Over The Mountains and Back Again

The "cold" front came through Thursday evening with very little effect other than a nice drop in the temperature.  None of the large hail, heavy rains, etc., that was predicted to occur.  Thank goodness.  And since I have been a good boy and worked hard all week, with no rain predicted for Friday, what better reason did I need to take a ride.

So at 7:50 a.m. I rolled out of the driveway with warm rainliner beneath my jacket, heavier gloves and a smile on my face.  Temp was about 60 degrees, give or take a degree.  I hit Chapman Hwy. (US 441) for Sevierville, slipped across the traffic light onto US 411 for another couple or three miles and then turned right onto TN 339 or better known in this area as Jones Cove Rd. because it goes through a settlement called what else, Jones Cove.  I heard at one time this was a pretty rough area, I think they call it "moon something or other".  The air was nice and crisp.  Just before I made the turn onto 339 I topped off Sweet Thang's gas tank.  Next fill-up would be way up the road.

Left pic is leaving Seymour heading East to Sevierville.

Pic on the right is entering
Severville

This is Jones Cove Rd.  Two lanes with little to no room for mistakes in driving or riding habits.  Pic on the right is distant shot of foothill mountains.



TN 339 has numerous curves, twists and turns along with a few up and down hills.  Great biking road for motorized bikes.  Pedal types risk death on these roads.  At the end of 339 is Cosby, TN and one end of the Foothills Parkway, a very scenic stretch that makes a short cut from the area to I-40. 

Due to the cool morning air there was some high fog in the area.  With the sun trying to break through it gave the scenery an eerie look, like ghosts moving about.


Entrance to the Foothills
Parkway.  A look at the
mountains in the early
morning fog.





 At the Interstate I zipped right along with the normal Friday traffic, and since this stretch crosses into NC and, because it is rather curvy, the speed limit drops from 65 in TN to 55 in NC.  Even lower for trucks.  It is also prone to landslides.
I've driven and ridden on many interstate highways in the U.S. and find that I-40 and I-77 are two of the prettiest to drive, especially in the Eastern part of the U.S.  There's not much that can be done about the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma.

I-40 heading to NC from
TN.  One of several tunnels you will go through. 

 This is what the inside of the tunnel looks like on a motorcycle at 65 mph.  Wait a minute, did I say 65, I meant 55 as that's the posted speed limit.  There was just a bit of vibration thus the blurred lighting.  And the flash was off.

Shortly after the last tunnel I made a turn-off onto US 276 which will take me into Waynesville, NC or turn right and you can go to Maggie Valley, NC.  If you like or love motorcycles you need to stop in at the Wheels Through Time MC Museum in Maggie Valley.
After going through Waynesville I stayed on US 276 riding on to Brevard, NC.  I can't remember if I have ridden this hight or not but it is very scenic and lots of twisties (that's curves in biker lingo).

South of Waynesville are
some very nice farms,
including tobacco.  So for
those that smoke, here's
where it starts, the pic on
the right.  Young tobacco
plants in the field.    

Scenery along the route.








At Brevard I stopped to have a late breakfast and gas up.  Some nice little Mom and Pop places seem to be the friendliest and less rush than the chain restaurants.  This was a convenience store, gas station, small grocery, cafe and bakery all rolled into one building.  After a couple of cups of coffee along with the condiments of eggs, ham, grits, biscuit, etc., I was ready to roll.  In fact, I may have rolled out of the door.  US 276 goes through the Pisgah National Forrest which makes it a very scenic highway.

From Brevard I headed to Glenville via US 64 and NC 107 Cullowhee.  These are cute little towns kind of snuggled in the mountain valleys.  Lake Glenville is just outside of the town and is very scenic.  Good place to boat, fish, ski, etc.  After Cullowhee comes Sylva and there I caught US 23 Northeast toward Waynesville.  Before Waynesville you can catch an entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway.  This is listed in the top ten roads to ride a bike on.  It starts in Cherokee, NC and ends up over 469 miles away near Waynesboro, VA.  Then the Skyline Drive starts and goes to Front Royal, VA.

I rode the Blue Ridge Parkway (again) back to where it connects with US 441 which crosses the mountain in the Smoky Mtn. Nat. Park back to TN.

When you see clouds that look like this it makes you wonder if the weatherman was reading the right script for today's weather.  The sky looked this way several times during the day over the mountains but no rain fell, at least not where I was.

 If you look at the center of the pic on the right you can see a tiny white spot.  That's a waterfall on the other side of the valley from where I was on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Today I needed my telephoto lens camera and not the little Canon 630 that i had hanging from my neck on a strap.  The 35mm is just tooo heavy to hang there and many of the pics taken are while moving.

Clouds building over the
mountain, again.  Pic on
the right is looking at your
next curve, just one of
many on this route.  That's
what makes it so exciting. 
If it was straight like I-10
across the South, coast to
coast, you would soon get
bored, go to sleep and fall off the bike.  That first bounce would be tough.

 After a brief stop at the NC side of the Park, I headed over the mountain to Gatlinburg and the house.  Traffic wasn't bad considering this was the peak of tourist season.  But you can sure tell the out-of-towners because the air is filled with the aroma of burning brake pad/shoes.  I'd like to tell them how to not do that but then the garages get money for replacing them.  Just use your transmission in a down-shift to slow you, makes the air fresher.

Gatlinburg was a busy as ever.  Wall to wall people, slow traffic and the smell of frying/grilling meat along with the sweet smell of funnel cakes and candy.  Makes one hungry just to drive through it.  These last two photos are placed here for my eldest son who loves these mountains and a special restaurant in Gatlinburg.  Here's to you, Hoss.

Smoky Mountains at their best.

Pancakes or sandwich?  Your choice.

It was a great ride.  Arrived back at the house at 5:45 p.m. totalling 275 miles of twisting roads, great scenery and wearing a very big smile.  The boy had a good day.

So live well, enjoy life, and see what's to be seen.  Everything is not negative.

           

      

Norris Lake Backroad Exploration

I got up early this morning because I had a 7:45 a.m. physical therapy appointment, the last for a while.  I also had made plans to meet biker friend Paul and others at the local Krystal for breakfast and a day's ride.  Immediately after therapy concluded I leaped onto my bike, after donning my riding gear, and took off for the meet-up.  Did I mention that it was in the upper 50s this morning, in July?  Well, it was and it felt wonderful.  Had heavier gloves on along with the rain liner for my summer riding jacket.

Gulped down a breakfast in a cup at Krystal's, three sips of hot coffee, and back on the bike as they had already eaten by the time I arrived.  At 9:00 a.m. we headed out on backroads for the North and Northwest areas above Knoxville.  This was around the Norris Lake area.

It is so lush and green and even when riding among the tree lined roadway the feeling is soft with the sun spots on the road way and shadows.

The shadows does make it more difficult to spot any potholes or rough road areas, but it has a soothing effect also.  As you can see from some of the pictures there's little room for error in driving.

One minute you're on the roadway, the next minute you're in the woods or someone's yard or field.  All tangled up in barbed wire.  Or even worse, their electric fence.  Now that could make you dance especially since it rained the day before.

The scenery is breath-taking.  This morning the clouds were like little fluffs of cotton floating in the air.  The sky was such a pretty blue.  And with the crisp air it was difficult to remember that it was July.

There are numerous old barns in TN, and so many barn styles.  Some are still in very good shape while others have long seen their better days.  But the curvy roads are here to stay.  One reason so many bike riders come to the area to ride are the curvy roads and mountains.

We stopped at an old general store for a few minutes.  It was an experience of going back in time.  A little bit of everything displayed.  Just one room, excluding the outhouse, but friendly folks sitting in chairs on the porch as you ride up.

 This is not a great picture but it will give you some idea of all the stuff inside the store.  And this is just half of one wall.

Candy bars and moonpies laid out on a table in small rows.  Not a big seller but something sweet if you were not to set on what it was.  They also had ice cream in the old chest type freezers with the lids that could be opened from either end.

 The guy on the left is friend biker Paul.  Dick is the guy on the right.  I am going to use this picture as they are holding hands near the outhouse.  Don't even want to go there.  But they are funny.

We rode off from the store headed for Helms Ferry.  I've crossed this prong of Lake Norris once before with Paul and must say it is an interesting piece of conversation.

Here we are lined up to cross the ferry.  The pic to the right is the ferry coming in to the landing.  Now this is not like any ferry you'll find in other places.  It just pushes the barge up and into the bank.

The pusher boat is small
and just pivots around on
an arm extended out from
the side of the barge carry-
ing vehicles.  The ferry boat is powered by two 6
cylinder John Deere diesel
engines.   

 
The ferry pilot has been  doing this job for over 13 years.  The crossing is about a half mile at the most but if you have to go around it will take you about an hour plus by road.  Now I'm not sure this is a U.S.C.G. approved vessel, but to save time I'll take my chance.  The life jackets are hanging on a post and hopefully are still floatation devices rather than anchors.



Shortly after the ferry crossing Dick and Rhonda peeled off for another destination.  Paul, Randy and I kept on with the backroad exploration program.  Many of these back roads ended up at marinas.  And at one marina we stopped to look around and use the facilities.  It is the largest that I have seen in the Eastern side of TN.

These are not stilt houses,
they are floating houses
that are rented out by the
day.  As are some of the
pontoon boats, etc.  The guy in the orange shirt is Paul walking to the Marina Office/Lounge/Restaurant, and docking station.

The house boat with the slide is a rental for $$$$$ per night.  After the marina dead-ends we headed back toward La Follette for a Wendy's lunch to include a small Frosty.

After La Follette we rode 163 over to I-75 to Knoxville.  It was a great day with some precarious roads, narrow, gritty and with holes.  But again, this was an exploration trip and some of these roads will be marked off the map as not to ride again.  Door to door, approx. 150 miles of pure fun.  Aah, such a refreshing morning with the cool air.  Yes, I'm rubbing it in for those that are sweating before you make it from the house to the car.  Ride/drive safe, but enjoy life.                 

Indian Creek Market Breakfast Ride

Saturday, July 12, 2014, comfortable early in the morning with a chance for afternoon rains. Made a call last night to confirm riding with friends up to the Indian Creek Market for breakfast and conversations. I left the house at 7:30 a.m. to meet up with biker friend Paul and his wife Betty. I got there early so I grabbed a cup of coffee and had just finished it when they rode up. We were to leave for a Burger King on U.S. 411 across from the Sevier County High School to meet up with another couple and then to ride up to Indian Creek Market where several others were to meet us getting there by car(s).

Pilot is a good meeting place for Paul and I as we don't live to far apart. If we are riding in an Easterly direction we can meet here and top off gas tanks at the same time.  From here we headed farther east to Burger King.

The day started out nice and cool but it didn't take but an hour or so for the temp to get hot enough that by the time we got to Indian Creek Market I was ready to get out of my riding jacket.  Even with a mesh jacket it still gets rather warm unless you are riding.  Stopping for a traffic signal out in the sun gets rather warm.

Did I mention that we ride mostly back roads, 1 1/2 lane roads, sometimes almost not roads.  And on this run we crossed a covered bridge near Sevierville.

The sky this morning was really blue.  It has been raining a lot lately so everything is lush green with lots of leafy vegetation along the roadways.  On the way we rode through Bush Country.  No, not Texas, but between Sevierville and Newport, TN Bush's Beans has a large processing plant, the old farm house and a cafeteria open to the public.  The mountains were hazy as they have been for a while.

We also rode past an old
water driven grist mill.  It is somewhat of an antique store today (pic on rt. and left below).  

Lots of hay being cut, which
makes two cuttings this season already.  With a little more rain they will have three cuttings this season.  Mother Nature is treating TN very well while the Western states are dry.

A lot of old barns in this
part of TN.  The gas plant on the right is Bush's Bean Processing Plant, not Shell or Exxon, etc.


After a great breakfast of ham and cheese omelet with hash browns and coffee we set out for the remainder of the ride bidding farewell to the cage riders (those people in cars).  Still riding backroads we headed for Panther Creek State Park Overlook.  When we arrived at the overlook spot one of the picnic buildings was being used for an outdoor wedding ceremony.  We weren't invited nor dressed for the occasion.

"Sweet Thang" parked at
the overlook with wedding
in background.  The body of water shown here is part of Cherokee Lake, a TVA made facility. 

Bike friend Paul in blue shirt and wife in blue top, just part of the group.  Red trike in right pic is a BMW 1600.  Very nice but $$$$$.  It belongs to rider Keith.  Nice machine.

We rambled back to Seymour on more back roads while looking at a dark cloud forming in our direction.  However, so far it has not rained today.  But then the day is not over.  Door to door today was 122 miles.  Average speed, about 35mph maybe 40 with all of the twists and turns.  Arrived at the house at 1:45 p.m. refreshed.  Cost for the day, who cares;  returns for the ride,mega-dollars.
Enjoy life, be safe.