Enter the Dragon
A Wild Doggo appeared!
Unknown pulloff, Blue Ridge Parkway
I woke up early and headed out. The morning dew was still on the road, which is one of my favorite times to ride. So peaceful out there before the rat race has started, it feels quieter too. I make it into the mountains before the sun had burned the morning fog off in the valley, its indescribably beautiful, the way the clouds hang and obscure the valleys only getting pierced by tall trees. I took a few pictures and headed out on the parkway.
Unknown Pull Off, Blue Ridge Parkway
After a bit I started getting the sinking feeling of deja-vu. I pulled off and quickly realized I had been heading north instead of south, I did a U-turn and resumed my southern heading. I was hitting every apex, the downshifts were musical; my kung fu was strong. An hour later I had gotten back to where I had started the day. The rest of the BRP was frustrating; while the views were astonishing, the roads were either under construction or had been recently chip sealed. If you don’t know what that is, its when they pour some tar down on the road and than cover it with gravel. Which means loose gravel everywhere, not fun on mountain roads while piloting a motorcycle.
Abandoned Cabin, BRP, Cherokee, NC
On the final stretch of road I thought I saw something off in the woods, so I turned around and parked and hiked into the woods. What I found was an abandoned camp that was slowly falling in on itself while simultaneity falling down the hill side. It was oddly beautiful. The southern terminus of the Blue Ridge parkway leaves you in Cherokee, North Carolina, a Cherokee reservation. It’s an absolute tourist trap; Family attractions, a casino and dreadfully heavy traffic. The only highlight in my opinion was the old pre-interstate hotels with their vaguely racist names and half operational neon signs. The town had sold it’s soul for a Casino.
Abandoned Stairs, BRP, Cherokee, NC
I left town as fast as possible and headed towards the infamous Tail of the Dragon. On the way I stopped for gas and water and stumble into the store us city slickers think of when we hear the term “General Store”. It sold everything, fishing tackle, ammo, knives, fireworks, guns, and groceries; I loved it, I got a RC cola in a glass bottle, a cheerwine and some water, which tasted like dirt; once you drink Poland Springs, all other bottled water tastes like plastic or dirt. A few miles later and I’m almost there, the road leading to the Dragon is almost as good as the Dragon itself, low speed turns feeding into switchbacks. I skipped stopping by Deal’s Gap resort and go right for the Dragon. Its what you expect, slow riders and alot of turns, I swear I even saw a blood stain on the road. I got lucky with low traffic and the cruisers ahead of me pulled off so I could pass. One of the few sightings of wildlife the entire trip was here when I saw a black bear cub cross the road, I thought about stopping but realized a mama bear would be near by, not something I’d like to piss off. This is my only wild life sighting besides a housecat on the BRP and a pack of Elk I'd see later back in Cherokee. At the 9 mile mark they had stopped traffic, two trees had come down and they were clearing it. While sitting in traffic in the oppressive southern summer heat another rider pulled up. We had a short conversation, he asked if I had seen the black bear, turns out I was right, the mama bear wasn’t far behind her cub, I’m glad I didn’t stop. After a little while the trees were cleared and we were good to go, except now we’re stuck in traffic. the rest of it was more of the same, just slower. I stopped at a small store at the end to try and find a sticker, but didn’t find any I liked.
I think Tail of the Dragon is greatly overrated. Maybe 30 years ago it was great, but now it’s just a huge tourist trap, another once great thing the internet has killed. Heavy police presence and cruisers clogging up the road kill the fun of hitting it hard, I mean hell I saw a family in a Prius roll up and take pictures with the dragon at Deal’s gap resort. There are much better less patrolled and ridden roads in the area that I'd much rather ride. Sure, I'm glad I rode it, it’s a mecca for motorcyclists, I’m just upset all the stickers were tryhard dynabro “I TAMED THE DRAGON” themed. (for the record, My dad has the best sticker. It’s a body bag with “Rt. 129 body surfers” written under it)
If you don’t have a picture with this dragon, did you really ride it?
Also, note the “No Fun Allowed” sign in the background
The final destination was the Cherohala Skyway. Long swooping high speed corners and great views. It was recommended by my cousin and not far out of my way, if your headed down this way I highly recommend it. Less traffic, less traveled and less manic. If your trying to hustle a 500+lb bike around like I was, its not nearly as tiring as the Dragon. On the way I stopped at a pull off by a river. It was hot being early July, I considered stripping down to my underwear and going for a short swim, but I was dissuaded when a couple pulled up in a Winnebago, took a quick picture and left. Are you really seeing and enjoying America if you never leave the comfort of your air conditioned car? I chose to just wade into the river and soak my shirt, a bit less likely to catch a charge. After pulling back onto the road it was like having A.C. pointed directly at my chest, an absolute godsend. At this point I considered dropping south into Georgia just to tick another state off on this trip, but decided against it when I did the math and figured it would add a day of highway to my trip home; I loathe the highway. I ended up deciding to try and find a room in Dollywood for the night, but all the rooms cost so damn much there I ended up back in Cherokee staying across the street from the Casino, but hey I did see a pack of elk behind the KFC. I forget what I had for dinner, but it was nothing spectacular and the only notable thing I remember that night was the hotel clerk fighting a snake in the parking lot. Tomorrow comes the worst part of the trip, acknowledging it’s over and heading home
See Virginia, there ARE Elk