It’s autumn now; days of misty mornings, soothing cold, refreshing and sporadic rains and shades of red, vermilion and gold leaves blowing in the wind. It feels dramatic. It reminds me of my visit to the Princeton University Campus during one such fall.
Tag: Fall Colors
Before driving through the Blue Ridge Parkway in reality in my 30s, I drove through it in my dreams during my twenties! My dream was to drive miles after miles amidst unbound beauty and was not limited to any particular country.
In reality, when I drove through the Blue Ridge Parkway, I felt exhilarated not because it is one of the most scenic routes in the USA but because the reality connected me to my long cradled dream.
Eventually on the way, on many occasions, my thirty-something me met my twenty-something me.
This post began years ago as a memoir of that drive, and I have kept every word of it. But I have also added what I wish someone had told me before we set out: when the leaves actually peak, which overlooks are worth the stop, how the mileposts work, and where we slept.
Siddhartha, our daughter Chirantana and I drove the North Carolina stretch in late October. The memories are mine; the practical details below are current as of fall 2026, and this guide is written for the family planning the same drive.
