It is a beautiful morning in late August when Roz, myself, David & Mary Doris Simon and Erv Moore get on the road towards Cherokee, NC and the start of the Blue Ridge Parkway. We have discussed this ride most of the summer and it has now become a reality.
This is Erv and his
machine.
And these two are David and Mary Doris.
This is going to be a great trip.
Here the boys are enjoying a little break and snacks after refueling the bikes.
We have now made it to Gatlinburg, Tn, a distance of about 250 miles or so. Been a beautiful day for a ride and now that we are entering the hill country of SE Tennessee and off the interstate riding is really becoming a thrill.
Our trusty steeds sit outside our room in Cherokee, NC, chomping at the bit to get on the road this morning.
A terrific view as we start our climb into the Smokies.
Traffic was very light with there being more motorcycle traffic than I had expected, but then, this ride is absolutely at it’s best when on a bike.
We encountered these two gentleman on a footpath at one of the view points. The lad on the left is the son of the fellow on the right. They are both riding motorcycles, the Father is on a Honda Gold Wing and he is the young age of 85 years old/young. We listened to them tell of their travels for some time and the Father was definitely a gentleman that was determined to grab life by the horns and enjoy every day as it came. He was truly an inspiration to me showing me what a person can do as long as the spirit and flesh are willing.
We took a little break at the highest point on the Parkway, a little over 6,000 feet.
We are giving the “steeds” a break for the evening as we stop for the night in Boone, NC. We only covered about 150 miles today, but with all the views to see and the low speed limits on the road, this was still a good travel day.
We made a little side trip in northern NC and visited a place called Pilot Mountain, close to Mt. Airy, NC.
Do they look like “Hells Angels” rejects or what.
After spending last night
in a place called Beaver, WV, near Beckley, we were off today to view the Gauley Bridge near Hawks Nest SP. This is the Welcome Center for the New River Bridge area. This bridge is a beautiful piece of construction, and is one of the highest bridges in the country.
This foot path leads to numerous flights of stairs that in turn lead to a terrific viewing area of the New River and bridge spanning the river.
Upon leaving Hawks Nest SP it was on towards Charleston via a road truly built with the biker in mind. From Anstead to Charleston was about 40 miles of pure bike heaven. Even my “backseater” was enjoying the ride.
From Charleston it was on the Huntington and then into Kentucky. We were now about 250 miles from home, easily doable, however we had decided to spend another night on the road and this time we chose a beautiful State Park called Carter Caves State Resort Park.
After a great nights sleep, a good breakfast, we were on the road again, next destination, home, around 200 miles down the road.
This trip has been one of the highlights of our summer, riding bikes through the Blue Ridge Parkway with lovely bride and friends. We have truly had a BLAST.
Next venture, biking to Florida? We’ll see.
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