Washington DC to Asheville
 

I will be staying in Washington DC 2 nights with my 21 yr old son then heading to Asheville NC for 2 nights. Any suggestions for the best route? We will spend one night somewhere in between the two. Have thought of WDC to Monticello then on to spend the night in Lexington. Spend next day doing part of the Blue Ridge Parkway. I am very interested in scenic drives, some light hiking if available on the way, historic areas (son is history major). Also, a friend (who is out of town, so I can't ask her) mentioned a living history farm, where they had examples of historic Irish, Scottish & English farms then how the Colonial Americans used the best of the three to do farming. Said it was fascinating. Any help is much appreciated.
Thanks

It is the Frontier culture Museum in Staunton, easy on-off I-81. I have been there with a school group, it is a terrific place!
http://www.frontiermuseum.org/

With no offense to my hometown, have you considered skipping Asheville (long drive) and staying near DC? Colonial Williamsburg comes to mind.

If you will be in Asheville, I think the Biltmore House would meet your needs. I would suggest driving straight to Asheville (about 8 hours). This will give you more time to explore the Biltmore Estate and Asheville (search for posts by HauntedHeadNC for some great descriptions of Asheville).
I would also recommend searching for "Urban Trail" and "Asheville" on the web.

If you would still like to do some hiking, the Parkway is close to Asheville, as well as the NC Arboretum, Pisgah National Forest, etc.

Mike Honeycutt

Thanks Mike,
I am headed to New Orleans after Asheville. I think I will look at this as a "scouting" trip for a future visit with my husband, as I am not doing justice to any of the places I will be stopping at on my 2 week road trip.

Mike Honeycutt's right about the Biltmore Estate, which is a fascinating plunge into the world of the Gilded Age.

If you look up any of my other posts, you'll know I also highly recommend spending a lot of time in downtown Asheville, which boasts amazing historic architecture. Some of it, including the Basilica of St. Lawrence, was constructed by the architects who had originally worked on Biltmore -- so basically, after finishing Vanderbilt's palace, they ran amok downtown, and thus downtown Asheville is the architectural treasure it is. Check it out!