'America’s favorite drive' is celebrating its 75th anniversary.

SCENIC JOURNEY: 469 MILES OF BEAUTY

(By Bill Lohmann, MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE) - Before it officially became the Blue Ridge Parkway, the ribbon of road along the crest of the mountains through Virginia and North Carolina was called the Appalachian Scenic Highway.

Or, more simply, The Scenic.

That designation has long since changed, but the beauty that inspired the earlier name remains.

"It is a marvelous paved path along which the spirit of any age or condition can soar," said Tim Pegram, a retired National Park Service ranger who was the first person known to have backpacked the entire length of the parkway. He then wrote a book about the experience, 'The Blue Ridge Parkway by Foot'.