May 28th -29th Memorial Day

May 28th

Today we ventured out from highway 19 through Cherokee into Bryson City.

Once through Bryson City we took a scenic mountain highway takes riders on a six mile tour of the Great Smokey Mountain National Park and ends at the mouth of a tunnel. On the map it is called Lakeview Drive, but it is also know as the Road to Nowhere. Read the story at greatsmokies.com.

Fontana Lake Overlook on the Road to Nowhere

On the way back to Cherokee

Scenes from a sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway

May 29th
Today's loop took us south on 107 through the Lake Glenville into Cashiers and Sapphire resort areas where we at lunch at Toxaway Village Falls and back home (made it home almost dry from the rain) via 281 to 23/74 into Waynesville.

Lake Glenville

Toxaway Village Falls

Wolf Creek Lake area

May 26th & 27th Spring Rally in the Smokies

Maggie Valley Spring Rally

“Spring Rally in the Smokies"

May 26 – 28, 2017

And we are off, heading east across the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. Destination Maggie Valley, NC. After a stay overnight stay on the east side of Nashville we traveled east on Highway 40 where we came across an accident where a black bear was hit by a semi truck.
(no photos, only memories).

Camp spot 2 at Smoky View Cottage Resort

So many roads to explore. Can't wait to ride and explore roads with names like The Rattler, Moonshiner, Copperhead,
The Gauntlet and so many more.

First ride, The Rattler (Hwy 209), late lunch in Hot Springs at the Iron Horse restaurant, and dessert at Dave's 209 (orange dreamsicle shake, yum).

A little roadside repair on the Gilroy. Luckily, Lars is able to get us back to the campground
for a deeper evaluation of the repair needed.

Ride day 2's loop was highway 215 south through the Pisgah National Forest to highway 64 into Brevard for some BBQ and Hawg Wild (yum), and then back to the campground via highway 276. Highway 276 was originally part of the Vanderbilt estate and was sold to a timber company in 1912. That company put in a railroad to pull out the timber which then became highway 276.

More beautiful scenery with smell of pine and honeysuckle in the air.

After lunch stop at the Looking Glass Waterfall.