Sky Line Drive ... Blue Ridge Parkway - Harley Davidson Forums: Harley Davidson Motorcycle Forum

cosmicdebris · 01-31-2009, 05:20 PM

I am planning a ride for June 2009 that will following Sky Line Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Dragon's Tail. I will be starting out in CT and want to eventually end up in Raleigh, NC to spend some time with family before heading back north.

Now I never done anything like this before and plan on taking 3 weeks to do this.

I am hoping to do 300 miles a day with time to relax and sight see along the way.

I am looking for any tips, must see sights, good cheap places to stay along the way.

garyl · 01-31-2009, 07:51 PM

Rode it last summer. One very enjoyable ride. Took many side trips. There was not a bad road anywhere. People very friendly. Hard to find economy priced accomodations, but loved every mile. We visited the Biltmore Mansion and Mayberry Jail and Set. This was in Mt Airey and the Biltmore was in Asheville.
The Wheels through Time Museum was closed. This was located on the southwest end of the BlueRidge.
Stop at the Welcome Centers and they can give loads of info.

VRYQUIK · 01-31-2009, 11:43 PM

A very nice place to stay near Mt Airy is Volunteer Gap Inn and Cabins. http://www.volunteergapinn.com Tell Deena that Clark and Martha told you about them.

If you decide to go to Mt Airy (Mayberry...The Andy Griffith Show), you will need to have lunch at "Snappys Lunch" and have a famous pork chop sandwich. http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=48

You may want to stop at Mount Mitchell (the highest point east of the Mississippi). http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/momi/main.php

If you go all the way to the end of the Parkway, You will end up in Cherokee NC. At the end of the parkway it will dead end. If you take a left you will go through Cherokee. Remember that it is a reservation and they have their own laws. Just before you enter Cherokee, you will See a "Elk Crossing" sign. Normally you will see Elk on the left in a field.
If you take a right at the end of the Parkway, it will take you to Pigeon Forge TN through the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.
You can do a search to get directions to "Foothills Parkway". http://www.theblueridgehighlander.com/scenic_drives/tennessee/foothills_parkway/ The Foothills Parkway will dead end. Take a left and you will be on 129 (The Dragon) 318 curves in 11 miles. When you enter NC on 129 you will go about a mile and the Deals Gap community (gas station) will be on the left. You'll have to stop and get a tee shirt.

Instead of staying on 129, take the road that runs next to the gas station (Hwy 28). This is a very scenic road also. You will ride for miles but, when you come to a large bridge, take a left and the road before the bridge and it will take you to the back of Fontana Dam.
Continue on 28 and you will find a fork in the road with signs to the dam. This road will take you the top of the dam. You are allowed to ride across the dam.
Continue on Hwy 28 and stay at TUSKEEGEE MOTEL http://www.tuskeegeemotel.com/ or Fontana Village http://www.fontanavillage.com/

If you have time, you may want to ride the Cherohala Skyway.http://www.cherohala.com/

I hope these ideas help.

While you are on the Dragon, there will be people taking photos of you that you can purchase on line. The picture on my signature is one of those photos.

Nathang · 02-01-2009, 05:33 AM

It was 30 years ago, but as I recall, after after SuperGlide'n thru 300 curves
since the last stop, I had a tendency to forget to put my feet down.

Be thinking about what to do when there's a sheer cliff on one side and a rock wall on the other,
and you're stuck in traffic cause all the cars on both sides of the road stopped
to feed the bears cookies, so they're pawing at the windows of the car in front of you?

cosmicdebris · 02-01-2009, 07:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nathang

Be thinking about what to do when there's a sheer cliff on one side and a rock wall on the other,
and you're stuck in traffic cause all the cars on both sides of the road stopped
to feed the bears cookies, so they're pawing at the windows of the car in front of you?

is right ... I hear there are panthers too.

Great info everyone ... Thanks keep it coming.

Badassbrutus · 02-01-2009, 08:30 AM

lions tigers and bears oh my..

Nathang · 02-01-2009, 05:19 PM

Quote:

lions tigers and bears oh my..

The threats don't have to have teeth and/or claws..

I came around a slow curve on a foggy night ride, and came to a screeching stop
about 2 feet from a big skunk with his tail held high and bottle-brush stiff,
he was thinking really hard about letting me have it.

I'd hate to try getting a motel room after THAT misadventure.

cosmicdebris · 02-11-2009, 05:57 PM

How about any decent campsites? I am thinking of being really brave and packing a small tent and sleeping bag with me.

Nathang · 02-11-2009, 09:13 PM

Well, if my Blue Ridge Parkway trip is any testament,

a) It will rain.
b) You will be tired, sore, and badly needing a ready cooked meal, a hot shower and a soft bed.
c) Bears are a pain in the ass when you are sleeping in a tent.

My wife and I rode from Louisville Ky to Gatlinburg Tenn about 275 miles if I remember right,
where we got on the Blue Ridge Parkway, we rode along the ridgeline to almost Richmond Va,
where the road got less interesting, so we turned around and rode the same road
in the opposite direction, all the way went back to Gatlinburg, and then I remember an exciting
non-stop run all the way back to Louisville trying to stay ahead of a dark/threatening storm front.

Take some whiskey. Some of those towns along that trip are dry. Or were, a long time ago.

After a trip thru the Smokies, be sure to do a similar trip in THE ROCKIES someday,
the difference in scale will be shocking. Breathtaking. Humbling.

BTW, the difference between the Smokies and the Rockies is measured in eons and eons and eons,
the Smokies are not less, they are just OLD!!

...and speaking of old .... The Smokies Trip, circa '75 or '76

cosmicdebris · 02-11-2009, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nathang

Well, if my Blue Ridge Parkway trip is any testament,

a) It will rain.
b) You will be tired, sore, and badly needing a ready cooked meal, a hot shower and a soft bed.
c) Bears are a pain in the ass when you are sleeping in a tent.

Take some whiskey. Some of those towns along that trip are dry. Or were, a long time ago.

Makes me look forward to it even more.