Where to buy a bag of chips or a live chicken on your next road trip
When the urge to shop or snack hits you in the middle of your scenic drive on the Snickersville Turnpike, there’s one place to go. Bluemont General Store serves up just about anything you can think of: pizza, ice cream, oysters, books, beans, hardware, and even jingle bells. The selection prioritizes freshness and local connection, with Angus beef from grass-fed livestock raised in nearby pastures of Loudoun County farmland and farm-fresh eggs from free-range chickens in Purcellville. And it doesn’t stop there—at Bluemont General, you can also buy the laying hens, peeps, and roosters, too.
The shop’s cottage-esque exterior of classic blue clapboard and red shutters beckons explorers touring this picturesque part of the state, whether they’re soaking up the area’s rural beauty or headed for the iconic vistas found at Snickers Gap in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Signs welcome visitors and reveal what’s on tap for the day—from hot coffee, antiques, conversation, guineas and keets, among other whimsical treasures. (Guineas and keets being the spotted, chicken-like fowl and their young, marketed by Bluemont General as the best security system and tick annihilators money can buy.)
The store is marked by its authenticity and genuine small-town character. It supplies locals and tourists alike with everything they need, plus all sorts of items they didn’t know they needed. While it’s not the most convenient convenience store, that’s part of the draw. After all, what’s better than a single store stocked with everything?
After stopping by for a fix of homemade chocolate, hand-dipped ice cream, or fresh sandwiches, you can follow the Snickersville Turnpike through landmark sites of the region, including the historic Hibbs Bridge and Civil War battle grounds. But if the pastoral charm at Bluemont General is what you’re after, that’s okay, too. Pick up a newspaper or a book, lounge under the 100-year-old maple tree out front, and soak in the sun and country. BluemontStore.com
This article originally appeared in the Best of Virginia 2024 issue.
