Planning Assistance Please - October 2017 East Coast(ish)

[Tyler]

I'm in the throes of putting together a one-month road trip in between EOM in Wytheville, VA and SFO in Jemison, AL. I have a bunch of friends out on that side of the US and would like to visit them along the way plus ride some really cool roads and see some really cool things! I have a very rough plan to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway and then head south to Beaufort. From Beaufort, I'm looking at heading for New Orleans/Prairieville/Lafayette, up to the Ozarks and some riding in Arkansas, and then over to Jemison.

I'll most likely ship the bike out and back home for a variety of reasons. If anyone has a recommendation for bike shipper, please feel free to share. I've found a couple of names via Google search but would like recent personal experience recommendations.

Not being familiar with these areas, I look to those who are familiar with them and would love to entertain your suggestions (for routes!! :lol: )! Always open to riding along with friends as well. B)

 

[Redfish Hunter]

Prairieville? Where the Hell is Prairieville? And WHY would you want to go there?

We can coordinate dates and activities. Depending on how long you will be here I will need to do some planning and line up some vacation.

 

[RossKean]

I assume you are staying south-ish? New England and upstate New York can be pretty fantastic that time of year. Fall colors, warm-ish days and cool nights. Tourist traffic low during the week but spikes on weekends during the peak of leaf-peeping season. I can't help a lot with the more southern routes.

 

[hppants]

Looking forward to this. I need to know when so I can block off some days. I'm on a cruise with my wife 10/19-10/28. Hope you can work around that.

Bring your appetite. JSNS!!!

 

[FJRay]

On your shipping, I've used motorcycleshippers.com twice with good results. You book everything on line and get a price instantly. With any shipper allow plenty of time because they wait until they have enough to make a profitable load.

 

[Tyler]

On your shipping, I've used motorcycleshippers.com twice with good results. You book everything on line and get a price instantly. With any shipper allow plenty of time because they wait until they have enough to make a profitable load.

I'm banking two weeks... I think that will be enough time?

 

[FJRay]

I shipped my red wing to Minn. And it took a couple weeks. I shipped the white one from Arkansas and it took a month.

 

[Blind Squirrel]

On your shipping, I've used motorcycleshippers.com twice with good results. You book everything on line and get a price instantly. With any shipper allow plenty of time because they wait until they have enough to make a profitable load.

I'm banking two weeks... I think that will be enough time?

No. You better plan on 3-4 weeks. I have shipped my bike multiple times, and what they initially promise vs. what they actually deliver always vary, with it being longer than they estimate. Also, while they all say "door-to-door" pickup and drop off, the driver always tries to get you to bring the bike somewhere that is more convenient for them, as well as trying to get the person accepting the bike to come to a convenient location for the driver.

Carefully read the terms of haulers. Some haulers do not offer door-to-door. With some haulers you have to take it to, and pick it up from a hub. If you are not at the pick up hub at the designated time they will start charging you storage fees which can add up fast.

Also, I will caution you about Haulbikes.com. I used them twice with no problems. The last time I shipped my bike with them, there were weather issues that kept the driver from picking up the bike on the scheduled date. Despite it being the driver who waived off, I was charged a $100 fee for not being available for the pick up. Multiple emails and calls fell on deaf ears. I will NOT use haulbikes.com again.

If you are a member of the AMA, they have an agreement with a shipper that will give you a discount. Check the AMA site for details.

*EDIT* Here is the AMA shipping info:

Federal uncrated motorcycle transportIn the United States, call Federal Companies, an agent for Specialized Transportation Inc., at (877) 518-7376. To get your discount, be sure to have your AMA number handy. Motorcycle Express also offers temporary international insurance.

https://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/Riding/Story/member-discounts

 

[Tyler]

Okay so here's the outline of my trip... if any of you are in any of the vicinities, let me know and maybe we can meet up to share a few (s)miles, a meal, or an adult beverage!

9/26- Baltimore, MD to King George, VA
9/28 – King George, VA to Wytheville, VA
9/29-9/30 – day rides out of Wytheville (EOM)
10/1 – Wytheville,VA to Buckhorn, KY
10/2 – Buckhorn, KY to Maggie Valley, NC
10/3 – Maggie Valley, NC to Mountain City, TN
10/4 – Mountain City – Lewisburg, WV
10/5 – Lewisburg, WV to Lyndhurst, VA
10/6 – day of rest, meet up with Lydia
10/7 – Lyndhurst, VA to W. Jefferson, NC (BRP)
10/8 – W. Jefferson, NC to Stecoah, NC
10/9 – local day ride (Dragon, Smoky Mountains)
10/10 – Stecoah, NC to Dillard, GA
10/11 – Dillard, GA to Beaufort, SC
10/12 – Beaufort, SC to Savannah, GA
10/13 – Savannah, GA to Crawfordville,FL
10/14 – Crawfordville, FL to Destin, FL
10/15-10/16 – NOLA
10/17-10/19 – Prairieville, LA
10/20 – Prairieville, LA to Arkadelphia, AR
10/21 – Arkadelphia, AR to Eureka Springs, AR
10/22 – Eureka Springs, AR to Jasper, AR
10/23 – day ride in the area to see waterfalls and such
10/24 – Jasper, AR to Helena-W. Helena, AR
10/25 – Helena-W. Helena, AR – Jemison
10/26-10/30 – day rides around the Jemison area (SFO)
10/31 – fly home and pass out!!