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Explore the weird (road)side of the State Crossings region

November 12, 2019 by Mason Adams

The communities along the Dan River in North Carolina and Virginia are home to thrilling outdoor recreation, delicious food and great shopping. But if you’re looking for something a little more unusual along the roadside, we’ve got that covered too.

From the pages of “Weird Virginia” and the Roadside America website, we compiled a few suggestions for a different kind of destination.

If you’re a visitor, add a few of these to your itinerary for a more memorable trip. If you’re a local, you might know about these already — but if you didn’t, you do now.

Danville, Virginia: Gravity-defying road

“Weird Virginia” claims motorists on Oak Hill Road in Danville will inexplicably be pulled toward a house once occupied by a witch. Co-author Ryan Doan writes that he found Gravity Hill. Not only that, but he says his rental car was pulled uphill while in neutral.

Hunting fairy stones at Fairy Stone State Park.

Photo courtesy of Virginia State Parks via Flickr

Fairy Stone State Park, Virginia: Fairy crosses

Fairy stones are still found in and around the Fairy Stone Park. The stones are staurolite crystals, but folklore grants them talismanic power.

Germanton, North Carolina: Bigfoot walking a pig

In front of Creekside Supply, an imaginative soul has paired mass-produced statues of Bigfoot, a pig and more recently a deer. Yep: Bigfoot takes a pig for a walk.

Tanks on display at the tank museum in Danville, Virginia

Photo courtesy of Dan Drake via Flickr

Danville, Virginia: The Tank Museum

What’s better than a tank? A bunch of tanks, collected for your viewing pleasure in a museum in Danville.

King, North Carolina: Giant milkshake

A custom-made, 30-foot milkshake cup with two red straws marks the entrance to a 1940s-style Dairi-O restaurant.

The wedding cake house in Martinsville, Virginia.

Photo courtesy of David Hoffman via Flickr

Martinsville, Virginia: Wedding-cake house

The house at 308 Starling Avenue in Martinsville is beautiful and yet also triggers a certain hunger. That’s because the house, built by George “Cap’n Til” Lester, looks like a giant wedding cake.

Eden, North Carolina: Big milk carton on a pole

At the Vernon Family Dairy, find a large “Pet” milk carton, old-school style, atop a pole out front.

Bassett, Virginia: Haunted junkyard

People have talked for years about hauntings at an old salvage yard. They say that on the right night you can see headlights of abandoned cars flashing. Mechanical malfunctions, the spirits of those killed in car wrecks, or something else?

You decide.

For more cool, hidden, and unusual things to do in the Dan River region, check out Atlas Obscura’s lists for North Carolina and Virginia.

More to explore in the State Crossings

Life is great on U.S. 58

Fishing the Dan River, from brookies to striped bass

Plan a packed weekend in Patrick County, where the Blue Ridge meets the Piedmont

The Dan River region’s moonshine heritage lives on in its modern-day distilleries

VIRginia International Raceway’s epic comeback story

Enjoy an epic weekend in Hanging Rock State Park

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