Doughton Park is located on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the area of mileposts 239 to 245 in North Carolina.

A section of the Blue Ridge Parkway that was closed for a number of months for construction and improvements to the area was recently reopened.  This included Doughton Park which is one of the most beautiful and popular areas along the 469-mile parkway.

Doughton Park opened around July 15th (2011) and the timing could not have been better because one of the parkway’s most-spectacular flower displays was in progress.

I have traveled the parkway extensively and know just about every inch well.  But I have never noted the spectacular flower Blazing Star (Liatris Spicata) on any other section of the parkway other than a patch of ground in Doughton Park.  They bloom every year around mid-July to early August, and they are stunning.

Here’s a shot from this year’s display:

The stunning display of Blazing Star flowers can be seen every year in Doughton Park on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Here’s another rendition of the image that was digitally hand-brushed into an oil painting style:

Blazing Star flowers Doughton Park Blue Ridge Parkway oil painting style

Sorry, but as of this writing (August 2011) it’s a little too late to catch them this year.  But there’s always next year!

At present (August 2011) you can only access Doughton Park from Highway 18.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is closed after you travel north through the park and before you get to Highway 21.  That section is scheduled to reopen about Summer 2012.  But even though a trip to Doughton Park is currently a dead-end on the parkway, it is well worth the trip.  It’s a great place to hike with trails everywhere and a great place to bring the family for a picnic.