Two extremely satisfied motorcycle riders
I begin this post with this picture because it so perfectly represents the enjoyment we experienced on our 4 day ride taken the last weekend of April. During this period we travelled through Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee. From pulling out of our driveway on Friday morning to pulling the bug covered Wing back in the garage on Monday evening we put another 1200 miles on the bikes' odometer. And wow what a great 1200 miles it was!
A note on this pics heritage: Tammy took this picture just as me and my brother-in-law (Kevin) plopped down to rest from riding the Cheraholla Skyway. The temperature was just right. I have never seen the view from those mountains as clear as what we experienced on that day. The nice cool temperature, the bright Spring sun and the sweeping curves of the Cheraholla combined to lure us in to riding ever faster. Before you knew it we were pushing the bikes closer and closer to the "envelope". That special place where the rider's skill and the bikes ability to maintain traction converge. You know you are doing what the machine you are riding is designed to do. Those crazy engineers back in their drawing rooms at Honda Manufacturing seem to know what they are doing. I give them props and thank them for creating a mode of transportation that gives us so much enjoyment. Kevin, although fairly new to motorcycling had no problem keeping his Honda Shadow ACE in step with Tammy and I on the Goldwing. That man can ride.
The orange t-shirt I am wearing was the inspiration for the title of this post. It was bought at a gift store at the Fontana Dam. I bought it because I had expected cooler temps and had packed warm gear. It turned out that the temps were cool in the morning (50's) and then would close in on the 80's during the afternoon - perfect riding temperatures! I didn't want to swelter in my long sleeves so bought this shirt to avoid that dreaded fate. At least that's my excuse. The real reason is probably because I like the slogan that is printed on it...."Trapped in Paradise with No Plans to Escape". That perfectly fit my mentality of the moment. More later on the guy I'm sitting next to there....what a great riding partner!
Our riding group - Four bikes and seven people. The fellow in the red cap was our Road Captain for the weekend.
We started our trip to paradise by meeting at the Jacks restaurant in Odenville, Alabama for some breakfast and a quick rundown of the ride plans by our Road Captain. Road Captain is a fancy title for "The person saddled with the responsibility of mapping out 4 days worth of riding, not letting the rest of us get lost, making sure we keep gas in our tanks and food in our belly, and generally handling all the stressful work while the rest of us enjoy just following his lead while making wise acre comments during rest breaks." Our Road Captain just happens to be my dad, and I gotta say he does an excellent job of it. He somehow manages to find the most scenic routes, get us to the gas station before the fumes run out and have us pulling into fantastic eating establishments just as we are starting to think "Man I'm getting hungry!". We all owe him a debt of gratitude. I remember the three things he said he wanted to accomplish just before we set off on our ride: 1 -Honor God with our thoughts and actions / 2 -Have an inordinate amount of fun / 3 - Get there and back safely. Goals accomplished Dad.
Day one on most rides is pretty much about "getting there". The act of getting there included riding 420 miles with well spaced stops for gasoline and the occasional "rear end" break. Our group understood the beauty of not getting in a hurry and just enjoying the ride. When you're not in a rush it allows you to take a break just because you want to. That allowed us to enjoy the folks in our riding party including those in the chase van.
My very own Biker Babe taking a break next to the Ocoee River in Georgia. She is as pretty as the scenery.
On our ride from Birmingham, Alabama to Maggie Valley, North Carolina we knew we were getting closer to the good stuff when we found ourselves scooting along the banks of the beautiful Ocoee river. The Ocoee is the only designated "Olympic Whitewater Course" in the United States. With all the white water rafting, canoeing/kayaking, camping and hiking available it makes for a colorful sight as you ride along the river banks if it is tourist season. This particular ride was timed just before all the outdoor enthusiasts arrive so it was just us and the beautiful river for the most part.
A hungry group of travellers sate their appetites.
Our diligent riding paid off as nearing the end of our long trek, Dad slowed as we entered Dillard, Georgia and made the turn into the Dillard House Restaurant and Resort parking lot. I have had the good fortune to eat here several times in the past, but it was a first for Tammy and several others in our group. It was fun watching their faces as the famished riders feasted on the delicious home cooking served up at this unique restaurant. You don't order food here. You sit down, the friendly serving staff starts bringing drinks and bowls and platters of food, and it just keeps coming until you start to wonder how the table will hold under the weight of all this fine cuisine. If your party dares to find the bottom of a serving bowl the watchful serving staff pounces upon the empty bowl and replaces it with a fresh offering. Now telling everyone to save room for desert was a waste of breath. I tried, but never thought my advice would be heeded. Heck, I didn't even follow my own advice, but that certainly didn't stop me from stuffing down a delicious bowl of blackberry cobbler a-la-mode before finally pushing away from the table.
Tammy at a rest stop on the Blue Ridge Parkway
Saturday morning found us all gathered in the breakfast area of the Comfort Inn at Maggie Valley. The fresh made waffles, cereal, muffins and coffee was a great start to a day of riding the beautiful and well-paved Blue Ridge Parkway. The BRP is one of my favorite rides. It includes pleasant forested curves, lots of tunnels (we all connected with our hidden child and blew our horns each time we rode through these of course), beautiful rock faces, and some of the prettiest views of the Western North Carolina peaks and valleys.
My dad leading the group up the BRP
Your humble author and his trusty steed posing on the Blue Ridge Parkway
My folks - the world's best parents. My mom rode with a friend in the chase van this trip but she usually rides co-pilot with my dad.
The four bikes and chase van making up our party.
The deck at the Pisgah Inn - a good place to cool your heals and enjoy the view while you wait on your table.
And of course, the BRP has the Pisgah Inn - a restaurant and motel situated right on the mountainside at 5000 feet elevation. The food there is not bad and the view from the dining room is incredible.
The road taking its toll on Kevin....err..."Crow"
A few words about the character hamming it up in the pic above....
This is Kevin. He became a member of our family less than two years ago when he married my sister. I was truly looking forward to experiencing a multi-day ride with this rascal. His upbeat personality and positive outlook on life makes him a pleasure to ride and spend time with. Hanging around him is to laugh and just love life. He has that affect on all those around him. Things just seem more fun when he is around. Oh yeah, and MAN can this guy eat!
Posing for the camera on the Cheraholla Skyway - hope this is just the first of many rides with Kevin.
Saturdays' adventures started to wind down as Dad led us back down into our temporary home base in Maggie Valley around supper time. There was a Harley Davidson Hog rally of some sort going on, and wow you should have seen and heard all the Harleys riding around town.
One of the hundreds and hundreds of Harleys riding around Maggie Valley that weekend
We ate dinner at Guyaritos, a Mexican food restaraunt within walking distance of our Comfort Inn. After gorging ourselves with the delicious Mexican food we strolled back towards our Comfort Inn, stopping for a while to sit and watch hundreds of Harleys pass as they made their way to the Hog rally that was being held in Maggie Valley that weekend. There were some unique characters riding those machines.
Ok, I'm going to take a break here as this post is getting a bit long. I'll post on the remaining days events a little later.
Thanks for stopping by to read Sarch's Blog!
The crew riding some nice curves.
The four ugly halves taking a break while riding the dragon.
Dad's Honda Shadow Aero
Our Honda Gold Wing
Kevin on his Honda Shadow ACE
Dad's Honda Shadow Aero
Our Honda Gold Wing
Kevin on his Honda Shadow ACE
