Riding from Middlesboro, KY to Pineville and Pine Mtn., KY and Return.

After the non-planned ride Wednesday, Paul had a planned ride for Thursday.  Since it was rain free and sunny we decided to take advantage of it.  So I backed Sweet Thang out of the garage about 7 a.m. to meet Paul at Exxon Station for 8 a.m.  Wanted my coffee before hitting the road.  And I did get the whole cup drank before he showed up.  Weather, nice, temps in upper 60s this morning and high around 92.

Fresh air early in the morning is always refreshing and this was about as fresh as it can get.  Sun was just coming out from behind the morning clouds and in some areas a little mist hung in the lowlands.  Paul and I were to meet up at the Exxon Station, a mutual meeting up place near both of us.  We would then head up TN 66 and over some back roads and main roads to Blaine, TN where we would meet TerrE, as he's referred to.

This same view the day before was rather scary as the clouds were dark looking like an early rain.  Far off next to the mountains you could see the early morning mist hanging in the air. 

Rte. 66 takes you from the Sevierville, TN area out to I-40 except we were not going to run on the interstate today.  We would go over it at the new half-diamond interchange that has just been completed.  Confusing to me but it's suppose to make the traffic flow better getting on and off of Rte. 66.  It also runs by this nice newly built building housing Russell Stover's home for wayward women.

Shortly after crossing over the interstate highway we started running our usual back roads, this being one of the better ones.  It would take us over to U.S. 11 and after a few turns we would meet up with TerrE.  TerrE rides a 2008 HD with over 100K miles on it and an 2014 Indian.  Today he would be on Silver, the HD.

With the frequent rains everything has gotten so green that when you see a freshly plowed field it stands out in blazing contrast.

After hitting another road this old farm house is one of many along the route but for some reason I seem to take a number of pictures of this particular one.  It just has some charm that pulls my camera its way.

The upper left corner of the pic on the right are the newly planted grape vines.  There are several areas of East TN that grow wine grapes and a number of wineries.  Kind of odd since this is a major player in the Bible Belt.

Then we cross the bridge that seems to never get finished.  Much better now than a year ago but construction seems to go on forever.  By now you have concluded that I am one of those "Red" people, people who have very little patience.  Don't dawdle around, "Get'R Done".

I refer to this as "the house with the view".  It is a rather large house and from the front porch it must have one of the best views of the countryside than any house in the area.  And you don't have to worry about raking leaves as there are no trees nearby.  It must be a quarter of a mile from the house to the mail box by the highway.  I guess they draw straws on who is going for the mail on bad days.

We picked up TerrE at Blaine and then headed for U.S. 25 which will take us into Middlesboro, KY.  Over that mountain in the background is the state of Kentucky, home of Bourbon whiskey, coal mines, thoroughbreds and some great crooked roads.

Winding among the foothills the route takes us onward to the Kentucky mountains and sites to see.  It is really a very pretty part of the state.  The roadway is very good and the curves are continuous so you can just let it hang out there and ride, cowboy, ride.

The last town in TN before you go through the tunnel is Harrogot, home of The Abraham Lincoln Museum and Lincoln Memorial University.  The campus is very pretty with red brick buildings dotting the side of the mountain.

Just before you leave TN you have a sign indicating the Cumberland National Park which lets you see VA, KY, and TN.  A beautiful place to visit and it has a nice museum telling of the early settlers.

Finally one of my favorite tunnels crossing beneath the mountain separating TN from KY.

Out the other side of the tunnel puts you in the great State of Kentucky.  It won't be long before the serious part of the ride starts to take place.  Our destination is Pineville, KY and just West of Pineville is Pine Mountain State Park.

Don't let the picture to the right fool you for this is one of the straightest portions of the road up to the top of Pine Mountain.  And it has switchbacks that would make a snake have problems.  Add to that the green moss on the pavement that is very slick since it is also damp from earlier rains.  This means you and the road surface can meet up really quick if you're going to fast or trying to brake.

At the top of the mountain is a great lookout view point.  Beneath this area is the city of Pineville.  These two old geezers leaning on the rail are Paul on the left and TerrE on the right.  They are both contemplating but who knows about what.

Winding our way back down we head off in another direction which will eventually lead us back to our home places but not for several hours yet.  We have just begun.

This was one of our finer afternoon roads.  One such road led us to a 1 1/2 laner as we refer to it which turned into a short gravel stretch before asphalt was felt again.

A lot of cattle are grown on these hills.  And this old barn is a remnant of years gone by.  Rusty tin roof, weathered gray boards and lots of nature time.  However, it is still standing and performing its duties as when it was first built.

Since flat land is rare in this part of the country they didn't waste a speck of it.  Houses, barns, sheds, etc., are built right up to the road's edge in many places.  Step out onto the front porch and get mail handed to you without using a mail box.  Of course you have to keep an eye out for passing vehicles and wide loads.

Lunch time brought us to one of our normal stopping places for a hot dog. After a pit stop, eating the hot dog and drinking a tall can of Arizona tea we hit the road heading back.

But before we get to relaxed, it was time to hit one of those "I'm not sure what the surface is nor how far it goes before we come out onto good ground" roads.

Ran across this little fixer-upper Fifth Wheel travel trailer.  Seems to have had a roof problem that turned into a total rear end problem.

That gouged out area near the top of the mountain here is a rock quarry.  Crushed limestone, rock size depending on what you are going to use it for.  Ground up about like gravel they refer to it as "crush and run".  Some even call it chattle.  Both were new to me when I moved here.

Notice there are no wide shoulders on the highways.  One reason to keep your mind on your business of riding or driving as to veer off the highway makes one come to an abrupt stop with serious consequences.

Love these roads.  Looks like a real sharpie ahead.  And sometimes they do this with an up elevation to them.

Just another set of twisties with a good set of long curves.  Nice to let her hang out some to clear the carbs.

 Back on U.S. 25 heading South toward Knoxville but not actually entering it.  We'll make a turn off toward Rte. 66 again and stop by one of our favorite stopping points, Mountain Motorsports, for a free coffee and to look over the bikes, new and used.

Nearing our ending destination made this another great day to ride.  A little warm but good anyway.  Helps you to keep track on how well your deodorant works.

Fun gauge, Excellent; Mileage, 227 door to door.  And this ride included 6 short videos to boot.  Another great day in the mountains.  So until the next adventure trip, soak up the fun while living under the sun.

The Unplanned Ride

It seems ages since I've been able to ride more than a few miles running errands what with company (which was greatly enjoyed) and the rain (thought I had moved from the swamps of LA to the rainforest of TN).  But Wednesday, July 8, I mounted Sweet Thang at 7:30 to meet up with my fellow biker for a ride that did not have a pre-planned route or destination except to be back in the house area by 2:00 p.m.

It was one of those "iffy" days where God, the Weather forecasters, and us did not have a good feeling as to if it was going to rain, when it was going to rain, and if we could get a ride in before it rained.  Very overcast, humid, dampness in the air and "where's the sun" stuck in your head.

Boyds Crk. Hwy. North out of the subdivision, looking at the sun trying to come out but desperately struggling.

A few miles further up Boyds Crk. Hwy. you can see the clouds laying in the valleys.  An artist only needs a touch of blue, white and gray but a lot of green.

I met up with Paul at the Exxon and got there early enough to actually drink a full cup of coffee before he rode up, yep, early too.  Donned the helmet, cranked Sweet Thang and we headed onward to Rte. 66, TN style.  As we got to the intersection of 66 Paul pulled into the Pilot station there which I found odd as he usually starts out with a full tank of gas.  Arriving I noticed he rode right up to two bikers that were waiting there.

They had called him the night before to say they wanted to join in on the ride.  Irwin and Dave, two guys I have ridden with before, have known Paul many years.  So after a short chat, Paul pulls out, me next, Irwin and then Dave.  No particular route, just follow the leader.  And since Paul has ridden all, and I do mean all, of the roads around here, he was the leader.

We took some winding back roads through the farming country Northeast of Sevierville.  Everything was very green from all of the rain we have had lately and with the warm weather you could almost hear the grass grow.

Lots of hay under the shed and still more to come.  Problem now is the farmers can't mow the grass because it will rot on the grown before they can bale or roll it.  The longer it grows the tougher the stems get.

Then the sun peaked out for a few minutes just as we were riding along side a cedar tree lined road.  Due to the size of the Eastern Red Cedar trees you could tell they were really old as they grow very slow.

That's a steeple on the ground and it has been there as a yard decoration for as long as I've lived in TN.  Is that a speck of blue sky I see to my right?  Why yes it is, just a speck.

I just love some of these roads around this area.  If you look close we are exiting one curve to go into another curve to the left and then to another curve to the right and then left and then right as it fades out of the picture.  Good thing the speed is only 45 mph.  Or there abouts.

And how does my garden grow?  Green green green.  And pretty clean considering the rain.

An old tobacco barn very near the road.  Since flat land is hard to find they use every bit they can and over the years the roads have widened and it looks as if you're going to knock the corner from a building or ride through it.

This was a breakfast run, a first for a Mexican Rest. that had just started to serve breakfast.  Paul had a 2 for 1 coupon.  Meal was good, but a little pricey for a breakfast.

After breakfast we headed out again with our route taking us by Walters State Community College in Sevierville.  There are about 5 such campuses around East TN.  This one has several medical programs such as X-ray Techs, Nursing, etc., along with other programs.

Sky was darkening again.  We had a 20% chance of rain today and it kept looking as if we were going to get the remaining 80% at any time.






A short time later and another road change we found ourselves on this narrow two lane county road.  Notice there are not shoulders and not mistakes when running off the pavement as there are barbed wire fences on both sides of the road along with some sturdy trees as stops.





As we rode by one of the homes of a 1%er (rich folk) we then entered an old neighborhood with split rail fences in some areas and stone fences like those found in Ireland.

Now we were for enough north and east to see the mountains in the distance. Lots of clouds covering the mountain tops and they didn't look too friendly.

                     
All I can say about this is Kudzu, Kudzu, Kudzu and you don't need a Kleenex.  However, it does have a faint sweet fragrance.  It is way worse than crabgrass, poison ivy or Bermuda.  There's very little that can rid a place of this stuff.  But if they ever find a real good use for it, the South can definitely supply the need.

Corn fields are in full production as are the tomato fields.  Gonna be a bumper crop this year if the rain will slow down.  And to some extent it has.  No rain in our area for 3 days but that is coming to an end as Saturday and Sunday have heavy rain predictions.

Country churches and winding roads seem to have something in common.

 Did I mention the weather was very unpredictable?  Well, that cloud sure looks like rain to me and Paul is still heading in that direction.  Maybe his bike doesn't know how to make a U-turn.  Then maybe we're not to smart to keep following him.

Pleasant views along the way including a nice bunch of flowers on a hillside lawn.

And now as I ride through the green tunnel of never ending, I pray no ogres, monsters and/or zombies lay in wait for a fat tasty morsel.  I sure hope if they're there that they had the forethought to bring along some medicine suitable for indigestion.

A short burst of flat smooth roadway and then we changed directions to run alongside a fast flowing stream.

A turn or three we found ourselves on the Foothills Parkway near Cosby, TN.  Pulling into an overlook area gives a great view of the valley to the west.

It also makes a great backdrop for a bike picture.

Heading back we passed this well constructed old barn with a silo whose top was missing.  You don't see many brick barns in this area as most are made of wood/lumber sided.

Scenic river view prior to us coming into the town of Newport, TN.

The bridge railing on this route is well decorated with Petunias in hanging baskets.  Would look nice on my front porch but this area is tough and I wouldn't want to spend the night in their jail.  Or anyone else's jail for that matter.  They do make a pretty sight as you drive into town.





This Unplanned Ride took us over some pretty roads, through some beautiful country side and was enjoyed by all four of us.  I think it was an even better ride since it wasn't planned.  A Mexican breakfast omelet, a Trailmix snack later to be topped off with a homemade fresh strawberry cobbler with vanilla ice cream.  That was Lunch.

Total miles today, 125 door to door.  Not a long distance but for the amount of time, a good trip.  No rain.  Good fellowship.  Magnificent scenery and real comradery.  So until the next Valkyrie Adventure, be nice, be charming, be adventurous.