The Natural Bridge & Camping at James River
Apr 01, 2022 | Roanoke, VA
We were very excited because it was the day for us to go camping! We spent the morning getting everything in order, packing the car up, etc. We were heading to Natural Bridge, Virginia to see, well, the Natural Bridge. After finally getting packed up, we hit the road. Not long into the drive, Erika realized she hadn't eaten anything all morning (it was just past lunch time now). So, we stopped into a Hardee's (Carl's Jr. for all of you West coasters) to get a vegan, Beyond burger. However, due to us either being in the deep south or a Hardee's rather than the Carl's Jr. we're used to, they didn't have it. Instead she waited in line for what felt like a good portion if 20 minutes to buy some french fries. After that whole disaster and a stomach full of fries, we kept on trucking north.
There were beautiful trees in bloom the whole drive there. Pinks, purples, reds, oranges, yellows, and bright greens. We had made it to our first stop, the Natural Bridge visitor center. Here, we encountered an elderly woman with possibly the thickest southern accent we have heard thus far. She gave us our tickets (only $9 each!) and directions to the bridge. But first, we checked out the goods they had for sale there at the visitor center and giggled at some of their questionable displays.
Soon after, we eagerly headed for the bridge. It wasn't a long walk at all until we saw it. It was truly huge. It is hard to grasp the size of it through pictures, but hey, it's the best we can do! Legend has it that George Washington climbed up the left side of it and carved his initials into the stone. You can read more about its vast history here. It was owned by Thomas Jefferson, and sadly, now it has a huge road that goes over it. I know it's a "natural bridge", but maybe we could have just left it that way in our imagination without pouring concrete and tar all over it.
During this trek, we saw some flowers we had never seen before as well as a waterfall that we couldn't get very close too, unfortunately. We left soon after our hike was over and started driving towards our campground. We saw a cute general store called "Natty B Café" and knew we needed to stop in. Erika bought pecan brittle and a blackberry cream soda. Brian bought some BBQ kettle chips, perhaps a more sensible, less-sugary choice.
We arrived at our campground which involved us driving over an active railroad track with nothing but a sign that says "yield". The issue was that this is quite a steep part of the road and so we had to drive over it pretty slowly so that our muffler didn't rip off like our friend's when we were in Nashville (see Nashville entry). Thus, putting us a bit on edge, constantly checking for an incoming trail. But, enough with the dramatics.
Our host of the campsite informed us that we'd be the only campers there all weekend and that we could have our pick from the five campsites. We evaluated each one and decided on #4. It was close to the porta-potty, had new woodchips laid down to avoid it from getting muddy, and had a great river view.
We hung out for a bit until Erika realized she had forgotten the cooking pot. Now we had no way of making our meals. She hurried and called the Dollar General nearby and thankfully they sold pots! We drove there to grab one before making a dinner of Thai curry. Brian gave Erika quite the hard time for putting some Fritos chips into her bowl of curry and rice, but she didn't mind one bit because he was the one who was missing out. We had a beer (it was a Belgian quadrupel mixed with a cherry kriek ale for all you beer nerds) and some hard kombucha before tucking in for the night.
During the night, the train went by a couple times, blowing its whistle, but it was never too loud. The temperatures got to around 30 degrees Fahrenheit so staying warm was quite the obstacle for Erika. Brian seemed to have slept quite well, however. Good for him.
The visitor's center
The visitor's center
"In wilderness lies the hope of the world"
"In wilderness lies the hope of the world"
The start of the hike to the bridge.
The start of the hike to the bridge.
Uvularia grandiflora, Large-flowered bellwort
Uvularia grandiflora, Large-flowered bellwort
You can just barely see a tiny person at the base of it. See how huge it is!?
You can just barely see a tiny person at the base of it. See how huge it is!?
Frederic Edwin Church, The Natural Bridge, Virginia, 1852, oil on canvas.
Frederic Edwin Church, The Natural Bridge, Virginia, 1852, oil on canvas.
Lace Falls a ways off behind us.
Lace Falls a ways off behind us.
Someone's questionably painted mobile
Someone's questionably painted mobile
Old telephone inside of Natty B Cafe.
Old telephone inside of Natty B Cafe.
Bags of moth balls spotted in the snack area, within children's reach. Interesting.
Bags of moth balls spotted in the snack area, within children's reach. Interesting.
Hilariously old-fashioned products at the Dollar General
Hilariously old-fashioned products at the Dollar General
Mertensia virginica, Virginia Bluebells. Sprinkled all over our campsite.
Mertensia virginica, Virginia Bluebells. Sprinkled all over our campsite.
Here's the set up.
Here's the set up.
Cooking pot: secured.
Cooking pot: secured.
Don't knock it 'till you try it
Don't knock it 'till you try it