Take Me Home, Country Roads - West Virginia

[ionbeam]

I started the song....

I could not get that song out of my head all weekend... it played over and over and over... it was nice to hear Mr. Denver sing it finally.

Awesome Tyler!! I went to your Smug mug site. Great pics!

Awesome Tyler!! Great pics! Looking forward to The Rest of the Story

That song you couldn't get out of your head -- is called an earworm (or brainworm). The alleged cure is chewing gum. I haven't had an earworm since I read about the gum so I don't yet know if it works.

 

[Tyler]

Awesome Tyler!! Great pics! Looking forward to The Rest of the Story

That song you couldn't get out of your head -- is called an earworm (or brainworm). The alleged cure is chewing gum. I haven't had an earworm since I read about the gum so I don't yet know if it works.

Chewing gum, huh? I'll have to give that a try the next time I have a pesky earworm burning in my brain!

 

[Tyler]

Arriving at the breakfast room, there was much grumbling about the weather... rain, they said... rain all day... what are we to do?!? I had spoken with Bob / Intech / FYB the evening before and asked him which route he was going to take... he said, "I don't need no steenking route... this is my backyard!!" When I asked him about the weather, he said we'd see which was the storm was going and go the other way... sounded good to me... I didn't fly clear across the country to sit in a motel room all weekend... so we met up with some kindred spirits at the front of the hotel, all eager-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready for a day of (s)miles... we deemed Bob the Pied Piper of EOM... if he called it, they would come... B)

Scott / burnspot

El Toro Joe was happy to see me...

TomInCA who isn't in CA anymore but was in WV for EOM!

Who's a big weenie for not going riding today??

 

[Tyler]

Here is the route we took...

The storm was heading south so we headed north... a few sprinkles on the way out but clear and dry for pretty much the entire day until we got back to Lewisburg... we started north on 219 which goes through farmlands...

And then dives into forested twists and turns...

From 219, we cut over on 39 to 150 aka Highland Scenic Hwy... and it was scenic for sure... the overcast skies made a bit of a challenge to get the true fall colors but they were gorgeous...

As we motored along, we passed through areas with lots of leaf fall... I tried to catch the moment of riding along and all the leaves just swirling around us as we went by them... but just couldn't quite get it so you'll have to imagine it...

 

[Tyler]

We pulled into the first scenic overlook and just enjoyed the moment and each others company...

Left to right - Tom / TomInCA, Lewis / lo buck, Vic / majicmaker, Bob / Intech, Scott / burnspot

The Yellow Submarine was the right color to go with all the fall foliage...

Fall and FJRs go well together too...

Scott and Bob did their happy dance...

 

[Tyler]

I had mentioned to Bob that there had been a lot of moments that I wished I could've stopped to catch some photos but I didn't want to hold the group up... and he told me he came out here for me because he knew I hadn't been here before and how much I loved to capture the moment... he said to do my thing and they'd wait and if folks got impatient, they were welcome to go on ahead... honestly, if I'd stopped for every photo opportunity, I'd still be out there but I was grateful to my riding companions for their understanding and patience... so off we went!!

You can see Tom was entertaining his photo bug along the way too...

And then a little side road caught my eye so off I went to check it out... view from 150...

I wondered where the road led but didn't have the time to follow it the whole way... it was so peaceful and I took a moment to just drink it all in...

Back out on 150, I came across this vista... the colors don't pop as much in the photo as they did in real time but it took my breath away...

And then a little farther away... sigh...

I found our merry band waiting somewhat patiently for me at the last turnout at the end of 150... thanks, gents!!

Vic's friend, Bill, had come along for the ride and I think he was enjoying the day too...

Tom ready to go...

And away we went!!

But wait, there's more... B)

 

[clocklaw]

Funny, this one is the one that kept playing over and over for me.....https://youtu.be/iGK0xWddnNk

I could not get that song out of my head all weekend... it played over and over and over... it was nice to hear Mr. Denver sing it finally.

 

[Tyler]

Funny, this one is the one that kept playing over and over for me.....https://youtu.be/iGK0xWddnNk

I could not get that song out of my head all weekend... it played over and over and over... it was nice to hear Mr. Denver sing it finally.

Ooooo... that's a good one too... just added to my road music list... B)

 

[Panman]

I'm JEALOUS Tyler, you are making all the rides. Nice Pic's.

 

[Tyler]

From there, we hooked back up on 219...

With a short stop for roadwork...

Not a bad view to spend a few minutes...

Lots and lots of cool looking barns in the countryside... always makes me think of Andrew / OrangevaleFJR and his penchant for them and the stories they might tell...

We had stopped in Big Spring so I could gas up and I suggested to Bob that we get some sammiches for lunch instead of trying to find a lunch location that could handle a large group like ours... Subway to the rescue! While we were waiting for everyone to get their food, I spied this lovely little church across the way nestled in the woods...

And headed up to Snowshoe Mountain Resort for a brief look see around... this was the road going up... lots of squiggly line signs...

And squiggly roads...

On top of old Snowshoe...

The VA boys were feeling might fine...

Vic and I have been friends for a long time both on the forum and FB... it was such a joy to finally meet in person... he is as cool a cat as I thought he would be...

Bob was rarin' to go so he didn't let us dally for very long at this stop...

Heading out of the parking lot... no place for these heathens...

 

[Tyler]

Going down the backside of Snowshoe was a series of tight hairpin turns that kept everyone on their toes...

And then the unthinkable happened... the battery on my small camera died because I had been so snap happy along the way... and I forgot my spare battery... GAH!!! We were headed to Cass to catch the steam train and once the group had settled, I told Bob I was gonna go back and get a couple of pics of the road we had just come down because it was gorgeous! So back up I went...

Can you hear the pin-drop silence? Can you smell the scent of the slightly damp forest? Can you feel the sense of amazement for the world around you? I sure as hell did...

I just stood there for a few minutes and breathed in that air and just... existed... and felt gratitude for being alive, being with friends, being in the world... I guess just being... we talk about the "Now"... and I was definitely in that place which is really the only place any of us can be... we get so sidetracked with "Life" that we sometimes forget "Now"... and that's what riding reminds me of... it takes me away from worries about work or finances or relationships... it takes me to "Now" and it is a good place to be...

Still more to come!

 

[Bugnatr]

Good stuff T., seems you have more fall color over last year at the same time when I was there.

 

[LKLD]

Those roads look sexy! :grin:

 

[majicmaker]

Love them so far, Tyler. It was great to see you in action making your own Majic. Great pictures. I was happy as hell to finally meet you too.

Clocklaw, I prefer John Denver's Take Me Home Country Roads for this thread. I start playing it for each of Tyler's installments. BUT!! I have to admit, I worshiped the dirt on James Taylor's shoes back in the day. Not one bad song in that man's total body of work. Excuse me while I break some of his stuff out and sip on some Gran Anejo.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Simply awesome!

--G

 

[Frushlorton]

Awesome Tyler. Can't wait for more. Your thoughtfulness is very much appreciated. Glad to finally meet you and hope to see you again soon.

 

[Mihalis fjr]

 

[FredandJeannesRacer]

Jeanne and I were happy to meet you.

Your expertise with a camera is awesome.

Until the next time, safe rides.

 

[Tyler]

I realized my "Now" was getting a little long so I hightailed it back to Cass...

Fall was falling all around...

And found the boyz meandering about the parking lot waiting for their train to come in...

Much curiosity and discussion about the Yellow Submarine...

Bobsy twins...

This gent from the other group that was staying at our hotel, MSTA, happened to be in the same place at the same time and came over to say hi and introduce himself... Tom, being the friendly sort, gave him the 1-fingered salute...

The train station waiting for its beast to come back to the roost...

 

[Tyler]

And then we heard the loud blast of the train from about a mile away... it was a mighty fine specimen as it belched smoke and rolled slowly in to the station...

The boys were drawn to it like flies to... well, you get the idea...

The Virginia boys liked it...

Lewis liked it but I think was ready to get back on the road..

Either that or he wanted to take a moto nap...

While they ogled the big toy, I ogled a little bit of nature nearby...