The treasure hunt is on!
Fun Fact: In the 1800s, adventurer Thomas Beale penned 3 ciphers disclosing the location of treasure he supposedly buried in Bedford County, but 2 of his ciphers remain unsolved.
Maybe the Beale Ciphers are a hoax or maybe Bedford County conceals a vast fortune. Nonetheless, we are far richer for having discovered some of Bedford County’s treasures for ourselves over a long weekend.
If you haven’t heard about the Beale Ciphers or if you just need a refresher on some of the details, YouTube’s The Infographics Show provides an entertaining synopsis.
Bedford County Rates 5 out of 5 Stars⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
We rated our impressions of Bedford County below. Ratings are based on diversity and quality of each category.
- Accommodations⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Dog Friendly⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- History⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Recreation⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Restaurants⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Sightseeing⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Precious Metals
The National D-Day Memorial commemorates the events and sacrifices of June 6, 1944 when Allied Forces invaded the beaches of Normandy by land, air, and sea in Operation Overlord.
‘D-Day’ is a general term and refers to the first day of this months-long operation. By the end of that initial day, the Allies had established a foothold in Normandy. D-Day did not effectively end the war, but the advancement marked the beginning of the end.
We took a self-guided tour of the National D-Day Memorial. Later, I had several aHA! moments about its design while watching this video by YouTube’s TRVLN thru channel.
“U.S. code breakers and the information they uncovered about Hitler’s fortifications were crucial in the decision to begin the assault on the beaches of Normandy on the northwestern coast. The tricks the code breakers used to make Hitler believe the main assault would come elsewhere saved thousands of lives.” (an excerpt from Code Girls by Liza Mundy)
Code Girls tells the story of the American women code breakers of World War II, including Dorothy Braydon Bruce, a native of Lynchburg, Bedford’s neighboring city.
Next door, the Bedford Area Welcome Center features a small scale replica of the 9-acre National D-Day Memorial. I found it helpful to review this model both before and after visiting the memorial.
Bedford County lost a greater proportion of its sons on D-Day than any other U.S. community. For that reason, Congress selected Bedford County as the location for the National D-Day Memorial.
Except for service animals, dogs are not allowed at the National D-Day Memorial but can stay at Chips’ Bunker (named after an Army service dog) while their humans tour the memorial.
Chips, a German Shepherd-Husky mix from Pleasantville, New York, protected his platoon during a beach landing in 1943. Chips ran into an enemy machine gun nest, attacked a soldier, and pulled the gun from the mount. Chips survived the war, returned to his home in New York and received a posthumous award for his bravery in 2018.
This war hero also inspired a book about his life as well as a Disney movie.
Priceless Gem
The Bedford Boys Tribute Center, located in the former Green’s Drugstore, pays homage to the 38 young men from Bedford County who were among the first to land upon the shores of Normandy on D-Day. Of these 38 soldiers, 19 did not return.
Before the war, Green’s Drugstore served the Bedford Boys at its soda fountain.
After D-Day, Green’s Drugstore received the heartbreaking news about the Bedford Boys on its telegraph.
The Bedford Boys Tribute Center opened in 2019 when Ken and Linda Parker moved to Bedford from Oklahoma City with the sole purpose of paying tribute to the Bedford Boys.
The Parker’s life changing decision, decades in the making, began when Linda visited the beaches of Normandy as a teenager. Greatly affected by the experience, she planned to return with Ken in 2019 for the 75th anniversary of D-Day.
In preparation for the trip, Ken and Linda read Alex Kershaw’s The Bedford Boys: One American Town’s Ultimate D-Day Sacrifice.
This book made it abundantly clear to both Ken and Linda that someone needed to formally honor the Bedford Boys in their own hometown. The Parkers also realized that they were just the people to do this.
Upon arriving in Bedford, the Parkers transformed the iconic Green’s Drugstore into a museum complete with an impressive cache of artifacts, many provided by relatives of the Bedford Boys.
These personal items combined with the extensive knowledge and dedication of the Parkers breathes life into the stories of the Bedford Boys. During our tour, I felt like Linda was telling me about her own kids.
Thank you, Ken and Linda Parker, for your tireless dedication to the Bedford Boys.
Cultured Pearls
Considered Thomas Jefferson’s most mature architectural masterpiece, Jefferson designed Poplar Forest as his personal retreat and he often visited for several months out of the year.
Today, the fully restored Poplar Forest provides insight into another era. On-site archaeological digs continue to turn up clues about the lives of the enslaved and the Native Americans who previously inhabited the surrounding land.
Poplar Forest welcomes Fido to tour its grounds and to visit the on-site kennel in lieu of visiting the buildings.
Jewel in the Crown
Bring your boat, your jet ski, your fishing gear, and definitely bring Fido, because Bedford County is home to Smith Mountain Lake, aka Jewel of the Blue Ridge Mountains. One of the biggest lakes in Virginia, Smith Mountain Lake features 500 miles of shoreline along its 40-mile length.
No boat? No problem. You can rent anything from a kayak to a houseboat at Smith Mountain Lake.
“The lake is a popular spot for every watersport imaginable from power boating, canoeing, and kayaking to wakeboarding, waterskiing, and jet skiing. With summer water temperatures averaging in the 70-degree range, it’s always an inviting place to dive in and go for a swim. For the ardent anglers, the lake is stocked with several species of freshwater fish. There are striped, smallmouth, largemouth, and black bass, as well as crappie, catfish, muskellunge, and walleye.” (SouthernLiving.com)
Smith Mountain Lake State Park, located on the lake’s north shore, offers hiking and biking trails, campsites, cabins, a visitor center and and amphitheater.
Fido is welcome at Smith Mountain Lake State Park, but there are a few rules besides Sit & Stay. Be sure to read Virginia State Park’s pet policy.
Pot of Gold
Mountain views make driving through Bedford County a joyful experience.
The Appalachian Trail, accessible along the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway, intersects with the Peaks of Otter Hiking Trails in Bedford County.
Shortly before our Bedford County hiking adventure, I injured my left Achilles tendon and ended up in an orthopedic boot.
Due to my injury, we lack firsthand knowledge about local hiking. Fortunately, YouTube features some bombastic Bedford County hiking videos with invaluable information about hiking the 3 Peaks of Otter. For example, Harkening Hill appears to be a safe hike to take with Fido (and I’m glad we didn’t attempt hikes of Sharp Top and Flat Top with 3 leashed dogs).
Harkening Hill (3,375 feet)
Sharp Top (3,875 feet)
Flat Top (4,004 feet)
Coin of the Realm
Thanks to the Great Virginia Waterfall Trail we learned where to find Bedford County’s roadside waterfall, located along Overstreet Creek Road.
Pieces of Eight
If you love Virginia’s LOVEworks, then you will hit the jackpot in Bedford County.
Know Before You Go
The Netflix documentary Till Murder Do Us Part: Soering vs. Haysom tells the story of an infamous Bedford County murder and its complex aftermath.
Before your trip:
- Download Bedford County onto your Google Maps and print out this county map. We lost signal while we were driving around.
- Check out destinationbedfordva.com for trip ideas, events, restaurants, and accommodations.
- See BringFido.com for local dog friendly options and take our advice to reserve our favorite local dog friendly home with a fence.
Upon your arrival,
- Swing by the Bedford Area Welcome Center, 816 Burks Hill Road, Bedford.
- Purchase the combo ticket, providing entry at a reduced rate to both the National D-Day Memorial and Poplar Forest.
Road Trip Reads
These books, all available at Audible, for easy road trip listening, provide more context on Bedford County’s link to D-Day and the local tales of buried treasure.
Roving through Virginia with Rover 
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