Shelton Sprouse and Chris Critzer, both Crozet natives, built the rock base for the Claudius Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel sign at the tunnel’s Afton entrance. Sprouse, a stonemason who has worked in the area for decades, said Wayne Nolde of the Blue Ridge Tunnel Board, conceived of the design and asked them to construct it. “Every one of the stones was found here, right on the site,” Sprouse said. The tunnel, which quickly became a popular tourist attraction, is located at the convergence of the southern entrance of Shenandoah National/ Park’s Skyline Drive, the northern entrance of the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Appalachian Trail, and U. S. Bicycle Route 76, at 215 Afton Depot Lane.
