Southern Virginia: US-58 the Jeb Stuart Highway

I had heard about the Jeb Stuart Highway from other motorcycle riders as a great road for witnessing the beauty of Southern Virginia's rolling hills and country charm.

But up until now, I wasn't sure this road would fit into our plans as Sash and I were still open to other ideas.  But as the days ticked down, and we moved further and further east, it looked like Road Pickle was going to travel down the famed stretch of pavement.

It's hard to say when US-58 was initially routed.  Named for a famous Civil War General from Virginia, it took over what had been Virginia State Route 12 since 1918, and gradually extended further east and west, taking over other highways and roads.  Originally a two lane highway, it was widened to four lanes due to numerous accidents, including a very deadly stretch known as "The Suicide Strip", between Emporia and Suffolk.

Sash and I left Martinsville, VA on an overcast morning with a 50% chance of rain, increasing to 80% by the time we reached Norfolk in the early evening.  We fully expected to get drenched as the day went on.

But the temperatures remained in the mid-80s, producing a very thick, sweaty, humid afternoon.

To describe Southern Virginia as "green" is an understatement.  Being Southern California natives, Sash and I are used to vast landscapes of dead grass and dried tumbleweeds.  Our eyes are well acclimated at identifying the many shades of brown and gray that cover the South West for about 8 months out of the year.  But all the deep, rich shades of green in this part of the East Coast seemed to just melt together into an emerald wash as if I had jumped into a swirling Jacuzzi of spinach and pesto.

Albeit, Sash and I picked up the US-58 about 240 miles east of its beginnings at Harrogate, TN, leaving us only 265 miles to play with until we reached our destination at the water's edge in Norfolk, VA, there still seemed to be plenty to witness along the way.


US-58 is actually quite twisty where it starts in Harrogate and makes its way up and over the Appalachian Mountains. But where we got on the highway, just east of Patrick Springs, the topography flattened out, making the highway less twisted and more straight.

I wished we could have stopped in downtown Danville, because from our vantage point along the 58, I saw old brick buildings lined up together producing a mountain of reddish-brown right angles reaching over a canopy of green trees, suggesting some great old bars and plenty of old Civil War history.

But I knew the more time we spent stopping, the more rain we'd have to ride through later on.  We were trying to beat the storm system as we raced towards Norfolk.

Yet stopping was something we couldn't avoid.  With the route going well over 200 miles this afternoon, and Katie Scarlet having a top range of about 220 miles, somewhere we'd have to get gas, somewhere we'd have to eat lunch, and somewhere we'd have to pee.

Looking at the map, it didn't appear that South Boston was sizeable enough to produce any cool and unusual eats, but it just happened to coincide with the time of day where eating lunch had to happen soon.  Everywhere we looked we saw national chains.  Finally we relented to eating at a Shoney's, which is like an east coast version of Denny's.  But pulling into the parking lot, we noticed it was shuddered up and closed down.

But we lucked out and found a little, obscure Mexican restaurant behind it.

I had my doubts that Mexican food in Southern Virginia could be any good, particularly in a little town of only 8,000 race car fans.  I was expecting cheese sauce, frozen enchiladas, and watered down salsa.  But the food at Mexico Viejo Grill was actually pretty good, just as good as the stuff they make in San Diego.  For someone who grew up dining in the Mexican Restaurant capital of the world, I was impressed.

The Jeb Stuart Highway doesn't contain any sharp curves, at least from the point where we picked it up.  If anything, the hardest leaning we did were on curves with posted speeds of 55mph.  And there's a lot of straight stretches on the US-58 as well.  I imagine that it was the days when it was a just a two-lane highway that it gained its fame as a great motorcycle road.  By today, as a four lane road going the entire distance we rode, it's really like an Interstate, except with homes and storefronts right along side.

But it has its moments when it takes you through some very picturesque stretches, views of lakes and rivers, past decaying cemeteries, abandoned fuel stations, and tunnels of trees.  There are numerous historical markers that you could pull over and read if you wanted to.  Towns like Danville, Clarksville, and Emporia offer quaint little downtowns if you wanted to take the time to enjoy them.

Next time we come out this way, I'd like to take the US-58 from its start at Harrogate, TN and ride it up and over the Appalachias.

But like anything else, the US-58 still offers a enjoyable and rewarding experience if you wanted to make it such.  Somehow, due to the weather, Sash and I were caught up in the mindset that we had to get to Norfolk as fast as we could.

US-58 eastbound from Martinsville, VA

Eastbound and down, and a short time to get there...

Highway taking photos from his bike

Sash waiting for the light to change in Clarksville, VA

Finally starting to rain, just outside of Clarksville, VA

Carnitas in chile verde, at Mexico Viejo Grill, South Boston, VA

Sash and Highway riding in the rain, somewhere along the US-58

Sash riding with her Frog Togg Pants

Sash riding through the Downtown Tunnel, I-264, which goes under the Elizabeth River, between Portsmouth & Norfolk

Posted by Anonymous at 5:02 PM

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Labels: Virginia

Location: Norfolk, VA, USA