Maynardville, Norris and Corryton, 8-21-19

Wednesday, August 21, 2019, a cool summer morning.  Biker friend Paul and I were to meet up at UShop on Boyds Creek around 7:30.  I arrived a bit early so that I could top off my gas tank before Redbug made another excursion into the backroads of East Tennessee.  Paul arrived early so at 7:15 a.m. we headed out for some backroads leading to Maynardville and beyond.  Approaching weather and tired of same old roads helped us to change directions.

It was a gorgeous sunrise this morning even with the power lines in the picture.  Temps were in the upper 60s so it was a good start.  Trying to be back home around 1:00 p.m. before it gets so hot.

My old Island View School House still standing.  The owner does a little work on it every so often to keep it in shape.

We crossed over I-40 and across Dumpling Valley Rd. to hit Hwy. 25.  A nice little ride between the two highways.

Horse farms along this route and a lot of white fences.

 Crossing the Holston River.  This bridge is a bit unusual in its design.  It is all steel reinforced concrete.

 Right after you cross the bridge you start into Kudzu Valley, or at least that's what I refer to it as.  It's everywhere.

The trees are draped in Kudzu vines.  If you stop for a bit the vines start winding their way toward you.  A touch of Sci-Fi here.

Nice little curvy road with some very expensive houses every so often.

Then we turned onto one of Paul's roads with Character.  That means it has no center line, it's about one lane wide and tunnels its way through the greenery.

Rolls of recently rolled hay.  Farmers are getting ready for winter.  Hay is a big commodity in this area.

I love old barns as you can probably tell from past stories.  That imprint on the side is referred to as a Barn Blanket.  Some people travel around asking if they can paint these on barns or storage buildings.  They are pretty neat and many varying designs.

A little morning mist seen above the tops of the trees looking toward the sun.  It will soon burn off and increase the humidity for the rest of the day.

Nice curves, mostly can be taken at the posted speed limit without slowing down.  Easy riding.

I love pictures and views of the morning mist laying in the low spots between the hills or mountains. 

Our journey will take us to Maynardville and a Hardee's for a Big Breakfast.  Paul, the Koupon Kid, has coupons for us this morning.  I mainly want a cup of coffee as I started out this morning without one.

Some of these back roads keep you guessing.  Notice there's no center lane stripe and you really don't know what's over that hill.

Then you get to take a nice slow ride through the trees and fenced yards and fields.

And finally at the end of that stretch you get to make a curve, first downhill and then back uphill.

The nice thing about these roads is the stark natural beauty.  But keep in mind, this is a two way traffic roadway.

Onto a larger road this time heading toward Norris.  The original town of Norris was bought out by TVA in order to build the Norris Dam generating facility.

The breakfast was filling and afterward we headed onward to Norris and then make a stop at Corryton, TN at one of our usual stopping places.

Some type vine, not Kudzu, is slowly overtaking that large tree.  Nature is definitely alive.

On our way we traveled to a place that I had never been.  It was the Loyston State Park, built on the banks of Norris Lake.  A very quiet and peaceful place.

The water is green here and notice some of the vegetation starting to change in color.  I told a friend the other day that I believe we are going to have an early Fall as a lot of trees are starting to get that dull green look and some are dropping leaves.

A beautiful view looking up one of the legs of the Norris Lake.

Across the way were some campers enjoying the area.

Back toward the main road we traveled.  We ran into several dead-ends just exploring the roads here.

We never get lost.  We just find some new routes from time to time.  You can't get lost if you don't know where you're going.  Right?

 Going through the Town of Norris is somewhat going back in time.  Lots of old type street markings and signs, etc.

Then we pass by some of the more expensive houses in the area.

 Picture quality isn't good but I shot this one over my shoulder.  Just seemed a bit odd in its design.

A lone cell phone tower.  If it wasn't here you would be using homing pigeons to do messaging.

Downhill run, a little braking and a nice sharp curve.  This will certainly wake you up if you're riding along semi-dazed.

A nice long straight run through some woods.  I keep one eye out for Big Foot and my ears alert for Little Red Riding Hood.

We're riding through horse country.  There's some very nice looking horses in the area.

We crossed another bridge and below was a quiet scene with a boat with some men fishing.  The water was mirror smooth this morning.

A very nice log home on the bank of the river.

We're now heading to Corryton which is on I-75 north of Knoxville.  We will be stopping for a snack for lunch.  Actually we will split a pancake and have a cup of coffee each.  The pancake is about one inch thick and about eight or so inches in diameter.  And the waitress/cook/? is very loud.

After our lunch snack we hit the interstate back toward the house.

We will run it to Knoxville, take the James White Freeway for a bit and then run the Lizard over toward the house.

This was a great ride.  Cool start with a warm finish.  And best of all, safe.  We rode a few new roads and a bunch of old roads but riding a motorcycle it doesn't matter, just ride.  And riding with a friend(s) just makes it better.

Today's ride was 158 miles door to door.  Spent about four or so hours in the saddle and about an hour for the two meals.  Not a bad day at all.



So, until the next Valkyrie Adventure, go someplace you haven't been or take a route you've never traveled just for the heck of it.  Life is short my friends and waiting until tomorrow may be a day late in making that decision.  God has been good to me and I hope He has been the same for you.  Ride/drive safe.

Ride To The Top Of The Mountain

It's August 16, 2019, Friday morning, unusually cool for this time of year but most everyone is loving it.  I left the house about 8:50 a.m. right after the wife left for work.  She works hard to keep me in gas money.  It was in the upper 60s and I was wearing my summer riding jacket and riding pants over my Bermuda shorts.  Strapped on my helmet, put on my summer riding gloves and pushed Redbug out of the garage into the cool morning air.  It was going to be a grande day for sure.

Fired Redbug off and headed out of the subdivision.  Man, it felt great.  I was going to stop by and have coffee with the "Elderlies" before doing my ride.  So off to McDonalds I rode.  Shot the bull for a while and drank a cup of decaf coffee then headed out for the top of the mountain, Newfound Pass, where NC and TN meet in the Smokies.  Time, 10:00 a.m. and still cool.

Heading East from Seymour, TN toward the Smokies.  I took a bunch of backroads to get to the far end of Pigeon Forge so that I wouldn't have to put up with all of the traffic.

There are some great back roads in the area where I live and most of the time have very little traffic to contend with.

You always have to stay alert even if the traffic is low.  This time of the year a lot of hay is being baled and meeting a large tractor pulling equipment on these narrow roads can be tricky.

It is really cool riding in the shade.  Actually I could have used a long sleeve shirt this morning but it will warm up quickly, usually by or just before noon.

Around Pigeon Forge and now onto the Spur, that stretch of US441 that connects Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg.

 The Spur actually runs through the edge of the Smoky Mountain National Park before it gets to Gatlinburg.

I took the by-pass around Gatlinburg and arriving at the Sugarlands Visitor's Center, it was already crowded and it wasn't even 11:00.

Traffic wasn't too bad but following cars that tend to slow down for every curve or tree or both makes it seem like forever getting through.  Some have the courtesy to pull off as the signs indicate.  Sometimes they seem to not be able to read.

However, griping or not, there's not many places to pass along the way so just settle down and enjoy the ride and the nice cool air.  We have already gained about 2,000 feet of altitude.

Since the fire a couple of years back, the mountains are slowing getting their growth back.  Still sad to see the areas that burned.  Takes a long time for hardwood trees to get back to where they were.  I won't be around to see them but the younger generations can.

One of the first really scenic pulloffs going up the mountain.  Probably the most photographed  sections of the mountains.

And who wouldn't like to look at these.  I have pics of these mountains for every season, the prettiest being the year my son Shane and I rode up and they were coated with ice.  A real Silvery colorful scene.

On up the mountain I go, following some tourist from out of state.  Can't blame them for going slow, I see this sight all the time.  This may be their first time.

Passing the Chimneys, a very popular trailhead but if you hike, make sure you are in good shape and well equipped.  Not really a beginner's trail.

The sky was exceptionally blue this morning and no clouds.  Won't be long before Jack Frost will come and the leaves will turn more colors than are allowed on an artist's pallet.  Maybe a little nip in the air also.

At the top, Redbug resting pointing toward Cherokee, NC.  Parking lot pretty full and it's about 11:30 a.m.  Time for a bottle of water and a snack.

 A very pretty shot of the mountains at the top, Newfound Gap.

A shiny bit of highway on the lower right side is the road as it continues onward to Cherokee, NC.

Just hard to understand the struggle the first people had crossing these mountains.  Rugged folk for sure.

Had the opportunity to talk with a couple of bikers across the way.  One was from St. Louis, MO and the other was from Florida.  They were friends just meeting up in Gatlinburg to do some riding in the mountains.  Also had the opportunity to talk with a trucker from PA, hauls baby chicks.  Real friendly folks to talk with.

Then I saddled up and headed back down the mountain.  Nice to see tourists and kids looking at the beauty of this earth instead of a phone or game.

Seemed to be a bit faster going down.  If allowed it would be a great ride not having to face on-coming vehicles.  You could Zoom Zoom.

Decided to come back through Gatlinburg.  Traffic wasn't to bad at this time of day.  It was around noon.

It's always good to go through here at least every once in a while just to refresh your memory cells on how many shops there are to take your money.

A backward shot of the Pancake Pantry, a must place to eat if you come up this way.  Bring CASH as they don't take plastic.









After a short ride i find myself back in Pigeon Forge and my stomach tells me that it's time for some food.  How about a chicken biscuit at Bojangles.  I hardly ever stop here but it's handy and not too bad.

After my lunch I rolled out for the house.  It was a delightful ride today and it was just starting to get a bit warm.  Not far from the house so away I went.


All in all, it was a grande day for a ride.  Cool morning temps and no rain.  Total mileage door to door was on 90 miles but an exciting ride all the while. 

So until the next Valkyrie Adventure, enjoy the rest of Summer.  By now many children are already attending school.  However, that is okay for there's still others enjoying the pleasures of summer.  Watch out for those school buses too.  I just know you don't want to hit a child getting on or off the bus so give them room.