Friday, 7:30 a.m., Temp 60 give or take, donned rain liner in summer jacket, put on winter gloves, turned the wind wings inward on Sweet Thang and took off for our usual meeting spot in Seymour. Today was going to be a fantastic day to ride. High to get around 81. No Rain. Stopped and topped off gas tank, grabbed a breakfast burrito and coffee at Micky D's and shortly afterward up they rode. Friend Paul and his cousin, once removed, riding a bright green and black HD. Darryl, Paul's cousin had moved from Indiana to Nashville so they finally hooked up to ride by Darryl spending a few days with Paul. I was glad they invited me along.
Leaving Seymour heading East to catch the back roads we rode last week. It is a better ride than taking the main highway plus it skirts the one town we would have to ride through that morning.
Along the back roads you can get a real feel for the mountains. The fog was laying in the hollows and in some places hid the mountain tops.
You also get a feeling every so often of riding in a tunnel. In some places the tree growth almost comes together at the top. We rode one of these roads later in the day, a 1 laner that rarely ever gets to see sunlight.
When we pulled up to US 321 this was the view of the mountain. Sure glad the fog was high this morning. It does give some softness to the surroundings. We made a left turn here and rode for a short ride to catch the Foothills Parkway over to US 129, The Dragon. Darryl had never ridden across it nor the Cherohala Skyway so that was one of the main events for the day's ride.
Once on the Foothills Parkway we rolled along smoothly, admiring the
scenery.
At one of the turnouts, this was the view you had. That is not a mountain reflecting in a lake, it's fog in the valley and such a beautiful blue Fall sky.
This was looking a little further southward from the previous picture. Can you tell that I just love these mountains?
At the higher altitudes some of the trees are just starting to turn colors. Mostly Maple, Sweetgum and some hickory and oaks. About two more weeks and they should be in their splendor at the upper elevations. They will change in the lower elevations around the middle of October to the end of the month depending on the coldness of the weather. Then the tour buses return to the area bringing folks from all over to see the Smoky Mountains in it's splendor.
Red Ninja is ridden by Paul, a spry 76 year old, the green HD is Darryl's who is near 60, and Sweet Thang which is my bike and I'm nearly 72. Who says that you need a rocking chair at 65, certainly not us.
This is the view from where the bikes were parked. I know, it's terrible to look at but some of us just have to brace up and do it.
We finally arrived at US 129 for the ride up the Dragon. A fair amount of bikes on the road today I guess because it was Friday. During the summer there are no days without bikes. The picture to the right is at one of the pull-offs on the Dragon. It's a lake backed up by a hydro-electric dam.
After a mess of curves, 318 to be exact, in a 11 mile stretch of highway, we finally arrived at Deal's Gap, a motorcycle stopping point for all sorts of things you really don't need, other than gas and food. I couldn't resist, I purchased to reflective "Dragons" to go on the back of my helmet. That gray pickup behind the Green HD is pulling a trailer with 4 bikes on it. These folks, all in their mid to late 20s, were from Toronto, Ontario Canada. They had a 20 hour drive ahead of them to get back home. A week's worth of fun to tell everyone back in Canada. And with the use of GoPro cameras mounted on helmets, handlebars, front forks and who knows where else, they can record their rides and keep them on their smart phones and computers for further viewing.
After Deal's Gap we headed up the mountain to Santeetlah, which is also a lake by that same name, to visit another cousin of Paul's. The roads in that community are one way except for the southern end which has a two way road for a short distance. After our visit, which had a beautiful view of the lake, a cup of coffee with some good conversation, we headed down the mountain to ride over to the Cherohala Skyway. Along the route the flowers shown to the left are plentiful. They are wildflowers but to me just pretty and remain nameless.
Further along the Skyway you pass elevation signs, this one being at Hooper Bald. Bald to a mountain is the same as bald to humans except for the mountains it means no trees. It does have grass. As you climb in elevation you also note that it becomes cooler. It was a little further up the road before we arrived at the highest point on the Skyway.
We also noted the clouds were becoming heavier and darker. But the weatherman said no rain today and he should know. But he has also been wrong before.
A few miles before we came to the end of the Skyway we turned off at Turkey Creek, followed the River Road a few miles down a narrow winding road not as wide as my driveway and came to the Bald River Falls.
There was a lot of water running over the falls which was odd since it has not rained a lot lately.
This picture really doesn't do the falls justice. It is perhaps one of the prettiest falls in Tennessee and I will make a return visit in the Spring to see if it has more water flowing.
I had the opportunity to take a picture for a family visiting from out of state. The falls makes a great backdrop for a family photo.
As we came to the end of the Skyway we have decided, at our last stop, to pull into a gas stop which is very friendly to motorcyclists as they make a lot of their income from bikers. I believe the owners are South Korean and don't appear to smile very much. We gassed up, grabbed a cup of coffee, stretched our legs, made a pit stop, and off toward Seymour we went. Of course it was the more scenic route, not the fastest route.
We ran TN 360 back to Vonore, TN where we jumped on US 411. Not to far up the road we pulled over so that Paul could call his wife and let her know ABOUT what time to expect him and Darryl. At that point I bid them farewell, told them how much I enjoyed the day and boogied for Seymour, arriving about 5:30 p.m.
Rode a few new roads, rode a few old ones, rode with a new friend and an old one, saw a beautiful waterfall and enjoyed a great day in the U.S.A. No place like it. All in all, 186 miles of fun and enjoyment.
So, until the next Valkyrie Adventure, have some fun, be careful and enjoy life.
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