Recon Ride

After a week of anticipating a ride into the mountains along the TN/NC border I awoke to a Sunday morning with grey clouds raining upon my roads. A quick glance at my schedule showed Tuesday to be free so I shifted my plans back two days.

This ride was designed to be a shake down for an upcoming motorcycle vacation with some friends. I wanted to scout out the hotel and some of the roads we'd be riding so I left home early for a full day on mountain backroads.

I'm testing out a new GPS unit on the bike so I would also be playing with it during the ride. It's big and ugly but will serve my needs well on a future bike.

After a failed attempt to leave home early I made my way out of the garage by 8 a.m. and was in Andrews, NC, and onto to Murphy by 10 o'clock. Since the morning air was still cool I was wearing silk liners under my gloves. As I left a gas station just outside Andrews I grabbed my helmet by the chin straps in order to put it on my head and promptly dropped it on the ground, scratching the face shield beyond repair. Shaking off a possible bad omen I programed my route into the GPS and headed north to Robbinsville.

Shortly after Murphy, NC, the four lane divided State Road compresses into a two lane ribbon of asphalt bounded by green. Green trees, green mountains, hell, I'm sure that during certain times of the year even the water is tinted a cool green. And green is good.

Riding through Robbinsville I found myself in a mountain valley, headed north next to a stream. Further up the road lay "The Tail of the Dragon", an 11 mile stretch of two lane wherein lie 318 curves. After recounting my first trip earlier on this blog I was now on my third trip over a stretch of road known to motorcyclist all over the world.

When approaching from the south Deal's Gap Motorcycle Resort is a favorite place to stop.

I enjoyed my "Snack of Champions" and reviewed my course on the GPS.

I also examined my face shield and determined it was FUBAR'd.

As I reviewed my plan for the day I looked up to see a pickup truck towing a trailer carrying demolished cars.

Moving at a clip of no more than fifteen miles an hour I knew it would be nearly half an hour before the truck cleared the gap. So after a prolonged break I returned to the trail. Fortunately for me, about two thirds of my way through I found that the truck had pulled over to allow traffic to pass and I was in no way slowed by it.

After a quick dash over the Dragon's Tail I was on the Foothills Parkway which leads to Townsend, TN, and my next stop.

This parkway is not banked like the road over Deal's Gap. Instead, it is more of a nature ride along a level roadway that gradually rises and falls with the terrain. Ample overlooks provide plenty of opportunities to view the surrounding hills and mountains.

As I approached the northwest end of the parkway the opposite lane was closed due to a rockslide on the hillside which had probably occured over the winter. Hopefully road crews will clear this area before the summer crowds arrive.

Exiting the parkway a short ride brought me into Townsend, hidden in the valley behind the below barn.

Since the excuse for this trip was a recon of my summer vacation I thought I'd visit one of the hotels many of us will be staying during the trip. The Highland Manor Inn should provide suitable lodging for the week.

Smokin' Joes BBQ has been a long time favorite of visitors to Townsend but Joe retired last winter and a new owner has taken over the reins. The store also got a new name; Little River Bar-B-Que.

Fortunately for 'Que lovers everywhere the old cook, Stretch, has remained on so the chow was just as good as ever!

Back on the road I began my trek to the Smoky Mountain National Park via Little River Road. The road follows Little River (clever, eh?) and provides plenty of opportunities to cool off on a hot summer day.

Motorcycle photography was what inspired this blog and my most recent attempts have included action shots taken while riding. I'm slowly learning the technique but still need a good bit of practice. However, I've been happy with how the learning curve is progressing.

While I was busy taking photographs I watched as the forest closed around me.

The air became cooler and the river a little louder. Approaching a bridge I noticed a loud roar near a parking area. I pulled by bike off the road and dismounted only to see a large waterfall.

As I left Little River Road and traveled further into the Smokies I noticed how the trees and plant life changed from a dense forest comprised of pines and hemlocks to a more open forest with far more hardwoods.

As before, though, the presence of water was everywhere.

Further up the road, as I climbed higher into the mountain air, the landscape changes its complexion as hardwoods, still void of their spring leaves, are seen in greater numbers.

For the most part, the roads I traveled on were all in good shape with little wear. One notable exception was in the higher altitudes of the Park. However, road resurfacing is in progress.

As you ascend into the Smokies there are large pullouts with breath taking views. All are worthy of a stop.

What is normally a short descent from the mountain passes into Cherokee took me nearly a half an hour longer due to contruction delays. Hopefully this road work will be finished soon. At least it doesn't spoil the natural beauty.

The Cherokee Indian Reservation has long been high on kitsch. I can remember trips there as a kid and posing with the rent-a-Chief for a picture. Some signs of the old kitsch remain across the street from modern restaurants.

And while I arrived too early for all the touristy stores to be open it's good to know one can still find a cheap pair of moccasins on a hot summer day!

Heading south out of Cherokee the road winds through Bryson City and, finally, back into the trees. My last leg took me past the River of the Noonday Sun, aka the Nantahalah River. The indians named it because the steep mountains on either side and dense foiliage allowed only the miday sun to reach the valley floor below.

A playground for kayakers and rafters since the seventies, the Nantahalah now supports a cottage industry that has grown up on her banks. Watching the paddlers during a break brought back fond memories of my mispent youth.

Once past the Nantahalah I returned through Murphy and Andrews to my home in North Georgia. All in all it took 12 hours to liesurely travel 360 miles through some of the best riding in the world. I am lucky to have it so close and will travel there again. And again.