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I plan to drive northwards on the Blue Ridge Pkwy in early April, my question is about the weather. Will it be still snowy, wet or misty? How is the scenery at that time of the year?
I hope somebody from local area or experienced drivers on this road can advise some.
thank you
Last edited by ffrree; 12-09-2008 at 09:15 PM..
Reason: typo
The possibility that you won't be able to drive the parkway is probably pretty high, due to closures due to snow and ice that remains, or falls. The BRP does not clear the road of snow/ice, when it melts, they will open the road. There is a section between Asheville and Mt. Mitchel that will likely still be closed, as it has been closed all of this year. Think it is due to open by early summer.
A section near Doughton Park just south of VA could remain closed due to an icefall that forms there during cold winters. If this cold autumn we've had leads into an equally cold winter, the icefall will be pretty solid this season and may not have melted out by then. That would be an unfortunate section of the BRP to miss, too, b/c Doughton Park has some awesome open meadows and great hiking trails.
As the others said it's going to be hit or miss. If we have a warm spring it could open up in the southern end earlier but up north it could be a problem. There is a detour around Mitchell that won't be open until mid 2009. It's a shame as that's a pretty drive. I think if you check out the BRP websites you can get a list of the detours.
In addition to what the others said, the mountains will still be in winter form (no leaves) so you wont see any or much green. I think the winter mountains are very interesting since you can see the folds and the contours so much better, but I prefer leaves on the trees. I am always surprised, even thought I know, how many more leaves we have down east as opposed to the mountains during the spring.
Spring is a very late and short season in the High Country. When I lived in Watauga County, I always hated to go "off the mountain" in April and see everyone else enjoying springtime when it still looked like winter at home (but with no skiing still open). I LOVE the High Country, but April is my least favorite month.
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I LOVE the High Country, but April is my least favorite month.
