. The route then passes Reeds Gap and Tye River Gap and reaches Yankee Horse Ridge, at milepost 34.4, a parking area with a short stretch of rebuilt railroad track.

At milepost 45.6 the route leaves the Parkway on US-60 and drops into Buena Vista. It stops there on purpose: farther south, between mileposts 63.5 and 63.9, the Parkway is closed at the James River bridge for rehabilitation, with a detour (NPS, October 27, 2026). The Parkway has no entrance fee and no fuel: fill up in Waynesboro or Buena Vista. It isn't plowed, and in winter snow and ice close gated sections, sometimes for days. It's a one-way route.