Day 5 - Ultimate Twisties Plus

Today I did a ride the place I'm staying has laid out they call the "Ultimate Twisties" and then added a few extra of my own. This route included the infamous "Tail of the Dragon" and Cherohala Skyway. I actually did the Dragon twice! The first time I ran it was early in the morning and there was very little traffic - great ride! It definitely lives up to its name and reputation. The second time I ran it other direction but there more traffic. First I got caught behind 2 slower bikers who caught up to a car. Since there is no place to pass, I pulled over to get some space between us. Then while I was pulled over another car went by so I waited longer. Eventually I took off again (before another car went through) but I again caught the last car to go through who then caught the first car and motorcycles. At that point I just sat back and took it easy for the rest of the ride.

There are a couple of companies that sit along side the road and take photos of people going by. Conveniently, you can then go to their website and buy a photo of you riding the Dragon. When I went to check out the sites, one site had a few photos of me posted and the other site didn't have their photos for the day posted yet. I will have to see if there is anything worth buying from either one.

I also visited the Smoky Mountain National Park. Here I made a bad choice. There is an 11 mile scenic loop that you can take. This turned into an 11 mile parking lot with traffic worse than any city traffic jam. It took forever and it was hot. People would see 1 little deer and park in the road to take photos. There was no way out and no way around. Once you started you were committed. The rest of the ride through the part was uneventful and peaceful ride.

The last road I rode for the day was the Cherohala Skyway. This was a great way to close the ride for the day. Beautiful views, no traffic, great road.

Tomorrow I plan to ride a loop down into Georgia. There is a road there named Wolf Pen Gap that is supposed to be about the same level as the Dragon. I guess I have to check it out! From there I will go back to North Caroline and start working back up the Blue Ridge Parkway and various routes along it.

In the 5 days I have been riding so far, I have logged 2,325 miles with an average of 465 miles per day. There are just so many good roads to ride!

The bike has been wonderful to ride. It is ideally suited for the roads here. It handles the twisties very well and has the comfort and style to be able to RIDE ALL DAY LONG. It just keeps saying more, more, more!