It's been a while since I've written a Valkyrie Adventure mainly because since I wrecked back on May 19th I haven't ridden very much. The other reason is that the rides I did take were not new roads for the most part. So here we go for another adventure.
Tuesday, June 21, 2016, I flew to Little Rock, AR. A retired working friend drove from his home down to LR to pick me up and take me to Searcy, Ar, about 6 miles from his home. We arrived at the Sunrise Motosport dealership and was I surprised. I thought it was more of a Mom and Pop dealership but they are very large with lots of bikes and ATVs both new and used. I had worked out a deal on a 2014 Red Honda NC700X like the one that I wrecked. Except this one was two years newer and Red instead of Silver and Black. We signed the papers, I followed Donnell to a restaurant about 2 miles away, we ate, said our goodbyes and off I rode heading for Seymour, TN. After 11hrs. and 20mins. I pulled into my garage at 12:20 a.m. Wed. morning. A total of 531 miles. Butt tired.
So now for the rest of the story.
Thursday morning, 6:50 a.m., I pushed the new bike, now named "Mr. Red Bug", out of the garage, with me all donned in my riding jacket and overpants, to meet up with biker friend Paul at MickyD's for a quick breakfast. I also needed to top off my gas tank so I left a bit early. Meet-up time was 7:30. I gassed up and rode next door to MickyDs and Paul was already there, eating. I walked in, ordered my breakfast sandwich and a cup of coffee, and went and sat down by Paul. I quickly downed my food and about 7:40 we rode out of the parking lot. Today's ride was going to take us on some main roads, some back roads to get around Maryville and then over to the Tail of The Dragon, through Joyce Kilmer Forest to the Foothills Parkway to the Cherohala Skyway. This should be enough curves to break Mr. Red Bug in the right way.
Temps in the low 70s for our start building to 93 or so for the day. A great day to ride.
Future whiskey barrels for the distilleries.
Resting.
Hay rolls waiting to be picked up and hauled to the barn.
TN back road. Ride Cowboy Ride.
Mountains in the far distance. Who could not like this scene.
No, that's not a fault line on the right. It's a small stream along the highway but a big fault if you stray into it.
When was the last time you saw one of these moving along the highway? An old VW van. And it looked really good for its age.
Speeding along the backroads working our way around the city of Maryville. Miss a lot of traffic this way.
Riding the Foothills Parkway heading toward the Dragon.
Mimosas. No, not the kind you drink. These are trees and in full bloom.
Running US129 listening for the sound of The Dragon.
Heard of hair nets? Well, these are rock nets. Steel mesh nets that try to keep the smaller rocks from falling into the roadway.
That green patch at the upper side of the water is suppose to be under the water. The water runs the hydro-electric units in the dam farther down. Drained to do some work and the rain hasn't been sufficient to fill the lake this year so far.
Riding the Tail of The Dragon.
Deals Gap, the NC end of The Tail of The Dragon. A must stop place for all motorcyclists. Here's Mr. Red Bug posing for a photo. It now has a larger windshield with one of those red USMC dragons on it. Not to mention two silver reflective dragons on the back of my helmet. Bikers from all over come to this place.
The store, gas station, restaurant, gift shop, etc., at Deals Gap.
A custom painted patriotic Honda Gold Wing visiting the Dragon.
An old Lodge in a very picturesque setting along the river below Deals Gap.
Heading toward Joyce Kilmer Forest and onward to the Cherohala.
Don't let this road fool you. It is paved with asphalt but has more ripples in it than a rushing mountain stream. It also appears to have a lot of loose rock on it but it doesn't. However, it will keep you clinched tightly on the seat because you just never know.
Riding on the Cherohala Skyway. This road climbs to over 5200 feet elevation and the temp falls as you climb.
It started getting cooler and by the time we got to the top a windbreaker on would have felt good. And it started getting foggy as we got higher. A low cloud was settled over the top of the mountain.
At the top, 5235 ft. above sea level. That's about 5231 feet higher than where I lived in Harvey, LA across the river from N.O.
Indian Boundary Lake and park. Camping allowed in marked settings, small sandy beach, cold water to play and/or boat in. But bring what you need as it's a long way back to the store.
Paul and I taking a break at the Boundary Lake recreation area.
We cut off the Cherohala at the western end and took TN 360 back toward US411 which would take us back to the house. That heavy greenery is Kudzu, a vine that will take over everything if you let it.
Country scenes along TN 360.
No, we didn't ride through that barn, just very near one end of it.
A back road off a back road.
Lake near Ft. Loudon State Park.
Sequoyah Museum, the chief of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians. Interesting little museum.
It was a great day of riding. A little warm at the end, but still a great day. All total, 194.5 miles door to door for me. Now back to doing work around the house and hoping for a non-rain day next week to roll a few more miles.
So until the next adventure, take some time to enjoy what you have, where you are and things you've missed along the way. But most of all, be safe. Thank you again Donnell for picking me up. I really enjoyed spending time with you. Miss the guys I worked with, great folks.
It started getting cooler and by the time we got to the top a windbreaker on would have felt good. And it started getting foggy as we got higher. A low cloud was settled over the top of the mountain. 
