The farm trail from the visitor center at Humpback Rocks leads to a meadow along the Blue Ridge Parkway. In the lede photo, the farm trail winds through the woods to the left of the parkway, and takes you to a gate in the split rail fence at the edge of the parkway. As you exit the gate, you cross the road to a picnic area on the right side of the photo. This is the staging area for a climb to the top. From the picnic area, the climb to the top is only about 800 vertical feet over less than a mile. Through a 35mm lens, it doesn't look like much, but it'll take you 30-40 minutes to get there, and your heart will be pumping hard when you arrive. The bottom half of the climb is over a well-groomed trail about 10 feet wide, with strategically placed log steps. After that, you're on your own. The trail narrows to a foot or two, and it's nothing more than a dirt path with loose rocks. You'll have to do some climbing. But if you want to wander around the meadow, there are plenty of angles to photograph. The four seasons provide stark contrasts of the same scenery. Next time, we'll make the climb to the top and take in the panorama.
Gear Photos were shot with a Nikon D750 paired with a Zeiss Milvus 35 mm f/2.0, or were shot with a Nikon D70s paired with a Zeiss Apo 135mm f/2.0, or were shot with a Nikon Coolpix A.
