Stage 7: The Dragon

Friday morning.... 

While the rest of the world woke up and got ready for work, I slept in a bit, enjoying the clean air and cool breezes flowing through my tent.

After a little extra sleepytime, it was time to wake up and ride the Dragon.

The Tail of the Dragon crosses Deal's Gap at the Tennessee/North Carolina state line, and is considered by many to be one of the world's best motorcycling (and sports car) roads.  This 11 mile stretch of US Highway 129 comes complete with 318 curves, twisting its way through some of the most beautiful scenery you'll see anywhere.

My bucket list just got a bit shorter.

 

 One of the coolest things about this road is the professional photographers who hang out and shoot cars and riders as they go past. "Killboy" (www.killboy.com) has been doing this for a long time now, and has some really amazing shots up on his site.  For a small fee, you can download high quality pictures of yourself hitting some of the best curves.

 

The scenery is amazing, but this isn't the place to sight see.  The curves come at you rapid fire, and demand your full attention.  Oncoming traffic can very often make a mistake and wind up on your side of the road, and underestimating the curves can have disastrous results.  Angering the Dragon often doesn't end well for the rider.

There's pieces from hundreds of bikes here

For years now, riders have been leaving items on this tree at the Deal's Gap Resort, as a warning to others, or perhaps as an offering to appease the Dragon. 

Mirror from a $25,000 bike 

The Dragon cares not what you ride, it demands respect.

Wear your riding gear, kids.

Deer, turkey, and even bears have been seen crossing the highway

Ouch indeed.

After paying our respects at the Tree, it was time for some lunch.  We'd skipped breakfast with the intent of going crazy for lunch, and this double meat, double bacon, double cheese burger on onion roll sure hit the spot.  They call it the Pig Pen burger, and it was delicious.

Health food.

With our bellies full and one run under our belts, it was time to head back up the highway from the other direction.  I took advantage of some of the pulloffs to snag a few pictures this time.

Unfortunately rain was starting to move into the area and we already had a few drops hitting our visors.  Since  we'd left most of our rain gear at the campsite, we decided to head back.  I'd planned to get my gear and head back out, but "the tired" hit me like a ton of bricks at the campsite, so I spent the evening writing, catching up with my wife and downloading pictures from my camera.  Around midnight the rains came down hard and heavy, and after I got used to the sound of it hitting my tent, I had a very good night's sleep.

Stage 6: Into Tennessee

There are over 4 million miles of road in the United States' highway system, most of which is just your standard A to B normal pavement.  These roads are just a means to an end for most folks, a way to work, a way home, a way to a place to play.  It's no different for those of us with 93 octane coursing through our veins.  These normal roads are just a way to get to the fun stuff, to the good stuff. 

A means to an end, indeed. 

Some of these roads earn spots on on people's Bucket Lists.  Roads that people detour hours out of the way to see, that offer amazing views, or technical riding, or both.

The Moki Dugway
The Blue Ridge Parkway
Skyline Drive
The Natchez Trace
The Pacific Coast Highway
Monument Valley
Alaska Highway
Million Dollar Highway
Angeles Crest Highway
Going to the Sun Road
Mulholland Drive
Beartooth and Chief Joseph Highways

There are dozens more: some locally known, most nationally known, some even internationally known.  If you ask any motorcyclist or automotive enthusiast for a top ten, you'll likely never get the same answer.

But down there in this part of the South East, it's hard to find a bad road.  This is the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the good roads are treacherous mountainside twists with steep drop-offs, no shoulders, and only light duty guardrails.  High risk, but oh so worth the reward.

Today, we packed up our camp and headed north, into North Carolina, riding mile after mile of great roads.  We eventually arrived in Robbinsville, NC, where we started up the Cherohala Skyway.  

The Cherohala Skyway was completed in the fall of 1996 after being under construction for some thirty-four years. It is North Carolina's most expensive highway carrying a pricetag of $100,000,000. Winding up and over 5,400 foot mountains for 15 miles in North Carolina and descending another 21 miles into the deeply forested backcountry of Tennessee, the road crosses through the Cherokee and Nantahala National Forests.... thus the name "Chero...hala"

Beginning at Santeetlah Gap on the North Carolina side (at elevation 2660 feet), the road quickly twists and ascends to Santeetlah, earning the "Mile High" part of its nickname at an elevation of 5377 feet.

It was a lot cooler up here than we'd expected.  It was still in the 60's, but after being at lower elevations and in full mesh gear in 80 - 90 degree temperatures, it was almost chilly.

We love mountains!

It's ridiculously beautiful up here.  But, don't let that distract you....  There are skid marks on many of the curves; a warning of what can happen if you aren't paying attention, or are riding beyond your abilities. Sudden decreasing radius turns, obscured sight lines, and a false sense of bravado from sections of the Skyway that beg to be ridden faster than the 45MPH speed limit.

... this Snake's bite can be incredibly painful.

This was an $18,000 motorcycle.

The view....   well, let's just say that I'll never get tired of looking out over stuff like this.  

With the end of the day approaching, we made our way over to Hunts Lodge Motorcycle Campground (www.huntslodge.com).  The Hunts are great folks, and they are riders too, and it shows - everything here is set up specifically for riders.  Free wi-fi, hot showers, free laundry machines, motorcycle odds and ends in the vending machine, free ice, coolers to borrow, gas and charcoal grills available, lots of nice grassy places to put up a tent, and a huge covered pavilion for relaxing, all for less than $14 a person.  

Stage 5: Georgia

Today, the goal is to ride GA Route 2 through Fort Mountain State Park, and then GA Route 60 through Cohutta National Forest.  Brendan really liked this area the last time he was out here, and he thinks I'll be impressed.

Yeah.  I think he's right.

Mountains!

 Now we're talking...

 No traffic, no law enforcement, no worries!

These roads are amazing.  Until today, the only twisty roads I'd been on were in Texas, and while they are great roads, they don't really compare to this.

After riding all day and working up an appetite, we stopped at a small crossroads gas station to see where we might be able to get some food.  Real food, not fast food crap, something local, not a chain.  According to the GPS, we weren't terribly far from a BBQ joint., so we headed down towards Dahlonega, Ga.

Now, before I left on this trip I went through the effort to update my Garmin's maps to a new 2013 version.  I knew that there would likely be plenty of places where I wouldn't have cell coverage, rendering my phone and Google Maps useless.  So when the POI said "BBQ nearby", I believed it.

You can imagine our frustration when 15 miles later we round the corner and instead of seeing a restaurant on the left side of the road, we see a public boat ramp and the Lake Zwerner beach.  Pull over....  strike 1.

Oh well, let's just backtrack to the motorcycle shop we passed on the way in, their sign said there was a cafe inside.  Uturn, backtrack about 8 miles, pull into the shop's parking lot.  The cafe's sign says they closed 30 minutes ago.  Strike 2.

It's rather warm outside, and we're tired, hot and hungry.  The cashier for the motorcycle shop says there's a bunch of stuff not too far away, and there's even a local BBQ place - go past the lake, turn right, turn left, and it's right there.

The gear goes back on.... and we go down the road, past the lake (again!), turn right, turn left, and it really is right there!

And, it's closed.  Strike 3.  Screw this, I'm done.  I'm going across the highway to the Subway.

I'm about to drop into gear and pull off when Brendan sees a greasy spoon with an older Harley Davidson parked outside.  We ride by to see if they're open, and if not, it's on the way to Subway.

This guy gets around, I bet he knows good food when he finds it

They are open!  We collapse into our seats and before we know what's happening, sweet iced tea, and a basket of rolls and cornbread muffins is placed in front of us.  Southern restaurant hospitality at its finest.

We go all in, and it's absolutely delicious.  Ribs, BBQ chicken, mac and cheese, and broccoli & cauliflower casserole.

Food coma in 3, 2, ...

Between the heat and the roads we'd ridden, we're both pretty tired, and it's getting late.  Vogel State Park isn't very far, so we decide to call it an early day.

We take US 19 North out of Dahlonega into the mountains. It's a glorious end to the day, climbing up the side of Blood Mountain on smooth, fast, 3 and 4 lane sweepers, and no traffic yet again.

Everything seems to come together.  The light is perfect, our motorbikes reverberate off the hills.  I drop down two gears into 3rd and play a bit, chasing Brendan up the highway.  We both carve wide lines across the northbound lanes, apexing late and aggressively leaning into the turns.  My Honda is in its element now, surefooted and revved up in the power band, linked brakes scrubbing off speed without complaint, the 1300cc V4 singing proudly through the Delkevic exhaust.

I was almost disappointed to arrive at the campsite.  Then I saw how amazing it was. Before this trip, I never would have believed I would be camping some where this beautiful for a whopping $6 a night.

The stream?  About 25 yards from our tents.  Ice cold, and it felt great on my tired feet.

The sun is fading fast, and the traffic on US 129 has picked up - we can hear it echoing off the mountain down into our campsite.  Inline 4 cylinder engines rocket past, no doubt the work of other riders on their way home after a day of playing in the mountains.  V-twins rumble by, and between all the bikes and the occasional car, I can still hear some birds singing their last songs for the evening.  The stream is the primary background noise, and I sit in my tent listening to it as the last light fades.

I turn off my LED light and fall asleep.

Life is good.

Stage 4b: Red Top Mountain SP, Georgia

After spending most of the afternoon in the Museum, it was time to put down some miles.

I have no idea where the hell we are.

But hey, looks like we found the party!

Soon though, the roads started getting a little bit more interesting...

And the views...

 started getting a little bit better...

...as we crossed into North Georgia.  We made it to our destination well after dark - Red Top Mountain State Park.  Camping was $15 bucks a night, but the place was quiet, it was beautiful, and there were hot showers.  It's hard to explain how nice a shower can feel after a long afternoon of riding.

Obviously taken the next morning :D

Stage 4a: The Skip Barber Motorcycle Museum

To think, that in the initial planning stages of this trip, I wasn't very excited about the prospect of stopping here. To think, that I initially wanted to bypass Alabama all together.

What a foolish thing to think.

The Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum has over 1200 motorcycles in its collection, making it one of the largest collection in the world.  Bikes ranging from 1902 to current-year production are on display, many of them still in operating condition.  99% of all the bikes in the museum can be put into running condition within one hour.

BMW K1

Many of the bikes on display here are things I'd only ever read about.  I never thought I'd actually get to see them in person.

Rotary power!

I am a bit partial to the Hondas...

But I like Suzukis too!

I need more power!

 
Honda CBX1000 with touring package, the Grandfather of the Honda ST series.  Inline 6 cylinder engine, 24 valves, 105HP, and an exhaust note that still brings a tear to the eye of many motorcycle enthusiasts around the world.  I would ride the hell out of this.  

Seriously, if you like motorcycles, and are anywhere near this place, you need to go.

The bikes and gear used by Jim Rogers, author of "Investment Biker"

Bikes everywhere, and a few really neat cars too

1913 Harley Davidson 9-B.  This bike runs.

Custom-made V8?

Yep

It looks like it came from the factory this way

Go ride!