Wednesday entailed a short drive of 75 miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway on a day of clouds, mist, and fog. Even in this weather the parkway is an enjoyable drive, especially compared to interstates with speeding vehicles and pesky 18-wheelers.

As our lodging experts, David and Kay Scott, continue on their 2010 odyssey across the National Park System, they get to sample some of the best lodging, food, and coffee there is to be had. This dispatch came from the Bluffs Lodge along the Blue Ridge Parkway

Who says those automated phone answering systems, the ones that incessantly ask you to push this number for that information or that information for this tidbit, can't be helpful? A new one operating at Dinosaur National Monument helps you relatively quickly learn when you might be able to land a permit to float the Green or Yampa rivers in the park.