The small community of Mayberry ceased to be a recognized town in 1922 and since has been technically part of the town of Meadows of Dan, Virginia, though the “downtown” of Meadows of Dan is nearly three miles from the Mayberry Trading Post. The business section of Meadows of Dan consists of just a few buildings. There is a candy factory where we stopped and bought sweets for our sweets back home, not to mention a few for ourselves. There are a couple of small diners, a general store, and a gas station. The general store carries a lot of novelty items and foods as well as more basic fare for locals. They also have a nice selection of soda pop, including one I had read about and had been looking for while we had been in the area: Cheerwine with Krispy Kreme Donut flavoring. I know it sounds sickly sweet, but it was actually good.
Farther up the parkway, we stopped at the historic Maybry Mill, one of the most photographed spots on the parkway. A restaurant and gift shop are on the grounds and it was packed. This may not be surprising as it is one of only three restaurants actually located in the 469-mile national park though there are certainly restaurants available nearby once you exit the parkway. We asked just out of curiosity what the wait was for a meal and were told it was two and a half hours. We were also told that arriving early for breakfast was the best way to visit without a wait but by mid-morning a wait was likely the rest of the day. As we left, we took the Blue Ridge Parkway south until we had to exit for Mount Airy.
When back in town, I left Rob and Steve uptown for a bit and went back to the hotel to rendezvous with an old friend I had not seen in 25 years. Marty and I attended middle and high school together and were part of a group of friends I recall fondly. After having not seen one another since the mid-1970s, we got together a few times in the early 1990s when Marty worked as a DJ for a brief period near where I live. After again not seeing each other for many years, we had tried to get together in 2015 when I was visiting Wrightsville Beach in North Carolina. Marty lives a bit over an hour south of there and we planned to meet in the middle toward the end of my trip, but when the day came a bad storm arose that kept the reunion from happening.
After noting how neither of us had aged at all, Marty and I joined Rob and Steve and went out to dinner. Marty regaled us with stories of his days as a radio DJ, especially when he was in Branson where he had the opportunity to interview many singers, including Rodney Dillard.
After dinner and being entertained by Marty, a natural storyteller, the great evening of entertainment continued with another wonderful concert by the VW Boys. Rob especially enjoyed that I was spotted by Andelina again, giving me a hard time it had happened two years in a row.
The next morning would see us donning our new The Gomer and Goober Pyle Comic Book Literary Guild t-shirts for the first time.
Caint I even look at the purty man?
Nice entry Randy, great pictures too!