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.