A Natural Wonder on my doorstep
Rockbridge County, VA
The Natural Bridge has been on my list for a while, but I hadn‘t gotten around to go. It’s considered one of the Nation’s Natural Wonders and is a designated Virginia and National Historical Landmark. The biggest deterrent has been that it’s a four-hour drive away, however, today I was feeling ambitious, so I tried it out.
Virginia in the Fall
Shenandoah Valley
I was tempted to veer off course during the trip down to spend some time in the Shenandoah National Park, along Skyline Drive. The leaves were gorgeous, and, again, the perfect spot to spend a fall afternoon. However, I had to keep in mind, minus any detours I had an eight-hour round-trip in the car, so I didn’t have time for it. The drive down Interstates 66 and 81 was actually pretty nice, so I didn’t really miss out.
Natural Bridge of Virginia
It’s a privately-run park/attraction, so it is a bit pricey, but that was expected. Trying to get the most for my money, I bought one of the combination tickets that included the bridge and near-by caverns.
Natural Bridge
The arch is about 215-ft high and 90-ft wide. It’s the result of a small creek cutting out a cavern in the mountain’s limestone, which eventually eroded away leaving only the small piece. The arch is actually the remainder of the roof of a cave or tunnel Cedar Creek flowed through, and has water swirl marks on the bottom. It’s quite interesting.
The piece of property actually has ties to some pretty significant individuals from early American history. Rumor has it George Washington surveyed the property at some point, and carved his initials in the bridge. Thomas Jefferson purchased the land in 1774 from King George because he was so struck by its beauty and used it as a retreat. It’s also noted as an inspiration for both artists and writers over the years.
An interesting side note, the bridge is actually still used as a bridge, as US Route 11 runs across the top.
Behind the bridge, a short nature trail begins, weaving its way along the Cedar Creek to Lace Falls. Considering it took me a minute to get to the bridge itself, I continued with the walk to see what else the park had to offer.
“Lost River”
Fall Colors
Lace Falls
There are various info boards and exhibits set up along the way marking various pieces of the area’s history, including an Native American village and saltpeter mine. One of the ‘stops’ is an underground river found by some miners from the nearby saltpeter cave, called the “lost river,”, where water was taken to extract nitrate from the mine. The interesting part is the beginning and end of the stream are both still mysteries, according to the information board posted near the site.
The ending/turn-around point is at an overlook of Lace Falls, which is remains of the former sink hole allowing water into the area’s original cavern system. Over time, the walls and roof of that system eroded away, leaving only a small portion… the Natural Bridge.
On my walk back, I stopped to talk with one of the park rangers for a while. He was very knowledgeable and passionate about the property and, particularly, with its former proprietor Thomas Jefferson. I enjoyed the discussion and it was incredibly informative. I was quite impressed. Originally I assumed the small creek cut out the bridge, in a similar fashion to the formation of the canyons out west, however I was mistaken.
Flowstone Cascade
Walking deeper into the caverns
A bat hanging around
So, the second half of my ticket was to the nearby Natural Bridge Caverns, which I guess is often overshadowed by the region’s Laray Caverns. The cavern system here runs vertically, apparently the deepest on the east coast running 34 stories down, but very short in distance covered. It didn’t take long to walk through the whole thing.
It was pointed out, this cavern system is completely separate from the one formerly in the area of the Natural Bridge.
On the way out of town, I spotted something that looked odd, but yet interesting… so I stopped. It turned out to be Mark Cline’s art project, Foamhenge, displayed along Lee’s Highway.
Foamhenge
Merlin, magically constructing the henge
The project is made entirely of foam, and meant to be a replication of England’s Stonehenge, or at least the artist’s rendition of it, with two depicted explanations of its creation.
Stonehenge (just for reference, from my trip to England).
Today’s Flickr set: park pics
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