Potential trip to the mountains (WV/VA/TN, maybe NC)

[hbelkins]

I'm looking at a short trip into the mountains east of me sometime next month.

Primary objectives will be to drive the new four-lane section of US 35 in West Virginia, and to check out the construction of future US 52 in the Bluefield area. Outside of that, I'm open to suggestions.

Not sure of where the nightly stops will be, but I'm looking at three nights away from home. The third night will likely be in the tri-cities area of Tennessee, but the first two nights are up in the air. Possibilities are the Charleston area, southern West Virginia (Beckley/Princeton) or southwestern Virginia (Wytheville, maybe Blacksburg/Christiansburg).

I'm looking for some new things to see, either road-related or scenic. I've been to the NRG bridge and Thurmond, the tunnels on I-77, I've seen the old and weird signs in Bluefield and Tazewell, I've been to Burke's Garden, I've driven the open portion of the Coalfields Expressway and know of nothing that's under construction currently outside the current end of WV 121 near Mullens, I've driven the gravel portion of VA 91, I've seen the Smart Road bridge, etc.

Can anyone suggest anything else of interest in that area?

[Mapmikey]

I'm looking at a short trip into the mountains east of me sometime next month.

Primary objectives will be to drive the new four-lane section of US 35 in West Virginia, and to check out the construction of future US 52 in the Bluefield area. Outside of that, I'm open to suggestions.

Not sure of where the nightly stops will be, but I'm looking at three nights away from home. The third night will likely be in the tri-cities area of Tennessee, but the first two nights are up in the air. Possibilities are the Charleston area, southern West Virginia (Beckley/Princeton) or southwestern Virginia (Wytheville, maybe Blacksburg/Christiansburg).

I'm looking for some new things to see, either road-related or scenic. I've been to the NRG bridge and Thurmond, the tunnels on I-77, I've seen the old and weird signs in Bluefield and Tazewell, I've been to Burke's Garden, I've driven the open portion of the Coalfields Expressway and know of nothing that's under construction currently outside the current end of WV 121 near Mullens, I've driven the gravel portion of VA 91, I've seen the Smart Road bridge, etc.

Can anyone suggest anything else of interest in that area?

if you're willing, could you check out the new VA 372?  It is 2 miles west of VA 102 Pocahontas.  Va 372 is the 2nd segment here:
https://goo.gl/maps/vx4yj99SvSQ2D2xN9

Would love to know if it is posted.  Although i have resumed driving following my stroke in October, it's going to be some time before I'm going to be allowed to take a long solo roadtrip.

no worries if this is too far out of your way...we'll get the info eventually.

Don't know if you're going that far into TN, but there is the new TN 66 road between I-40 and Morristown.

Aug 2022 GMSV shows US 58 4-laning construction underway at the Lovers Leap area (clearing the new alignment).  Too far east?

Been on the unpaved portion of NC 197?  (between I-26 and Burnsville) https://goo.gl/maps/MwShKghdSntyCREk9
NC 90's unpaved part west of Lenoir is probably too far south

[74/171FAN]

I had planned to cover the new VA 372 on the way back from Florida, but I bailed on that when I bailed on the VA 91 gravel section because of a bridge closure on VA 91.

[hbelkins]

I'm looking at a short trip into the mountains east of me sometime next month.

Primary objectives will be to drive the new four-lane section of US 35 in West Virginia, and to check out the construction of future US 52 in the Bluefield area. Outside of that, I'm open to suggestions.

Not sure of where the nightly stops will be, but I'm looking at three nights away from home. The third night will likely be in the tri-cities area of Tennessee, but the first two nights are up in the air. Possibilities are the Charleston area, southern West Virginia (Beckley/Princeton) or southwestern Virginia (Wytheville, maybe Blacksburg/Christiansburg).

I'm looking for some new things to see, either road-related or scenic. I've been to the NRG bridge and Thurmond, the tunnels on I-77, I've seen the old and weird signs in Bluefield and Tazewell, I've been to Burke's Garden, I've driven the open portion of the Coalfields Expressway and know of nothing that's under construction currently outside the current end of WV 121 near Mullens, I've driven the gravel portion of VA 91, I've seen the Smart Road bridge, etc.

Can anyone suggest anything else of interest in that area?

if you're willing, could you check out the new VA 372?  It is 2 miles west of VA 102 Pocahontas.  Va 372 is the 2nd segment here:
https://goo.gl/maps/vx4yj99SvSQ2D2xN9

Would love to know if it is posted.  Although i have resumed driving following my stroke in October, it's going to be some time before I'm going to be allowed to take a long solo roadtrip.

no worries if this is too far out of your way...we'll get the info eventually.

Don't know if you're going that far into TN, but there is the new TN 66 road between I-40 and Morristown.

Aug 2022 GMSV shows US 58 4-laning construction underway at the Lovers Leap area (clearing the new alignment).  Too far east?

Been on the unpaved portion of NC 197?  (between I-26 and Burnsville) https://goo.gl/maps/MwShKghdSntyCREk9
NC 90's unpaved part west of Lenoir is probably too far south

What's the logic of posting another route instead of extending VA 102?

Google Maps is often inaccurate, but it was my impression that VA 102 ends at the intersection of Centre and Church streets near the library (it's at the top of a little hill). Why not just alter the route and lengthen it? Or is this because of Virginia's predilection for signing access routes to state facilities as 3xx primary routes?

Also, was TN 66 discontinuous between I-40 and Morristown, or did it have some hidden, unsigned concurrencies? Or did you mean I-81 instead of I-40, as I see a TN 66 having an interchange with I-81 at Exit 4? Tennessee's concurrencies, especially when a route is considered secondary instead of primary, are usually not well posted.

[74/171FAN]

Google Maps is often inaccurate, but it was my impression that VA 102 ends at the intersection of Centre and Church streets near the library (it's at the top of a little hill). Why not just alter the route and lengthen it? Or is this because of Virginia's predilection for signing access routes to state facilities as 3xx primary routes?

Definitely the latter.   

[sprjus4]

Aug 2022 GMSV shows US 58 4-laning construction underway at the Lovers Leap area (clearing the new alignment).  Too far east?

I drove through this area back in early February, and construction has certainly ramped up. Some clearing and visible blasting for the new alignment portions.

[Mapmikey]

What's the logic of posting another route instead of extending VA 102?
Google Maps is often inaccurate, but it was my impression that VA 102 ends at the intersection of Centre and Church streets near the library (it's at the top of a little hill). Why not just alter the route and lengthen it? Or is this because of Virginia's predilection for signing access routes to state facilities as 3xx primary routes?

VA 102 ends at Centre and W Railroad, back to at least 1958.

If they extended VA 102 that would require adding another 1.5 miles to the primary system that they evidently do not want to do.  I always thought VA 102 should be extended to WV 161 east of Bishop.  In 1949 the CTB rejected extending it (still VA 85 then) up SR 659 to connect with then-WV 102.

I actually think all the 3xx routes should connect to a primary route as most of the ones that do not are not that far from one.  They did this with VA 344 which used to be only in Staunton River State Park

But the whole 3xx setup is odd.  Why only some prisons/state parks/colleges, etc.?  Also they like to have a 3xx number even when another state highway goes *to* the facility.  Two examples like this were VA 210 (before rerouting to new US 29 bypass) ending at the gate of Central Virginia Training Center and VA 334 being inside the gate; VA 135 ending at the gate to Tidewater CC and VA 367 inside the gate.

  and 

There is one counterexample - a succession of state routes led to the Catawba Hospital north of Roanoke.  The last of which was the 3rd VA 123.  As part of the 1940 renumberings, they changed it to VA 320 which was later extended to include the hospital grounds as well.

Also, was TN 66 discontinuous between I-40 and Morristown, or did it have some hidden, unsigned concurrencies? Or did you mean I-81 instead of I-40, as I see a TN 66 having an interchange with I-81 at Exit 4? Tennessee's concurrencies, especially when a route is considered secondary instead of primary, are usually not well posted.

I did mean I-81.  There was a signage gap in TN 66 which ended at the I-40 Sevierville exit, then picked up again leaving US 25W-70 Dandridge (so there is an implied secret concurrency on I-40 between Ext 407 and 415) heading northeast to Morristown.  As of Aug 2022 this is still the routing of TN 66, with TN 341 using the short 4-laned part between I-81 and where TN 66 picks it up.  Before I-40 TN 66 used today's TN 139 to get from Sevierville to Dandridge.  The just-bypassed part of TN 66 from the I-81 area northeast to Morristown does not appear to have gotten a new designation.

[Mapmikey]

I had planned to cover the new VA 372 on the way back from Florida, but I bailed on that when I bailed on the VA 91 gravel section because of a bridge closure on VA 91.

I have now visited the new VA 372.  It is posted in white rectangles at SR 734 and unposted at the prison end.

Incidentally, if one were going to the prison from Bluefield, VA, they actually direct you to leave VA 102 at SR 696 to approach the prison without going to Pocahontas.