kolonial72
Well-known member
So I took a little trip recently. Rode from Lancaster, PA to Boone, North Carolina (505 miles) to meet my dad. Met him there on a Sunday afternoon at the Super 8. It started raining Sunday evening. Stayed in the freakin hotel room all night because of the rain. Oh, I was geared up, but the South Florida boy forgot to bring his warm clothes and rain gear. So we ordered in and catch some World Poker Tour from 2 years ago.
Next morning, it was still raining. Coming down pretty good, too. After breakfast I looked out the window and saw that the rain had subsided. I let the old man know, and we got ready to take off to Wally World for the purpose of – can you guess? – finding him some wet weather wear! Wouldn’t you know, we get outside and, damn, raining again. Rode to Wal-Mart anyway. Found him some warmer stuff and a rain coat that he could wear while riding. It had a big white ‘A’ on it for the Appalachian State University Mountaineers. Who, by the way, are the raining three-time Div I FCS National Champs. (Mounaineers hollah!)
Got back to the room, ordered in again, and let Pop warm up. His glove situation was still dicey and he had no rain gear for his legs. Legs that got soaked on the Wal-Mart trip. So I saw another break in the rain, and off we went to the closest MC store around (23 friggin miles?!?). Walked out of the hotel, and DAMMIT! It’s raining again. This was, in my opinion (and excellent wet weather gear), funny as hell. My dad, he was not so amused. I admit though, he toughed it out, and we found a nice setup for him to keep the drizzle off of him. Rode through an actual cloud on the way back to the room. Not fog, a cloud. On the road. That was a first for me. I think we were something like 3k and something feet above sea level.
Ordered in. Warmed up. Slept.
Next morning was absolutely beautiful. Looked like barely a wisp of cloud in the sky. With optimism and new unnecessary rain gear, my dad and I hit the road. Headed out to follow the Blue Ridge Parkway south toward 441. Just a few miles into it there was a detour that we had to use. It brought us back into Boone, right by the dang Wal-Mart, and within 2 miles of the hotel we were staying at. I was like, wtf? We had a good laugh about that.
Well enough of the blah blah, here’s some pics.
Here are two shots of our first stop. We tried to stop and get pics every 15 or 20 miles, but sometimes the riding was just to good.
For example, these roads exemplify the path of the BRP.
And here are some of the views.
We were by far not the only riders out on the BRP.
Here’s my dad along with his Harley. It’s slow, but then, so is he.
And just so you don’t think I walked the whole thing, here’s the Feej. Grandfather Mountain is in the background.
Black Mountains Overlook provided one of my favorite vistas of the trip.
Here is another favorite view, this one from Buck Springs Gap.
Right around Mount Mitchell State Park, about 15 miles east of Asheville, the road was closed. Apparently the retaining wall gave way and part of the road fell down the side of the mountain. It was after finding this out that I found a nifty site to check for road closures: clicky
Ah well, at least the detour took us to State Road 80 South. The first 5 miles of that road were twisty and turny, kinda like a series of hairpins. And those curves were banked, so you could really lean the Feej over! Was going a pretty good clip through some very tight turns. And to my surprise, my dad kept up (more or less)!
Some where in here, we stopped on the outskirts of Asheville. If you never have to visit Asheville, you’re probably going to be alright. Urban sprawl, not much else. And the Super 8 there sucked. But, they did have a Hooters. (My dumb *** forgot to bring the camera!)
There were so many creeks and streams like this one. Most of the pics of them did not come out well. I just wish I had a sound file to go along with this pic. It’s so peaceful near these streams.
The guy on the right is smiling ‘cause he is having a great time. The guy on the left is smiling ‘cause he is about to get $5 for posing for a picture.
After the brief stop in Cherokee, NC, we headed up 441. This was also a beautiful road, for the most part. There was some construction on 441, but once we cleared that, the road was a lot of fun. This road took us into Gatlinburg, TN. I really think that next time I take a trip down that way, I’ll stay in Gatlinburg for a day or two. Anyhow, the next morning found us packing up and hitting the road on our respective rides home. My dad had a short jaunt to his truck and trailer in Georgia. That’s right, his truck and trailer. Did I mention he rides a Harley? Me, I rode from Gatlinburg back to Lancaster, PA (580 miles). The last 1.5 hours of this leg was very wet – I almost outran the storm that was coming from the west! Total trip was almost 1600 miles. The Feej handled it admirably. My backside, a little less so. Had to stop every 140 to 150 miles, and not just for fuel. I like my Corbin Canyon Duo, I really do!
Thanks for reading my ride report. Hope you liked the pictures. (If you didn't like the pics, suck it.) I highly recommend the BRP, either in NC or Virginia. There are sooo many ltitle spots like Little Switzerland and Linville Falls. Enjoy!
Next morning, it was still raining. Coming down pretty good, too. After breakfast I looked out the window and saw that the rain had subsided. I let the old man know, and we got ready to take off to Wally World for the purpose of – can you guess? – finding him some wet weather wear! Wouldn’t you know, we get outside and, damn, raining again. Rode to Wal-Mart anyway. Found him some warmer stuff and a rain coat that he could wear while riding. It had a big white ‘A’ on it for the Appalachian State University Mountaineers. Who, by the way, are the raining three-time Div I FCS National Champs. (Mounaineers hollah!)
Got back to the room, ordered in again, and let Pop warm up. His glove situation was still dicey and he had no rain gear for his legs. Legs that got soaked on the Wal-Mart trip. So I saw another break in the rain, and off we went to the closest MC store around (23 friggin miles?!?). Walked out of the hotel, and DAMMIT! It’s raining again. This was, in my opinion (and excellent wet weather gear), funny as hell. My dad, he was not so amused. I admit though, he toughed it out, and we found a nice setup for him to keep the drizzle off of him. Rode through an actual cloud on the way back to the room. Not fog, a cloud. On the road. That was a first for me. I think we were something like 3k and something feet above sea level.
Ordered in. Warmed up. Slept.
Next morning was absolutely beautiful. Looked like barely a wisp of cloud in the sky. With optimism and new unnecessary rain gear, my dad and I hit the road. Headed out to follow the Blue Ridge Parkway south toward 441. Just a few miles into it there was a detour that we had to use. It brought us back into Boone, right by the dang Wal-Mart, and within 2 miles of the hotel we were staying at. I was like, wtf? We had a good laugh about that.
Well enough of the blah blah, here’s some pics.
Here are two shots of our first stop. We tried to stop and get pics every 15 or 20 miles, but sometimes the riding was just to good.
For example, these roads exemplify the path of the BRP.
And here are some of the views.
We were by far not the only riders out on the BRP.
Here’s my dad along with his Harley. It’s slow, but then, so is he.
And just so you don’t think I walked the whole thing, here’s the Feej. Grandfather Mountain is in the background.
Black Mountains Overlook provided one of my favorite vistas of the trip.
Here is another favorite view, this one from Buck Springs Gap.
Right around Mount Mitchell State Park, about 15 miles east of Asheville, the road was closed. Apparently the retaining wall gave way and part of the road fell down the side of the mountain. It was after finding this out that I found a nifty site to check for road closures: clicky
Ah well, at least the detour took us to State Road 80 South. The first 5 miles of that road were twisty and turny, kinda like a series of hairpins. And those curves were banked, so you could really lean the Feej over! Was going a pretty good clip through some very tight turns. And to my surprise, my dad kept up (more or less)!
Some where in here, we stopped on the outskirts of Asheville. If you never have to visit Asheville, you’re probably going to be alright. Urban sprawl, not much else. And the Super 8 there sucked. But, they did have a Hooters. (My dumb *** forgot to bring the camera!)
There were so many creeks and streams like this one. Most of the pics of them did not come out well. I just wish I had a sound file to go along with this pic. It’s so peaceful near these streams.
The guy on the right is smiling ‘cause he is having a great time. The guy on the left is smiling ‘cause he is about to get $5 for posing for a picture.
After the brief stop in Cherokee, NC, we headed up 441. This was also a beautiful road, for the most part. There was some construction on 441, but once we cleared that, the road was a lot of fun. This road took us into Gatlinburg, TN. I really think that next time I take a trip down that way, I’ll stay in Gatlinburg for a day or two. Anyhow, the next morning found us packing up and hitting the road on our respective rides home. My dad had a short jaunt to his truck and trailer in Georgia. That’s right, his truck and trailer. Did I mention he rides a Harley? Me, I rode from Gatlinburg back to Lancaster, PA (580 miles). The last 1.5 hours of this leg was very wet – I almost outran the storm that was coming from the west! Total trip was almost 1600 miles. The Feej handled it admirably. My backside, a little less so. Had to stop every 140 to 150 miles, and not just for fuel. I like my Corbin Canyon Duo, I really do!
Thanks for reading my ride report. Hope you liked the pictures. (If you didn't like the pics, suck it.) I highly recommend the BRP, either in NC or Virginia. There are sooo many ltitle spots like Little Switzerland and Linville Falls. Enjoy!
