Anyone to the Blue Ridge Parkway?

[tngw1500se]

The Tail of the Dragon is a great place to get killed. All the idiots go there and come at you left of center in blind curves. It's only 11 miles and not a hard ride compared to some other roads.

The BRP from Cherokee to 215 is my favorite ride. Don't miss Waterrock Knob at sunset. Some of the other roads in that area get missed. 215 from the parkway south down to 64 is killer. I did it in the dark one night. Really a challenge in the dark!

One that gets missed is the Devils Triangle here in Oliver Springs. It's a good ride and unlike the Dragon it's long enough. I live on it so I get bored with it since it's at the end of my driveway.

 

[ST13Fred]

Hey ST13Fred!
Have you tried the "Back of the Dragon" just south of you at Tazewell, Va.?
Or the "Claw of the Dragon?"
So many Dragon parts being thrown around it is hard to keep things straight!

No. I remember another Dragon anatomy section of road very near the famous Deal's Gap. The sign was near a T-intersection where a small store sat.
The 11-mile Gap has the highest cycle accident rate in the world. Killboy.com can attest to that.

The long sweeping turns of the Cherohala that I've run several times in both directions on my then ST13A is my favorite.

 

[Deleted member 5383]

The Dragon's Breath must be up here in Montana, because we sure have a lot of wind/gusting, and forest fires galore once the snow is melted back!

 

[GregC]

I won't ride the dragon on weekends for that reason- too many people and half of them either don't know what they're doing or think they are filming Fast and Furious part 15. Throw in the odd large truck or RV and you've got a mess.


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[Triumph 'n Shadow]

So the three things I must now do are:

1) Organize all these great driving locations
2) Get a new seat on my NC so my backside WANTS to ride all these roads.
3) Ride the "Tail of the Dragon" on a week day.

tngw1500se:
The Devil's Triangle was on last weekends "To Do" list but we ran out of time.
But it is still on the list and I hope to accomplish it soon.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on it.

Skyline Drive is 105 miles (Fee to drive)
Blue Ridge Parkway is 469 miles (No fee)
Tail of the Dragon is 11 miles (No fee)
Devil's Triangle is 44 miles (No fee)
Cherohala Skyway is 43 miles
Back of the Dragon is 32 miles
Claw o the Dragon is 224 miles

Am I missing any I may want to add?
Good thing the NC gets great gas mileage!!!

God bless and ride safe!!

Michael

 

[tngw1500se]

The Devils Triangle is made up of three roads, 62, 330 & 116 with 116 being the only good part of it. The rest of it is not really curvy & is disappointing. A better ride is to skip 330 & 62 and just ride the rest of 116 that is not part of the triangle. From interstate 75 get off at Rocky Top TN (Formally Lake City) and take hwy 116 west. Ride that road all the way over to hwy 62 turn around and ride it in reverse order. Be careful, there are parts of 116 that are not forgiving. It you cross over the white edge line, the road is gone. You're fertilizer. This road is more challenging that the Dragon. There's switchbacks and it's much longer. A few of the straight sections sucker you into looking around a bit to much, then the sharp curve at the end sneaks back up on you awful quick. If you see a gravel driveway entering the road, be aware there may be gravel on the road. Gingers market is just a few miles west of Briceville TN and they serve a decent burger and fries. There's gravel roads turning off 116 that may seem interesting but a lot of them go into Coal Creek property and you need a permit to ride them.

If you're adventurous, New River road takes off North at the most northern part of 116 here: N36° 12.670' W84° 19.280' It's gravel for a few miles and then you turn east on paved Stoney Fork Rd. follow that road through the town of Peewee (not kidding) it drops you out (after viewing a killer 50 mile overlook) in Caryville TN on Interstate 75 at the 134 mile marker.

Note that New River road is marked as 116 on Garmin GPS. It's not. Garmin map show 116 going off three directions at that intersection.


A few more:

Hwy 25 from Jellico TN to La Follette TN.

441 goes over Norris dam at the 128 exit.

Old hwy 63 north from interstate exit 134

New Hwy 63 from exit 122 past Big Ridge state park is a nice ride.

297 south from Jellico down to new 63


That should hold you a while

PS: Add a note to the Cherohala Skyway "NO GAS"

 

[Iceback]

I just rode the whole length (N-S) Wednesday / Thursday. I'd done parts in a car numerous times, but not on the bike. Great weather, great views and a good time of year as I passed more motorcycles than cars. Started at the northern end in the a.m. and drove to Blowing Rock first day, then the lower section to Cherokee Thursday. First multi-day trip on the 2016 NC, and the Sargent seat performed like a champ. Hope to do it again in the fall. Really lucked out on the weather... a day later would have been in full rain gear. Overall fabulous ride, really helped my learning curve with the DCT.

 

[670cc]

I just rode the whole length (N-S) Wednesday / Thursday. I'd done parts in a car numerous times, but not on the bike. Great weather, great views and a good time of year as I passed more motorcycles than cars. Started at the northern end in the a.m. and drove to Blowing Rock first day, then the lower section to Cherokee Thursday. First multi-day trip on the 2016 NC, and the Sargent seat performed like a champ. Hope to do it again in the fall. Really lucked out on the weather... a day later would have been in full rain gear. Overall fabulous ride, really helped my learning curve with the DCT.

I was on the southern section of the Parkway Thursday afternoon. I coulda swore I saw a couple NCs while I was there. Perhaps one of them was yours!

 

[Iceback]

Maybe... I was riding with a Yamaha Super Tenere and a Harley... Good time of year, the parkway can get pretty crowded in the summer with RVs and day trippers, lots of bikes and few cars this trip. Saw a couple of NCs pass me by.. standard 2 finger salute to all.

 

[tngw1500se]

................the parkway can get pretty crowded in the summer..........

I can deal with the weekday summer traffic. The fall is when it really sucks. That's when the leaf lookers are all doing 20 MPH. If you pass one there's just 20 more ahead of them.

 

[GregC]

I can deal with the weekday summer traffic. The fall is when it really sucks. That's when the leaf lookers are all doing 20 MPH. If you pass one there's just 20 more ahead of them.

And they'll stop literally in the middle of the road to look at the leaves. Around a blind corner. [emoji15]


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[Triumph 'n Shadow]

Here is a link to 100 "Scenic Rides" classified as two wheel worthy.

Top 100 Routes | Motorcycle Roads and Rides | MotorcycleRoads.com

There are 4 listed in my state (Pennsylvania).

They do not include Rt144 in Pa. which might be the best ride in Pa. I have ever taken.

Rt6 is on it because, though not really twisty, it runs the entire width of the state and runs through many small old towns.

I often like to listen what my NC brothers and sisters have to say about various bike routes because you people know the side roads and back roads!

God bless and ride safe!!

Michael

 

[Iceback]

And they'll stop literally in the middle of the road to look at the leaves. Around a blind corner. [emoji15]


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Or they slow to a crawl passing an overlook trying to decide if it is worthwhile pulling in or not. You guys are correct, the fall is the worst. 3 hrs from ATL and 2 hrs from CLT packs the road during peak leaf season. The summer is always full of lots of RVs and trailers on their way through the area. If you can hit the Parkway in the off season, especially a warm winter day (no leaves, better views) it is worth the effort. One of the primary reasons I bought my bike.

 

[Triumph 'n Shadow]

My wife and I took a nice ride on the bike from north central Pennsylvania up to Watkins Glen, NY on Saturday.
A beautiful day for a ride.
I enjoyed the ride so much just for looking at the mountains for the 2 hours north and then the 2 hours south a different route.
I credit driving the Blue Ridge Parkway for helping me to truly appreciate the mountains we have around us.
Ever since we arrived home I have taken rides now enjoy our mountains like I never have before.
I hope others will allow new surroundings encountered by the freedom their NC provides to really help them enjoy life.
There is really so much beauty around us everyday that we sometimes take for granted because we have been in the
middle of it for a long time period and we do not see how wonderful and special it really is.

God bless!!

Michael

 

[SergeantChuck]

I had my first experience with the Blue Ridge Parkway this weekend. I think the area is beautiful and I bet at one time this was a really fun place to ride but I didn't really enjoy myself. It was a 10 hour ride there only to ride a road that was packed with bikes. I can have more fun, less traffic, riding roads out my back door in Arkansas. Sorry if I'm offending anyone but it is how I felt about the ride.

I was in the area to attend the largest geocaching event in the US. It is called Geowoodstock. The event was held at the fairground in Waynesville. I couldn't very well be in the area and not attempt to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway. Unfortunately, it appears that Memorial Day weekend is prime riding time for just about every single Harley on the East coast. That's how it felt anyway. I didn't much enjoy my ride. There were too many bikes on the road and I really didn't feel polite passing large groups so I would just have to hang back and hope they pulled off or cruise behind them. Maybe I just like riding to fast but I eventually turned around and didn't even finish the entire route. I was getting stressed out over the traffic so finally just called it.

I did enjoy the little towns of Maggie Valley and Waynesville. I stayed in Maggie Valley at a hole hotel called the "Five Star Inn". Nice folks there and a very clean hotel considering it is pretty old. Wifi sucks though and if you don't have Verizon or AT&T you will likely not have cell reception. I had breakfast every morning at a place called Joe's Pancake House and they have some dang good corned beef hash.

I can see the attraction to the road and ride but its not much fun in heavy bike traffic.

 

[670cc]

I had my first experience with the Blue Ridge Parkway this weekend. I think the area is beautiful and I bet at one time this was a really fun place to ride but I didn't really enjoy myself. It was a 10 hour ride there only to ride a road that was packed with bikes. I can have more fun, less traffic, riding roads out my back door in Arkansas. Sorry if I'm offending anyone but it is how I felt about the ride.

I was in the area to attend the largest geocaching event in the US. It is called Geowoodstock. The event was held at the fairground in Waynesville. I couldn't very well be in the area and not attempt to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway. Unfortunately, it appears that Memorial Day weekend is prime riding time for just about every single Harley on the East coast. That's how it felt anyway. I didn't much enjoy my ride. There were too many bikes on the road and I really didn't feel polite passing large groups so I would just have to hang back and hope they pulled off or cruise behind them. Maybe I just like riding to fast but I eventually turned around and didn't even finish the entire route. I was getting stressed out over the traffic so finally just called it.

I did enjoy the little towns of Maggie Valley and Waynesville. I stayed in Maggie Valley at a hole hotel called the "Five Star Inn". Nice folks there and a very clean hotel considering it is pretty old. Wifi sucks though and if you don't have Verizon or AT&T you will likely not have cell reception. I had breakfast every morning at a place called Joe's Pancake House and they have some dang good corned beef hash.

I can see the attraction to the road and ride but its not much fun in heavy bike traffic.

Like any attraction, going at peak busy times is likely to leave you with a bad impression. I've been on the Parkway many times and had it nearly to myself. It is, however, something like second place in most visited National Park Service sites, so crowds are to be expected. Going there on a holiday weekend would be like me taking my boat to the local lake on a holiday. Fuggedabotit.

 

[SergeantChuck]

Like any attraction, going at peak busy times is likely to leave you with a bad impression. I've been on the Parkway many times and had it nearly to myself. It is, however, something like second place in most visited National Park Service sites, so crowds are to be expected. Going there on a holiday weekend would be like me taking my boat to the local lake on a holiday. Fuggedabotit.

Yea, I knew the area would likely be flooded with bikes but I had to at least try since I was in the area for a different event. It also appears that the Maggie Valley area is a very popular place to start the ride so my timing wasn't right but I was primarily there for a different event. Just thought I would try the ride. I'll give it another shot when temps are cooling and the fair weather riders park there bikes again.

 

[drdubb]

Lots of great roads in the area. We always go the weekend prior to Memorial day, base in Stecoah, NC. Yes, Arkansas also has a lot of great roads. I've sampled a few and hope to do more.

 

[tngw1500se]

I had my first experience with the Blue Ridge Parkway this weekend. I think the area is beautiful and I bet at one time this was a really fun place to ride but I didn't really enjoy myself. It was a 10 hour ride there only to ride a road that was packed with bikes. I can have more fun, less traffic, riding roads out my back door in Arkansas. Sorry if I'm offending anyone but it is how I felt about the ride.

I was in the area to attend the largest geocaching event in the US. It is called Geowoodstock. The event was held at the fairground in Waynesville. I couldn't very well be in the area and not attempt to ride the Blue Ridge Parkway. Unfortunately, it appears that Memorial Day weekend is prime riding time for just about every single Harley on the East coast. That's how it felt anyway. I didn't much enjoy my ride. There were too many bikes on the road and I really didn't feel polite passing large groups so I would just have to hang back and hope they pulled off or cruise behind them. Maybe I just like riding to fast but I eventually turned around and didn't even finish the entire route. I was getting stressed out over the traffic so finally just called it.

I did enjoy the little towns of Maggie Valley and Waynesville. I stayed in Maggie Valley at a hole hotel called the "Five Star Inn". Nice folks there and a very clean hotel considering it is pretty old. Wifi sucks though and if you don't have Verizon or AT&T you will likely not have cell reception. I had breakfast every morning at a place called Joe's Pancake House and they have some dang good corned beef hash.

I can see the attraction to the road and ride but its not much fun in heavy bike traffic.

You went at the wrong time. Weekends get busy and the fall sucks for traffic every day of the week. When we get stuck behind a group of slow bikes, we just slow to a crawl and wait until they get down the road, then we catch them again. Most of the time other bikes will pull off and let you by. We run it about 60MPH no problem and we don't speed up for the straight sections.

 

[DooDah]

I live about 2 hours away and would love to ride it. I got a Corbin seat and that makes riding over and hour possible for me now.