Laurel Highlands - The Most Scenic Drives in America: 120 Spectacular Road Trips - page 959

velopment.Totopoffyourjourneyintothepast,drivenorthwardtothere-createdColonial
settlementofOldBedfordVillage.OnceacrosstheClaycombCoveredBridge,you'llbein
a spot that seems drawn from revolutionary times.
The drive then heads west on Rte. 30, tracing the course of what was once a wagon
trailbetweentwoforts.Innsandtavernsfromthe1700sstillstandalongtheway;someare
spaced four miles apart—roughly the distance covered in a day's travel in that era.
In addition, Bedford also offers a covered bridge driving tour. The tour takes about 90
minutes and features 14 covered bridges in the area, plus the oft-talked-about but seldom
found Gravity Hill, an area that defies the laws of gravity. Word has it that at a designated
spotonthepremises,yourcarwillrolluphillwhenplacedinneutral.Formoreinformation
on this tour, contact the Bedford County Visitors Bureau.
2. Shawnee State Park
Farmhouses and weathered red barns dot the countryside as the drive approaches the tiny
town of Schellsburg. Turn southward there on Rte. 96 for a visit to Shawnee State Park,
which showcases the Laurel Highlands' year-round beauty. In spring the blossoms of
mountainlaurelsandrhododendronsdecoratethehills.Patchesofdaisiesspanglethefields
in summer; then the lushness slowly fades and the trees take on autumn hues. With the on-
set of winter, heavy snowfalls wrap the entire region in a white embrace and a churchlike
hush broken only by the occasional calls of ravens and owls.
Just west of Schellsburg a lonely stretch of Rte. 30 leads to one of this area's earliest
houses of worship. Built in 1806, the log-and-mortar church crowns a hill that overlooks a
small, tidy cemetery.
3. Bald Knob Summit
Rte. 30 zips past more farmland, where cows graze in green pastures spotted with looking-
glass ponds. Charming farm lanes branch off from the highway, only to disappear behind
tanglesofwildrosesandhoneysuckle.Manyofthesideroadsribbondowntosecretworlds
where small covered bridges span gurgling streams. The highway itself begins a slow curl
to Bald Knob Summit. On the way, stop by the old Ship Hotel, where a viewpoint atop an
isolated crest looks to the far-off forests and mountains of both Maryland and West Virgin-
ia.