Parkway · NC, VA
The National Park Service lists 26 things to do at Blue Ridge Parkway. 25 have no extra fee, 25 need no reservation, and 26 allow pets. Each listing links to the full NPS page. Data is from the NPS snapshot of Oct 28, 2026.
Updated · NPS Data API
Becoming a Blue Ridge Parkway Junior Ranger is exciting and rewarding! Pick up your Junior Ranger Folder and instructions at any park visitor center. Then travel the parkway to get site-specific activity sheets along your journey.
20-120 Minutes Year-round Pets allowed
The Blue Ridge Parkway offers 469 miles of picturesque road cycling though the Virginia and North Carolina mountains.
Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
The Afton Overlook provides an excellent introduction to the Blue Ridge Parkway. The view is spectacular at any time, but the colorful skies produced at sunrise can be truly breathtaking. And remember: No two sunrises are the same.
0-30 Minutes Year-round Pets allowed
Want to take a walk on the wild side? Try a hike in the Middle Prong Wilderness! Adjacent to the Blue Ridge Parkway, this wilderness area protects a beautiful forest and has ample opportunities for solitude.
1-8 Hours Year-round Pets allowed
A mountaintop park may seem an unlikely place to fish, but just the opposite is true. The parkway protects over 100 miles of streams, many of them small, spring-fed watercourses that rise along the spine of the Blue Ridge.
Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
Freshwater Fishing
Every autumn, thousands of raptors ride the thermal updrafts of the Blue Ridge Mountains on their way to wintering grounds. You can watch the graceful flights of these soaring birds from Harveys Knob Overlook.
Fall Pets allowed
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The Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center Loop Trail is a short, easy hike that is popular with all ages. Locals and visitors alike enjoy this leg stretcher trail and its close proximity to Asheville.
60-90 Minutes Year-round Pets allowed
Make the steep 0.5 mile climb to the top of Devils Courthouse for one of the most fantastic views on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
1-2 Hours Year-round Pets allowed
While this hike is challenging, the trek is very rewarding for the seasoned hiker. The small cascades are pure magic!
2-3 Hours Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
A hike on the family-friendly High Meadows Trail leads up and down rolling grassy meadows and through a mix of deciduous and evergreen forests. Pick up some Kids In Park TRACK Trail brochures at the trailhead to add adventure to your kid's hike.
60-90 Minutes Year-round Pets allowed
The ideal hike for someone who likes water, bridges, woods—and doesn’t feel like committing an entire afternoon to a hike. Roanoke River Trail is an an easy trail that covers less than a mile. It makes a perfect leg stretcher hike as you pass through Roanoke.
20-60 Minutes Year-round Pets allowed
Step back in time with a hike to historic Rattlesnake Lodge. This enjoyable hike through shaded woodlands is close to Asheville and takes you to the remains of an early1900’s mountain retreat.
1-3 Hours Year-round Pets allowed
Among the fall wildflowers, and drifting on invisible wind currents high above you, look for the jewel tones of monarch butterflies as the insects pass through the parkway's high elevations on their seasonal migration.
5-120 Minutes Fall Pets allowed
Visit the Mahogany Rock Overlook for soaring views of Buck Mountain, Doughton Mountain, and Cheek Mountain among others. In the fall visitors are treated to spectacular views of migrating raptors.
Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail Junior Ranger booklet and directions.
Pets allowed
Your actions while visiting the parkway can have a direct and lasting impact on a black bear. Discover how YOU can save a bear's life!
Year-round Pets allowed
Colorful rhododendron blossoms put on a show each summer along the Blue Ridge Parkway and one of the best places to see these high-elevation flowers is at Craggy Gardens.
1-4 Hours Spring, Summer Pets allowed
The Mount Pisgah Campground is a cool, high elevation retreat in the summer's heat. This peaceful and relaxing spot is the perfect place to stay and explore the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway.
2-14 Days Spring, Summer, Fall Reservation required Fee applies Pets allowed
Car or Front Country Camping
Heintooga Ridge Road on the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway is a good place to spot elk.
Year-round Pets allowed
Stargazing on the Blue Ridge Parkway can be an amazing experience. Waterrock Knob at Milepost 451.2 is a great place to enjoy the calm quiet of the night and contemplate the universe as you gaze at the starry sky that surrounds you.
1-4 Hours Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
Take a scenic drive through Adney Gap around milepost 136 and experience one of the many mountain gaps that provided an important early tool in traversing the surrounding hills and mountains.
Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
Take a scenic drive through Tuggle Gap to experience one of the gaps which provided early travelers passage through the mountains.
Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
The raptors are coming! And they’ve got the “kettle” on!
Fall Pets allowed
Peregrine falcon, once near extinction, now can be viewed in the skies over the Blue Ridge Parkway.
1-3 Hours Spring, Summer, Fall Pets allowed
There are many places to view a sunrise along the Blue Ridge Parkway, but the sun rising over the Peaks of Otter at Pine Tree Overlook is a stand out favorite on the northern end of the parkway.
Year-round Pets allowed
Sunrise on the Blue Ridge Parkway can be an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Pounding Mill Overlook at Milepost 413 is a great place to welcome the dawn of a new day and appreciate the natural beauty of this special place.
1-3 Hours Year-round Pets allowed
Check current alerts and closures, entrance fees and operating hours for Blue Ridge. Programs and tours can change with the season or be cancelled on short notice — confirm on the NPS page before you plan around one.
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