Southbound

[64duc]

  if you need a place to spend the night in north Georgia this is the place to do it.

  http://www.bloodmountain.com/

just happens to also be on 129, Almost as good as the Dragon thru the North Georgia mountains.  Reservations are needed.

[nicrosato]

I checked out Blood Mtn- seems like it's on the way and will lead us right down toward Cumming, GA.

Update: Looks like a 3rd rider will be doing part of the trip south with us. He wants to do Deal's Gap. So,  the trio is Charlie (39 yrs, Buell Lightning), Frank (53 yrs old, Honda Interceptor), the the old guy (65 on July 7, '01 M900).

Since Charlie lives in northern NJ, the plan would be to go west into PA and meet Frank coming south from Ithaca, NY the first day. I would like to think we could get through western Maryland into northern VA that day. The plan for Day 2 is to get to Asheville. That means Day 3 takes us through Deals's Gap; Charlie turns around and heads north, Frank and I continue south.

What's a good place to stop in northern VA that first night?

[El Matador]

Sweetness! I hope you have a great time. If you want to, I can PM you my phone number and give you some advice. There's a bunch of little things you would never think of that are actually pretty important.

We actually did that whole trip again but from Boston a couple of weeks later, and we took it a little bit easier. There are a million little places you should hit up, my main recommendation is to stay away from big hotels and stay at the little family owned motels by the parkway. Trust me, it is much more enjoyable and even cheaper this way.

Pitbull: I understand what you mean about the views, but seriously the roads more than make up for it, and the views are still breathtaking.

Also, if you plan to do Skyline to Asheville in one day it will be killer. I recommend stopping about a hundred miles before Asheville. It might only be 450 miles, but it's 450 miles of pure twisties, and it does get to you; It's better to relax a bit and enjoy the ride a little more.

You HAVE to do Skyline and BRP to completion, there is an euphoric sense of accomplishment you get by doing it, and you would feel a little cheated if you didn't. Almost like climbing a mountain but not quite getting to the top; it will nag you if you don't.


The one road you MUST do off the BRP is called the Snake. It's right off a town called Little Switzerland and it's just as good as the Dragon, just not as well known. People travel from all over the country to go there, but it's still a moderately well kept secret. Incidentally, I would recommend spending the night there. It's about 75 miles north of Asheville.

Cheers!

J

[nicrosato]

If anyone's interested, I am recounting this trip in the NMMR section of the Local Club Boards. The thread title is "Yankees Invade the Confederacy".

El Matador- sorry we didn't get to speak, but I hope we get to compare notes when this trip is done.