VA, USA
Shenandoah Valley Access Point — Afton Mountain Overlook
Trail
The overlook at Afton Mountain (Rockfish Gap, elevation 1,909 feet) on the Blue Ridge Parkway west of Charlottesville marks the pass through which Shenandoah Valley communication and supply routes connected the Virginia interior to the Tidewater during the Revolution. Shenandoah Valley communities — particularly those with German and Scotch-Irish settlement — were important sources of militia and supplies. When Tarleton's 1781 raid swept through Charlottesville, refugees and fleeing legislators used the valley road through this gap. The overlook provides a geographic anchor for understanding how Charlottesville connected the coastal Virginia of the Tidewater to the Shenandoah hinterland.
Visiting Today
Address
Rockfish Gap, Afton, VA 22920 (Blue Ridge Pkwy milepost 0)
Hours
Always accessible (outdoor)
Admission
Free
Connected Events
Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Banastre Tarleton
Thomas Jefferson, Banastre Tarleton, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Banastre Tarleton, Jack Jouett, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Banastre Tarleton, Jack Jouett, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Banastre Tarleton, Jack Jouett, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Banastre Tarleton, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Jack Jouett, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, Isaac Jefferson, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson