Route 11 North: Troutville, VA to Mount Jackson, VA

This post continues the road trip started by Eric's post on 11W from Knoxville to Abingdon, and Mike's post on Route 11 from Abingdon to Dublin, VA. I picked up Route 11 just north of Roanoke in Troutville, VA, tuned in Bluegrass Junction on my XM dial, and headed north.


Route 11 is again crossed by the Appalachian Trail just south of Troutville.


For some good home cooking, the Greenwood Restaurant is the place to stop; complete with a train that circles overhead in the dining room!


Located between Purgatory Mountain and Cove Mountain right on the James River in Botetourt, County is Buchanan, Virginia.


It is worth a stop and has plenty to offer, including a theater, many boutique shops, restaurants, and coffee shops.


And it's famous for the swinging bridge that crosses the James. You have to go over it at least once.


Natural Bridge in Rockbridge County offers an eclectic mix of things to do. The bridge itself is the main draw, but unfortunately, you have to pay to see it. The hotel offers quality accomodations, and personally speaking, is a great place for a wedding reception. There's also caverns, a wax museum, a zoo and a safari park nearby.

If you need a burger along the way, the Pink Cadillac's Elvis Burger is sure to satisfy.


House Mountain is seen in the background as you cross the Maury River in Lexington, VA. For those with time to kill, take Business 11 into the heart of town. Washington and Lee University and Virginia Military Institute are here, along with too many good restaurants and stores to list them all. Also, a neat venue called Lime Kiln Theater is here.


A rare sighting these days, Lexington still has a drive-in, located just north of town.




Rt. 11 passes through several small towns north of Harrisonburg. New Market, VA is the first.


The Shenandoah Valley is a principal agricultural area in Virginia. Route 11 passes by many farms tucked right against the Blue Ridge Mountains.


Be sure to make a stop at the covered bridge between New Market and Mount Jackson.




It is a single lane bridge, so make sure nothing is coming before you start through.


Not much daylight left on this travelogue, but enough to capture in the sunset the steeple of the Hawkinstown United Methodist Church and the watertower at the Bowman Apple Products plant just north of Mount Jackson.