traveling from New Jersey to Atlanta

[paml]

We are traveling from New Jersey to Atlanta by car and would like to know about some interesting places to stop, sleep and eat along the way. If anyone knows some little towns to stop in let me know. Thanks paml

[AZBuck]

aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

Your basic route is just I-95/I-85. There are lots of places to take a break on those and other highways. If you'd like to stop overnight about half way, then you're looking at southern Virginia around the town of South Hill. But to get beyond standard recommendations, we'd have to know a lot more about what would appeal to you.

AZBuck

[Foy]

Hi Pam,

Since New Jersey and Atlanta each encompass considerable land areas, it would also be helpful if you were to indicate what part of Jersey and what part of the Greater Atlanta area you're leaving from and headed to. AZBuck is correct that South Hill, VA is about halfway, but that halfway point varies considerably with the more exactly stated starting and ending points.

And: do you like Piedmont, NC style barbeque? What about stock car racing? How about whitewater rafting? There are some things I'd be happy to add to a response if any of those is to your liking, as the Lexington, NC to Gastonia, NC section of I-85 would accomodate you well if you do.

Foy

[paml]

Hi ,
Thanks so much for responding. We like small towns with some character and are trying to get away from the route 95 motels or hotels. We would be interested in staying in a small town with good diners or bed and breakfast.

[Foy]

Hi Pam,

My absolute disgust with congested metropolitan area traffic shades my opinions herein a great deal, I must admit. That and my complete willingness to travel a road never before traveled leads me to much in the way of "bushwhacking" with a detailed map and an open mind. With those factors plus my and my wife's families being from Central NC and Central VA, respectively, there are few Federal, State, or even county roads I have not traveled between Northern Virginia (DC area) and Charlotte, NC.

So, Jersey to Atlanta might include an old, little used tourist route: US 15. In some of old diners in VA, I've seen yellowed brochures from the 1950s touting it as "The Scenic Route" between Pennsylvania and Florida. And scenic it is, particularly from the outskirts of the DC metropolitan area all the way through Virginia, where it traverses rolling countryside, dense forest, La-Di-Dah horse farms, and several small towns.

You might consider taking the western beltway loop at the northern side of DC, thence I-66 west to Gainsville, thence US 29 south to Culpeper, where US 15 south turns off. From Culpeper, you'll pass through Orange, Gordonsville, Zion Crossroad, Fork Union, Farmville, and Clarksville, VA, then through nearby Oxford, NC where you'll run into I-85 around 25 miles north of Durham, NC. Clarksville is on a 50,000 acre reservior (Kerr Lake) and has two particularly nice looking B&Bs, each of which are also dinnertime restaurants. Given that it's only around 15 miles west of South Hill, VA, which is along I-85, Clarksville is still around halfway on your trip. For an early lunch the next day, you can stop in Lexington, NC, where the I-85/NC-8 interchange has one of the locally and regionally famous "Lexington Style" NC BBQ restaurants within 1 block south of the off-ramp. Pork shoulder BBQ, spicy tomato-based dipping sauce, coleslaw, hushpuppies, and sweet iced tea should keep you sated for the remaining 4 hours or so to Atlanta from there.

You might also, or alternately, consider the Cherokee Scenic Parkway, a long loop off of I-85 in upstate South Carolina. It maintains the southwesterly direction of I-85 but carries you through some small towns and scenic foothills along the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Have a safe and enjoyable trip.

Foy