I left the North Carolina mountains dark and early, and passed over Carver’s Gap near Roan Mountain right around sunrise:

Carver's Gap

Sun almost up

I passed through a little bit of Tennessee, then up through Bristol into Virginia.  At exit 39 on I81, a tornado had passed through and pretty much leveled everything within sight of the exit (luckily, it wasn’t a densely civilized area).  There was a rather large tree in the median with all of its roots, but no dirt.  And the trees left standing were completely stripped of leaves.

The rest of the trip through Virginia was exceedingly pretty.  I81 has to be one of the most scenic interstate corridors.

Between Lexington and Staunton

Between Staunton and Harrisonburg

Once I got past Harrisonburg, the traffic picked up pretty much the rest of the drive to Fairfax, so I wasn’t able to get more pictures.  But it was a gorgeous day with sun and clouds and lots of green!