We don’t get to do it as often as we might like, but Kathy & I enjoy taking day trips to places that are just an hour or two from home. We visited West Jefferson, NC a few weeks ago for the first time in several years, having previously visited to photograph the town for a magazine assignment.

West Jefferson is a nice mountain town, just busy enough to not be considered “sleepy,” but not as zoo-crazy as a place like Boone or Blowing Rock.  Needless to say, that was one of the things we remembered about West Jefferson, and was one of the reasons we wanted to go back.

One of the notable things about West Jefferson is all of the murals on the sides of the buildings.  The scenes are varied, but generally reflect the history of the town or are some kind of artistic or humanitarian expression.  There are a number of interesting shops and art galleries, and even a photography gallery.

I naturally had my camera with me, and while many of my photos would not be considered “Chamber of Commerce” shots, I had fun finding the things I like to find and capturing them with my camera.

We found it an interesting place to spend the day, and ended up coming home via the Blue Ridge Parkway which crosses nearby.  It was a nice place to visit and one we hope to return to again soon.