# Crooked Road Ramble A 3-day, ~220-mile Southern road trip from Bristol (start Thursday). It chains The Crooked Road. - **Days:** 3 - **Distance:** ~220 mi - **Starts in:** Bristol (start Thursday) - **Themes:** Music, Outdoors - **Routes chained:** [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) Mountain music's living calendar: Floyd on Friday, the Carter Fold on Saturday — drive the prettiest gaps in Virginia between shows. ## Why this itinerary works Starting in Bristol (start Thursday), this 3-day itinerary connects The Crooked Road. It suits travellers interested in parks, coast, mountains & water; blues, country, jukes & jamborees. The day-by-day bases let you split roughly 220 miles into a sequence of visits rather than trying to cover every linked route end to end. Use the daily highlights to decide which places deserve your longest stops. ## Day by day ### Day 1: Thu: Bristol & Abingdon Birthplace of Country Music Museum (give it two hours), burgers where Hank was allegedly last seen, then Abingdon: Barter Theatre tickets and the Martha's porch. Overnight Abingdon. Keep Thursday for the origins of the music and a relaxed theatre evening; Friday and Saturday are built around live performances farther along the road. Book the play before deciding dinner time, and do not let a museum detour turn the mountain drive into a late-night dash. Check the Floyd and Carter Fold calendars before departure: this itinerary depends on the actual show nights. Highlights to consider: - **Birthplace of Country Music Museum** (Bristol) — The 1927 Bristol Sessions: Ralph Peer, a portable lathe, and twelve days that recorded the Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers into history. State Street's brass line splits Tennessee from Virginia mid-stride. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Barter Theatre** (Abingdon) — Opened 1933: Depression admission payable in produce — 'ham for Hamlet.' Gregory Peck, Ernest Borgnine and Patricia Neal apprenticed here. Still doing rep year-round across two stages. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Burger Bar** (Bristol) — Local legend holds Hank Williams was last seen alive near this counter, New Year's Eve 1952, his driver stopping while Hank slept (or didn't) in the Cadillac. Great smash burgers; heavier history than the menu admits. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Damascus** (Damascus) — 'Trail Town USA' — the Appalachian Trail walks straight down Main Street. Shuttle up Whitetop and coast 17 miles of the Virginia Creeper rail grade back to town. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) ### Day 2: Fri: High Country to Floyd Coast the Virginia Creeper out of Damascus in the morning, ponies at Grayson Highlands, Galax's Barr's Fiddle Shop — then up the Parkway past Mabry Mill to Floyd. Doors at the Country Store by 6; flatfoot till they sweep you out. Highlights to consider: - **Damascus** (Damascus) — 'Trail Town USA' — the Appalachian Trail walks straight down Main Street. Shuttle up Whitetop and coast 17 miles of the Virginia Creeper rail grade back to town. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Mabry Mill** (Meadows of Dan) — The most photographed spot on the entire Blue Ridge Parkway — gristmill, pond, and Sunday-afternoon old-time jams in season. Shared with the Parkway route; the atlas draws them side by side here. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Grayson Highlands Ponies** (Mouth of Wilson) — Wild ponies grazing mile-high balds beneath Mount Rogers, Virginia's rooftop. They will try to eat your sandwich; the views excuse them. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Galax: Rex Theater & Barr's Fiddles** (Galax) — Friday nights the Rex broadcasts 'Blue Ridge Backroads' live on WBRF 98.1 — walk in, sit down, it's free. Every August since 1935: the Old Fiddlers' Convention, the world's oldest and largest. Barr's Fiddle Shop is the clubhouse. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Floyd Country Store** (Floyd) — The Friday Night Jamboree: gospel at 6:30, then old-time and bluegrass with the whole town flatfooting on hardwood. No alcohol, all ages, candy counter open. One of the last fully intact Saturday-night... on a Friday. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) ### Day 3: Sat: The Fold Buffalo Mountain morning, then west along 58's curves to Maces Spring: A.P. Carter's store, the Carter Family Fold's Saturday show — acoustic, ageless, the actual source. Overnight Bristol, ears ringing politely. Highlights to consider: - **Barter Theatre** (Abingdon) — Opened 1933: Depression admission payable in produce — 'ham for Hamlet.' Gregory Peck, Ernest Borgnine and Patricia Neal apprenticed here. Still doing rep year-round across two stages. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Damascus** (Damascus) — 'Trail Town USA' — the Appalachian Trail walks straight down Main Street. Shuttle up Whitetop and coast 17 miles of the Virginia Creeper rail grade back to town. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Grayson Highlands Ponies** (Mouth of Wilson) — Wild ponies grazing mile-high balds beneath Mount Rogers, Virginia's rooftop. They will try to eat your sandwich; the views excuse them. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Galax: Rex Theater & Barr's Fiddles** (Galax) — Friday nights the Rex broadcasts 'Blue Ridge Backroads' live on WBRF 98.1 — walk in, sit down, it's free. Every August since 1935: the Old Fiddlers' Convention, the world's oldest and largest. Barr's Fiddle Shop is the clubhouse. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) - **Mabry Mill** (Meadows of Dan) — The most photographed spot on the entire Blue Ridge Parkway — gristmill, pond, and Sunday-afternoon old-time jams in season. Shared with the Parkway route; the atlas draws them side by side here. [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road) ## Practical planning Budget an average of about 73 miles per day across the whole trip, or roughly 1.6–2.4 hours behind the wheel at an assumed 30–45 mph back-roads pace. This is a planning estimate, not a measured time for each leg: transfer days can be longer and rest days shorter. Add meal stops, tours, ferries, traffic and hikes separately; use each day's navigation link for current driving estimates. ### Overnight bases - Day 1: Abingdon - Day 2: near Floyd, VA - Day 3: Bristol ### Best season & route notes - [The Crooked Road](https://dixieroadtrip.com/routes/crooked-road): The calendar IS the route: Floyd & Galax on Friday, Carter Fold & Savoy-style jams on Saturday — drive the gaps between. ## Frequently asked questions ### How many days and miles is Crooked Road Ramble? Crooked Road Ramble is a 3-day trip of about 220 miles. ### Where does Crooked Road Ramble start? It starts in Bristol (start Thursday). ### Which routes does Crooked Road Ramble chain together? It chains The Crooked Road. ### Where are the overnight bases on Crooked Road Ramble? Day 1: Abingdon; Day 2: near Floyd, VA; Day 3: Bristol. ## Related itineraries - [High Country & Mountain Music](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/highcountry-week) — 7 days, ~620 mi - [The Eastern Crescent](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/eastern-crescent) — 15 days, ~1800 mi - [The Whole Hog](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/whole-hog) — 28 days, ~4300 mi - [The Long Way to the Opry](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/music-epic) — 21 days, ~3000 mi - [Coal, Bluegrass & the Country Music Highway](https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/coal-and-country) — 6 days, ~620 mi --- Canonical URL: https://dixieroadtrip.com/trips/crooked-weekend Publisher: Dixie Media (Dixie Road Trip, https://dixieroadtrip.com/) Last updated: 2026-10-04