Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2015. The time, 6:30 a.m. Weather, upper 60s to start with highs in upper 70s. Partly Cloudy. Donned the riding gear, backed Sweet Thang out of the garage, and rode off into the dark foggy morning for the gas station at the jct. of Boyds Creek and Chapman Hwy. to gas up and meet Paul there. I was early enough to also grab a biscuit and a cup of coffee. As I walked out with my eats, low and behold, Paul was there topping off his tank. If I had not gotten the food he would be right on time for 7:00 a.m.
The fog lifted so that the road was just a little hazy, nothing that blurred your vision but damp enough to get you wet if you were not protected. It also made the roads damp which makes you ride a little tense.
This soy bean field is ready for harvesting and if this moisture keeps getting it wet every day, they will mold on the stalk.
Paul and I were to meet up with Terry and Kevin at Hardee's in Vonor, TN. They were right on time. We stayed long enough to make a pit stop and off we went again heading south on US 411.
Later we would turn West and ride over to hit I-75 to take us to Hwy. 30 north of Chattanooga. But before that we would ride several back roads.
One of the back roads looked more like a long drive to a farm than a highway. But then, a lot of scenery is usually found on such roads.
From that road we took several more and it seemed they were getting more crooked. Wet leaves makes a tense ride.
Finally we hit I-75 and kind of air it out until we got just south of Cleveland, TN where we too TN 30 over and around Chattanooga riding along the river front.
As you get closer to Chattanooga you realize the land seems to get flatter. What happened to the mountains? Oh, they're on the Eastern side and you're down in a valley.
Some very large farms along this route (or maybe it's one of those government missile silo stations).
From Hwy. 30 we turned south on Hwy. 58 running along the river to eventually cross a part of Harrison Bay. Harrison Bay State Park is located in this area.
Finally we start coming into the edge of Chattanooga.
This is the north side of the city which has some very modern looking apartment buildings.
As we get nearer downtown you start to see the bridges that cross the Tennessee River.
From the structural steel you can tell this is one of the older bridges.
Four little bicycles all in a row. A lot of people were using this area to see the sights and take quiet walks.
Parked near a bridge and behind these trees is a paddle wheeler used by visitors to take trips up and down the Tennessee River.
Getting closer to downtown you see the high rise buildings in the distance.
We scooted around the city and connected with I-24 west bound. Our destination was up on that mountain which has the top obscured by fog. Doesn't look very promising.
One of the prettiest points in Chattanooga on a sunny day. This is the bend in the TN River just SW of Chattanooga heading toward Raccoon Mtn.
Our main destination was a TVA pump station. It pumps water up and lets it run down generating electricity in the process. On the internet they indicate a new visitor center which is what we were interested in. The ride up the mountain is very pretty but the road was very wet and had a lot of leaves on it making it slippery.
And to make matters worse, when we got up close to the top, a guard stepped out of her guard shack and informed us that we couldn't go any farther. Then she told us the visitor center was under construction and not open to the public. Now ain't that a kick in the toot. All that distance and no sightseeing.
So we went to Plan B, go back down the mountain and then ride up Missionary Ridge. This was a famous battle during the Civil War. The houses on Missionary Ridge belong to the 1%ers, big money. Probably old money. But it was a very nice place. It is a residential area in a battlefield park.
There are monuments about the area, placards indicating which military group was there, cannon placed and some even in front yards.
After the stop at the above monument Paul departed for GA and a visit with his son while Terry, Kevin and I rode the rest of Missionary Ridge and across this bridge.
A view from the top of Missionary Ridge. It was still enough fog in the air to make the pictures look hazy.
We rode back roads from Chattanooga to our various houses. We ran mostly US 11 and each turned off, first Kevin at Vonore and then Terry at Lenoir City. At Lenoir City I turned West on US 321 over to Maryville and north on US 411 to Seymour and the house. Door to door today was 279 miles. A little tense, a little damp but a dang good ride. And learned some history in the process.
Tomorrow, get the oil changed in Sweet Thang and then start riding that Orange thing for a couple of days mulching leaves. This is a never ending job until about January. If I could find a way of eating them I would never have to go to a grocery again. Tis the price you pay if you like trees so I think it's okay to mulch.
So until the next Valkyrie Adventure, keep safe, keep dry and don't forget to visit your friends and family. It's a lonely world without them.
From that road we took several more and it seemed they were getting more crooked. Wet leaves makes a tense ride.
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