10 horsepower, 5 days and no plan.

[klaviator]

OK, the title is not completely correct.  It's actually 10.3 horsepower and I do have somewhat of a plan.  I'll be spending 5 days riding the mountains of TN and NC.  Where I will be riding is still to be decided except for Sunday when I plan on riding Deal's Gap and probably the Skyway before heading home.  I will ride some of the Blue Ridge Parkway. 

All packed and ready to go:

[Chuck & Susan]

Sounds very enjoyable!! I'm jealous but let us know later how much you enjoyed.

[klaviator]

I plan on updating every night while on the road.  I'm taking a small laptop along.

[springer]

 I am thinking about joining some friends up in TEN-I-SEE for the XROG met next weekend. Have fun and take plenty of pictures!

[klaviator]

I made it to Asheville and am still working on a plan.  Some nasty storms are forecast to come this was friday so I have to consider that.

So, back to yesterday.  I covered over 400 miles today. 190 in the truck and over 220 on the scooter.

I started by riding the Skyway. I didn't take a lot of pics but here's one to prove I was there:




Wayah Rd was next.



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I decided to ride up Wayah Bald. I did it once before but it was a long time ago.

I checked out the observation tower:



There is a great view up here.  Franklin off in the distance.



The road on Wayah Bald is dirt/gravel but mostly pretty smooth. It also has lots of curves and some great views.

[klaviator]

At this point it was getting late and I still had a ways to go.  I decided to take the shortest route that didn't involve any four lane roads.  After Franklin I just rode East on 64.  This is a great road that is far too often clogged with slow moving tourist traffic.  On a wednesday night I guess it was just local traffic which mostly moved along at a good pace.  On top of that I was going slower than I normally would since I only had 10.3 HP.  From 64 I picked up 215.  What a great road.  I haven't ridden the bottom part in many years since I have been taking Charlie's Creek and 281.  Then I got on the BRP.



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I rode down 151 towards Asheville and nearly met a squid head on as he was in my lane trying to cut a corner.  I think maybe he was having trouble keeping up with his buddies.....or maybe just has bad riding habits. He saw me and swerved back into his lane.

I got cheap room at the Red Roof Inn. Despite the low price of around 60 bucks it's a nice motel, much nicer than the place in Helen that Debbi and I stayed at last weekend. I'd stay here again. I believe that I stayed at this Red Roof Inn around 20 years ago when I was riding the area on my EX500.

So now I just need to make a plan for the next couple of days.......or not.  Maybe I'll just wing it.

[norton73]

Where''d you park the truck? I assume you slabed to Tellico Plains and started the ride there?

Been thinking about something similar with the XT, but more dirt.

[klaviator]

Where''d you park the truck? I assume you slabed to Tellico Plains and started the ride there?

Been thinking about something similar with the XT, but more dirt.

Cherohala Mountain trails Campground. 

[klaviator]

OK, I have a plan. Tonight in Blowing Rock and Friday night in Lake Lure. BRP, Mt Mitchel, Lineville Falls and whatever else I happen to find today.  Now I need to pack up and get on the road. 

[klaviator]

It took me a while to get on the road Thursday morning because I was trying to come up with a plan to try to avoid the incoming rains as much as possible.  I headed through Asheville to get to the BRP.  In Asheville, as well as much of NC, I saw a lot of little scooters.  So why are there so many scooter enthusiasts in NC compared to AL? 

Riding through Asheville I spotted this place and pulled a U turn to check it out.



I talked to the owner for a bit.  He confirmed what I had read before.  Many of those scooter riders are drunks who lost their DLs and 50cc scooters don't require licenses in NC.  Most of the scooters are cheap Chinese junk that requires a lot of repair.  He didn't lack for business.  He said someone opened a Vespa shop in Asheville but it didn't last for long.  People here are looking for a cheap as possible.

Then I continued on to the BRP and headed north.  It was cloudy in the morning.



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While stopped to take pics of the falls two riders on BMWs stopped. They were from Anniston.

A little further north I took a left off of the BRP.



I was here once before but that was a long time ago. I didn't get any pics that time. This time I got a few.



I hiked to the top.



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[klaviator]

I got back on the BRP.



Took a side trip a little ways down 80.  This is a fantastic road.  Last time I was here I was in my Aprilia and I stopped and took a pic at the same spot:



Then it was back on the BRP with a lunch stop in Little Switzerland.



Someone had recommended stopping at Linville Falls so I did although I later found out that I missed the main falls.  This was still pretty cool.  It was a .4 mile hike down and the same back up.



As I looked at this rushing water I was thinking about Norton73 and wondering if he would kayak this? 



Back on the BRP again.



Then I got to Blowing Rock and checked into my motel.

[klaviator]

After checking into the motel and unpacking I took a break. Although I had only ridden about 140 miles my butt needed a break. I may be touring on the Super 8 but that doesn't make it an ideal touring bike. The seat sucks. For the short trips around town I normally use it for I don't notice it.

Then I walked around town a bit. Blowing Rock is a really pretty little town, very touristy and with a lot of old buildings. Eventually I decided to get back in the scooter so I rode over to Boone for dinner. On the way back I did some exploring. After some fun twisty roads I found this ski area.



More twisty roads then I headed on to the BRP to see if I could find a good spot to catch the sunset.



Playing around with the settings on the camera.



Then it was back to the motel. Total mileage for the day was 181.

[klaviator]

I got up Friday morning, looked outside and Crap! it was raining. So much for my plan :(  Oh well, I have ridden in the rain before and it wouldn't be that far to my next motel near Lake Lure.



Once I got on the road it wasn't too bad. The rain was real light and the visibility on the BRP was good. Well, it was good for a few miles and then:



So I rode in and out of fog for a while until I got on 221 and headed to lower elevations. 221 is a nice ride for a few miles and then turns into a boring 4 lane. Then it was right on 70 which isn't a bad road. I stopped in Old Fort and had an early lunch at Subway. I had a granola bar for breakfast that morning so I was hungry. Then I picked up Bat Cave road. This could be a really awesome road to rival the dragon except that the best part had gravel all over the curves >:(  Then it was 9 and 64 to Chimney Rock.



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[klaviator]

So I got to my motel in Chimney Rock around 11:30.  It was a little early to check in and it wasn't raining yet.  With the Bamarides Gymkhana coming up I thought this would be a good time to practice my Gymkhana skills.  I knew a real fun Gymkhana course about a half hour away so off I went.

2.3 miles of intense curves that make even Crow Mountain seem tame.



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One of the straights between hairpins.



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I rode up and down this road a few times then needed to go get gas. When I got back it started to rain so it was one last run and time to head back to the motel. I had planned to ride another road nearly this twisty but even if it wasn't raining it would most likely be up in the clouds.

So I went back and checked into the motel.

[klaviator]

After checking in, unpacking  I noticed that the rain had stopped. I had wanted to explore the area right around Lake Lure so I geared up and headed out. Well the stop in the rain didn't last long so I ended up riding around in the rain. I still enjoyed the ride. It would have been more scenic with some sunshine and the super twisty roads would have been more fun, but sometimes you just gotta take what you get.



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Back at the motel.



Later I went out for dinner. Most of the local restaurants where closed. Maybe the Tourist season hasn't started yet?

My total mileage for the day was 188. If not for the rain it would have been much more.

I haven't figured out my route for tomorrow but I will end up in Bryson City Saturday night.