On a sunny and breezy May day with baby blue skies and cotton ball clouds, we embarked on a drive to Shenandoah National Park’s scenic roadway. Skyline Drive follows the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains for 105 miles to elevations ranging from 591 feet in the northern part of the park to 4,049 feet at Hawksbill Mountain, and an altitude of 3,650 feet at Big Meadows with its Lodge constructed in 1939. The park is located only 75 miles from the crowded northern Virginia and Washington, D.C.