My husband's first inclination was to take 81 to 75. That route would take them through Briston VA/TN. My husband's first job out of college was at the newspaper there and that's where we were living when we got married. We left in '76 and have never been back. So he was really kind of looking forward to stopping there for lunch and seeing whether anything still looked familiar after all these years.

But today he realized that they could take 77 to 85 which would take them through both the Carolinas. That would allow my son to add NC and both of them to SC, one of the five states I've never been in! (Hey, I'll be in Paris at the time, how can I begrudge them SC? Especially considering that they won't be going to Charleston, which is what I really want to see in SC!)

But they're also wondering which route would be more scenic. We know that 81 would take them past some of the tallest peaks in VA. How scenic would the 77 to 85 route be?

Thanks for any input!

77 to 85 would be scenic, but once you get to the middle of N.C. it's not that great (Statesville to Charlotte area). Plus the traffic. UGH!

Why don't you take 77S - 81S - 26E (near Kingsport TN) - US25 to Greenville SC - 85S to Atlanta.

This will take you through the rolling hills of Southwest Virginia and then through the Asheville area. The Unaka mountains in Tennessee and going into Asheville are some of the prettiest Interstate roads you'll find.

You could also take 64W from Charleston to US 23S at Ashland, drive through Eastern Kentucky and Virginia. US23 hooks up with I26 in Tennessee. 23 is a nice four-lane highway through Kentucky, and there's little traffic.

Looks like you have a lot of options!

OK, I totally skipped over the fact that you lived in Bristol for a while. Definitely take the I-26 route. You can hit Bristol to shop, eat, and look around (State Street has a lot of restaurants and antique stores). Then you can take US 11E from Bristol to Johnson City and catch I-26 there.

Thank you for your very detailed, helpful response, xrae! That sounds like it might be a good option for them.

We drive both of those routes on our north/south trips, and I agree with xrae. There are some scenic stretches if you go 77/85, but 81 is far nicer.

Thanks, Barbara! I showed my husband xrae's suggestions, he looked at the map and thinks it's a very good route. We both really like the fact that they'd be able to take in both Bristol and the Carolina's. Thanks again, xrae!