No real plan except to ride as many curves as I can. I packed up the Versys and headed out of town.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120001_zps1saahlmm.jpg)
The Skyway has been repaved on the NC side but road crews were still out working on the shoulder. In a few spots the leaves where changing but I didn't get any good pics of it.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120002_zpszrgxcbur.jpg)
I decided to swing by Deal's Gap then head for Iron Horse. Noticed this kids tricycle hanging from the tree of shame. I hope the kid didn't crash here :o
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120004_zps6rxujihx.jpg)
I ran into an old riding buddy that I hadn't seen in around 11-12 years so I decided to camp at Deal's Gap. The nice thing about camping is you don't need any reservations and can change plans at the last minute.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120005_zpskpqnrfuv.jpg)
We went to the Tapoca Lodge for dinner.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120006_zpsdhenox7f.jpg)
Food was a bit pricey but very good.
Anyone remember when gas was 17 cents a gallon + one cent tax?
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120007_zpsvxz7nyxw.jpg)
A view of the Tapoca Lodge from 129.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120008_zpsnjcssrkn.jpg)
I ended up riding about 260 miles for the day. My plan was to get up the next morning, run through the Gap a couple of times before the traffic got heavy then pack up and head out.
Cool. I need a ride back in that area soon.
FWIW - for any folks who might find themselves in that area and looking for a good dinner, I can second Topoca Lodge.
If you want a killer good steak, as in REALLY good, go for the 8 ounce Filet w/ redskin potatoes.
Quote from: klaviator on September 13, 2016, 07:43:04 PM
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9120007_zpsvxz7nyxw.jpg)
Cool picture!
I got up early and took a pic of the campground.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130009_zpswkp4o9ah.jpg)
Then it was time to ride through the Gap before traffic showed up. Had a good run all the way down to the Lake. Only came up behind one car and it used the first pull off to let me by. The water in the lake is still real low.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130011_zpsjc7nx63q.jpg)
Had another good run back up with little traffic.
Interesting V-Rod.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130010_zpsu5ufua7t.jpg)
Then I ate breakfast and then did another ride through the gap with Gary and Jeff. I managed to stay with them until they got around some traffic and I got stuck behind it for a bit.
Some exotics at the overlook.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130015_zpskfp6u7lk.jpg)
We had a good run back up to DGMR. Then it was time for me to pack up. A couple from Quebec were also getting ready to go. They rode all the way down on their Bonnevilles. They were headed back home via WV.
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I was impressed that they fit their camping gear, cooking stuff, rain suits and clothes in the small amount of luggage they had on the bikes.
By the time I was heading out around 11 the place was pretty crowded. It almost looked like a weekend. I was glad I was headed for some less crowded roads.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130018_zpszuwwmbgj.jpg)
I took 28 to Franklin where I had lunch at Subway. Then it was some of my favorite twisty roads for a while.
The scenery wasn't bad either.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130019_zpsiiophsix.jpg)
And I ended up here.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130025_zpssohnu291.jpg)
What a change from Deal's Gap. This is a much nicer campground also surrounded by great roads but there were no crowds here.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130024_zpsz6grh1hq.jpg)
When I got to the Campground I decided to try to adjust my chain which I had noticed earlier was loose. I couldn't loosen the Axle nut and ended up bending the cheap axle wrench that came with the bike. I ended up going to Lowes and buying a 1/2 inch rachet. I had been meaning to get one anyway. I also got a 27mm socket. I was able to break the nut loose with that and adjust the chain. I was a little concerned since once chains start stretching the tend to go fast. The chain was also getting noisy.
Dinner was at this place at the intersection of 276 and 215. Food was pretty good and very reasonably priced.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9130026_zpsx2yvq9lr.jpg)
I got up Wednesday morning and headed out for some of my favorite roads which I hadn't ridden in over a year. As I was passing through Canton I saw this cool dude on a cool bike so I took his pic 8)
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140003_zpsvq2caiqm.jpg)
Next stop was in Ferguson to grab a bite to eat then stopped for this pic.
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Then it was several miles of great curves and scenery on 209 before turning off on one of my favorites.
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This road starts out pretty crappy pavement, a lot like some Jackson County roads.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140008_zpshhjf7hfo.jpg)
Then the pavement ends however this road isn't too rough for a street bike.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140009_zpsvvaeq5xz.jpg)
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140010_zps0dcwqyfq.jpg)
This place is out here all by itself in the middle of nowhere on the side of the mountain.
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140018_zpsbs97mxtl.jpg)
It was pretty steep downhill for a ways. This was the only part somewhat challenging for a street bike.
Then it was back on the pavement. The barn in the pic used to have a bunch of animal hides on it.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140022_zpsw3yydskk.jpg)
Then there were several miles of great curvy and scenic pavement. It's a great road but I can't remember ever seeing another bike on it other than those riding with me.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140026_zps5ffaitbp.jpg)
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140027_zpsyrsjpgvo.jpg)
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140035_zpskrtneu2e.jpg)
Then some nice hairpins to finish things off.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140039_zps9vq352wi.jpg)
Any of you world travelers out there recognize where I just rode?
This local only traveler does not, but it sure looks like a great ride!
Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
You was all up in the western North Ca'linie mountains.
Canton is where the only other Trull folks I know live. One of my best old USAF buddies lives in Asheville.
And ditto on what Randy said.
The scenery up there sure is pretty. Looks like you had a great ride. Thanks for sharing.
Nice pics as usual.
Canton has a great place to eat ... one of our favorites in NC ... Breaking Bread Cafe. You should try it next time!
It was closed when I went through there in April.
Quote from: norton73 on September 16, 2016, 06:33:17 AM
It was closed when I went through there in April.
Closed permanently? That's a bummer. They were nice folks.
Quote from: Nice Goat on September 16, 2016, 10:23:29 AM
Quote from: norton73 on September 16, 2016, 06:33:17 AM
It was closed when I went through there in April.
Closed permanently? That's a bummer. They were nice folks.
I don't know if it permanent or not. I stopped about lunch time on a Saturday and there was a closed sign and no hours.
Thanks for the responses. Time for me to get my butt in gear and finish this.
I headed towards some of my favorite roads that are virtually unknown except for locals. No T shirts, no photographers, very little traffic,no cute names to make them sound awesome. Just curves and more curves that rival the best of the T-shirt roads. On my way I saw a road that I had never ridden before. How was it? Lets just say it had a few curves(http://advrider.com/styles/advrider_smilies/ricky.gif)
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140040_zps5qz7sl2c.jpg)
Best of all it connected to the area I was planning on riding.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140053_zpswdaphmkm.jpg)
Did I mention there were some curves here?
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140055_zpsvlm9fapa.jpg)
I did get some of that 20% of rain that was forecast. Although I got out of it pretty quick it wet down the road. Super twisty wet roads with leaves on them are just not my idea of fun so I didn't get to ride everything I planned on. I ended up going through Hot Springs and south on 209.
I stopped at a scenic spot and checked my chain. It had loosened up on those 120 miles I had ridden so I adjusted it again. Now I was worrying about how long my chain would hold up. I might have to cut my trip short. :(
One more pic for this day.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9140056_zpswbtyradj.jpg)
That's I-40 above.
I stopped at Waynesville Cycle on the off chance they had a chain and sprockets. They did have a chain but were too busy to install it. I decided to gamble on the chain I had. We'll see how it holds up. It's pretty noisy and at low speeds I feel some vibration probably from a tight spot. I'll probably head for Iron horse or DMGR tomorrow. Depending on how the chain does tomorrow will decide whether I go home Friday or Saturday. It's the OEM chain and has 14,300 miles on it. I should have replaced it before the trip but didn't notice any problems last time I rode it.
I got up to another beautiful day in the mountains. I took my time packing everything up.
This is the creek that runs by the campground.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150004_zpsxwr0nn3a.jpg)
I headed up 276 towards the BRP. It was cool enough that I had to stop and put on a light jacket under my mesh jacket. Traffic was light on the Parkway. I did stop and talk to three guys riding on 50cc scooters.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150006_zpstgwwjcxp.jpg)
One of them said he tried but was unable to exceed the speed limit. 50cc is too slow IMO but I'd love to ride the BRP on my Kymco.
More BRP.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150008_zps3zpjmnaa.jpg)
I got off the BRP on to 215 then took some of my favorite twisty roads eventually ending up on 64.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150010_zpsyvxtohi2.jpg)
My chain was really noisy and I could feel it pulsing due to uneven wear. I decided to just head home rather than push my luck with another day of twisty roads. At least I got to ride some more twisty roads and see some nice scenery.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150012_zps8wvkotnh.jpg)
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150019_zpslgjwdoto.jpg)
The ride from BRMC to home was 339 miles. My normal route is closer to 400 miles and includes some of the twistiest roads around.
Excellent ride report. Has me wanting to head north. I have some time off at the end of the month. You may have just inspired me!!!
Quote from: wweaver11 on September 16, 2016, 05:31:52 PM
Excellent ride report. Has me wanting to head north. I have some time off at the end of the month. You may have just inspired me!!!
It's a fantastic area to ride. I hate that I ended up coming home early. I think I will head up up to the mountains early tomorrow morning. This ride report may not be finished yet.
Quote from: klaviator on September 16, 2016, 03:40:24 PM
I got up to another beautiful day in the mountains. I took my time packing everything up.
This is the creek that runs by the campground.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9150004_zpsxwr0nn3a.jpg)
wow, thank you for sharing this, all of it but mostly this
Quote from: kylepeterson on September 16, 2016, 08:21:15 PM
wow, thank you for sharing this, all of it but mostly this
You can hang a hammock about two feet from that creek at Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge. It's very nice.
Quote from: Nice Goat on September 16, 2016, 08:30:01 PM
Quote from: kylepeterson on September 16, 2016, 08:21:15 PM
wow, thank you for sharing this, all of it but mostly this
You can hang a hammock about two feet from that creek at Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge. It's very nice.
That pic was at BRMC, not Iron Horse.
Quote from: klaviator on September 16, 2016, 08:36:11 PM
That pic was at BRMC, not Iron Horse.
Oh well ... they have a nice little creek at Ironhorse also.
Iron Horse, BRMC and TWoS all have creeks and are great places to camp. CMTC also has a creek but it's not as scenic. It's great having so many campgrounds to choose from.
I had a nice ride today. It was nice and cool, and sometimes cold, at higher elevations.
Look at who I ran into on the ride.
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It was Maydaymike.
I'm camping tonight a CMTC.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170060_zps9c4vcn9m.jpg)
Weather is not looking good for tomorrow so I don't know if I'll ride or just head home. I'll do a more complete ride report later. A couple of preview pics.
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I left Huntsville early Saturday morning, around 5 AM, and headed East. I saw a bunch of Harley's on the road, most likely headed for the Trail of Tears ride. I hope they enjoyed it. Riding in a huge parade like that is not my idea of fun. My idea of fun is more like this:
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Since I was on a scooter I guess I could just ignore that sign 8)
I pulled over at a scenic viewpoint where there were a bunch of bikes.
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Maydaymike and his wife were with that group. I think they were there for an annual Triumph gathering in the area. I'm sure he wasn't expecting to see me there on my scooter.
I headed over the Skyway and then left through Joyce Kilmer to 129. If you have never ridden that way it's a real twisty road but pretty rough. Then I headed towards Deal's Gap on 129. Made a couple of stops for pics.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170007_zpshuwflhn4.jpg)
I took a pic of my Versys at this same spot.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170008_zps2w48dq0t.jpg)
There was quite a crowd at Deal's Gap.
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Had lunch at DGMR then hung out a bit. Despite the huge crowd in the parking lot traffic on 129 didn't seem that heavy so I rode down to the overlook. I only got stuck behind one car and it used a pullout and let me by. I hung out at the overlook for a while.
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The run back up 129 was fun but there was more traffic so I pulled over a few times to let slower traffic get ahead so I could enjoy the road. With 10.3 HP passing wasn't really a safe option.
My Super 8 only has a 1.3 gallon tank and gets about 70 MPG. I also brought along a gallon gas can bungeed to the rear seat. I would soon need gas. I was willing to pay the nearly four bucks a gallon at Deal's Gap but the line to pay for it inside was really long so I decided to head to Fontana for gas. They fact that 28 from Deal's Gap to Fontana is a great ride made that an easy choice.
I gassed up at Fontana and then headed down one of those local roads that the tourists don't know about and has virtually no traffic.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170020_zpsjmo53mvr.jpg)
Then another local road less than 2 miles from the Gap for some pics.
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170036_zpslq9vokca.jpg)
Then back up to DGMR and hung out a bit. It seems that Saturday is tourist day while more of the regulars show up on Sunday. I headed back towrds the Skyway on 129. Took a little detour on some more fun roads.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170044_zpsknw5ozor.jpg)
Back on 129.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9170049_zpsxndjld4l.jpg)
Then right on 143 with a stop here for something refreshing.
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Then it was back over the Skyway. There are a few spots where the leaves are changing color.
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I stopped at the Tellicafe for dinner then back to Cherohala Mountain Trails Campground for the night.
Stunning photography. I think this post shows some of your best work yet. Thanks for this thread!
I got up early Sunday morning and thought about heading to Deal's Gap but decided not to because I wanted to get back and heading home before the predicted thunderstorms arrived. I headed out to Bald River Falls. I've never seen it with so little water.
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I continued up the road and took a left on the forest service road that goes up to Stratton Meadows on the Skyway.
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This road is mostly smooth gravel but has a few paved sections. I was able to maintain a pretty good speed despite being on a scooter with 14 inch wheels. You don't need a dual sport with knobbies to ride this road.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9180071_zpszgtffj8z.jpg)
It was very peaceful back here and there was no other traffic, just a few campers at the numerous campsites along this road.
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In a few spots as the roads go uphill there is some rough washboard which made me slow way down.
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9180078_zpskn52qg9z.jpg)
12 miles and I was back at the Skyway.
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I went down the Skyway for a while. Rain was in the forecast so traffic was very light. I was thinking of how great it was to be able to cruise the Skyway without getting stuck behind slow traffic when I came up behind a slow moving parade of cruisers and a Spyder. Oh well, there are some nice side roads off of the Skyway so I took one.
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(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9180089_zps9atfwakz.jpg)
There is one great section of tight twisties that I turned around and rode again(http://advrider.com/styles/advrider_smilies/ricky.gif)(http://advrider.com/styles/advrider_smilies/ricky.gif)(http://advrider.com/styles/advrider_smilies/ricky.gif)
(http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/uu171/wknudsen/2016%20PICS/P9180090_zpsfllgl0qa.jpg)
Quote from: KrisCook on September 19, 2016, 09:10:08 AM
Stunning photography. I think this post shows some of your best work yet. Thanks for this thread!
Thanks Kris. When I'm riding my small scooter I tend to be more inclined to stop and take pics. In many cases I would see what looked like a nice picture spot and would whip a quick U turn to get the pic. It's just easier to do this on a small scooter than a bigger bike. Also I tend to be going a little slower so I don't miss as much of the scenery.
New to Dual sporting and this looks like a nice place to ride. Can you please tell me where in Alabama this is at? Thank you
Quote from: Shakyshane on March 29, 2017, 09:45:05 PM
New to Dual sporting and this looks like a nice place to ride. Can you please tell me where in Alabama this is at? Thank you
This was in North Carolina and Tennessee.