So, you biyatches didn't wanna wait for me to go to the mountains huh? Well I figured I'd make the trip on my own then hahahah, how ya like me now?!
Anyhow, I left on Tuesday of this week from Wilmington....perfect weather to say the least. I trailored my bike up there.....didn't start the trip out too well though....this was the first time that I actually performed tie down of my bike, and I guess I didn't do it properly... I was fine until I got to about Asheville where the curves pick up! I was driving along and I look back to notice that the fuckin bike is leaning down on the ride side of the trailor....i'm like fuck!!!!! So I pulled over promptly to see that the tie down on the left side of the bike had somehow come loose....don't ask me how, I must have done something wrong.....anywayz, I got the bike back up and noticed one pretty nice scratch on the fairing on the right side....pissed me the hell off, but its not too bad....need advice on how to repair this please!! So I finally roll into Cherokee, NC at around 6pm.....tired as hell from driving, but I had to get out and do some riding...Luckily the Blue Ridge Pkwy was only minutes from where I was stayin.....rode the parkway till it became dark and a fairly leisurely pace....I stayed in Cherokee on the recommendation from a friend....if i had to do it again, I'd stay at crossroads of the skyway and deals gap as someone had mentioned before....there are some inns now that have garages, very very convenient...
In order to go on a trip like this, its obviously best to plan....
www.cherohala.com has some maps that will help you in this..
In fact the map that i used was at this site
http://www.cherohala.com/maps/tourmap_2005.gif
I did most of my riding on Wednesday, woke up at 6am, with plans to hit the skyway 1st, lunch stop around 11-12, the gap by 1-2pm, finish there around 4, and then head back to Cherokee....It is all doable in a day if u have a place to stay up there..
The Cherohala Skyway is known as US143...its like 46 miles long...no gas stations along it so fill up in Robbinsville first....and make sure ur bikes in good working order as well, as there ain't shit up on the mountain...and helps a long ways away. Out of all the roads I was on this week, honestly I enjoyed the skyway the most....hardly any traffic at all, great views, and the road is in great condition.....a must ride if ur up this way... The skyway ends in Tellico Plains, TN....I actually took another road before getting to Tellico Plains...US360 up to 411, and then caught 72East down to US129, better known as Deal's Gap!!
I think I was expecting a lot of the Gap before I finally got out there.....it is to say the least a very techincal road.....I took it pretty slow teh first time through.....in fact I was easily being passed by Harley's and Goldwings hahahahhaha (No lie here) I started on the north end of the Gap and went to the southside where the store is located....the deals gap store is actually located in NC.....There were A LOT of bikers out there, and it was in the middle of teh week, I can only imagine what the weekends must be like....it is prime riding weather right now though......Then there was this fuckin asshat in an 18 wheeler...he literally could have killed someone....I was sitting on the north end at the pass, talkin to some other riders, when I see this 18 wheeler rolling up.....Some In-bred SOB sticks his head out of the passenger side and yells yeeeehaww, we gonna ride the gap.....i'm lookin at him shakin my head.....I waited about 10 minutes to ride after they had left.....I caught up with them towards teh end of the gap, and came to a point where 3 bikers had to pull off cause of this dumbass......theres also another point called the "hump" where many trucks have got stuck.....u'll defintely know it when u ride it....The Deals Gap store is pretty cool, lots of interesting stuff to find there, DVDs, bike supplies, memorbilia, etc.....
Theres aslo a professional photography group out there....check out
www.killboy.com for details...I think they got pics of me, but they wont' be out until next week.....Can't wait for that..... I rode the gap 3 times, and then decided to move on....
Some other riders told me that US28south down to the beginning of the skyway is also an awesome road.....I agree, that was a pretty fun ride, some tight corners there as well.....You can also see Fontana Dam off US28, the view there is incredible......
After hitting US28 I headed back to Cherokee....you basically take US74East back...that road is pretty awesome too, portions of it 4 lanes and has some nice curves that you can get some pretty high speed on...be careful there though, there are some NC state troopers out there....
I went back to the hotel for a lil rest, and as soon I was rested up I went back out and hit the blue ridge parkway again....I really enjoyed the uphill portions of it....you can get some decent lean angle there.....I was honestly hesitant in pushing my bikes to its limits....i think its some kind of mental block...there comes a certain point where I dont' lean past....I think I was kinda afraid cuz i was out there by myself.......theres absolutely no phone reception, so don't plan on ur cell phone saving you.....
All in all, it was an AWESOME experience......my order of preference was the Cherohala Skyway, Blue Ridge Parkway, then Deals Gap....I put the gap at the end cuz 1) there was too many ppl out there on the day i went 2) I don't know how to ride it hahahahahha (two should probably be number one)
Here some pics for you guyz
1. On the Skyway in my power ranger suit, don't be jealous hahah
2. On the skyway with a group of riders
3. Action pics of bikes on the skyway
4. North End of Deal's Gap (many ppl congregate here)
5. Deals Gap (in case you bitches didn't believe I actually went)
More pics in the next post
Trip to Cherohala Skyway, Deal's Gap, Blue Ridge Parkway!!
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