 SR 253 curves southwest and crosses the North River into the village of Port Republic, then curves back southeast and exits the village by crossing the South River just west of the confluence of the two rivers to form the South Fork Shenandoah River.SR 253 has an intersection with the northern end of SR 825 (South River Road) and a level crossing of Norfolk Southern Railway's Roanoke District before reaching its eastern terminus at US 340 (East Side Highway); Port Republic Road continues as SR 659.The first portion of Port Republic Road to become a part of the state highway system was from Main Street (now SR 605) in Port Republic north to Pineville Road (now SR 672).