You'll get your first good views of the mountains around Pratts and Rochelle. At Somerset you may notice some old steam-driven tractors and a sawmill. This little crossroads was once a significant railhead for logging operations in the mountains 20 or more miles to the west. From here on, the farms are smaller and the few large ones unpretentious. They raise things to eat, not to ride.
Traffic thins out.
The ribbon road winds and undulates over the countryside. The dark Blue Ridge Mountains lie silhouetted against pale blue sky. North of Madison, you enter what is known locally at the F.T. Valley. Here begin the best views of the morning side of the mountains. Lutheran church in the South.