Saturday. I did something bad to myself.

[..]

I haven't done it since 1993.

I went through Gatlinburg, TN.

I hope to never have to again. It was as busy as a stick stirred ant hill. Of the myriads of people I saw only one chin mask was visible. All others were mask free. All shapes, sizes, colors and sexual preferences unmasked. No social distancing in the attraction lines.

It was a beautiful blue sky, cloud free morning as I left home to gas up 20cents more per gallon post pipeline drama.

The ride up to Hot Springs, NC was uneventful and no traffic to hold me back.

A group of sports bikes, Wings and trikes were scattered on the side of the road with some of the riders trying to heave a Wing trike out of the ditch on the wrong side of the road. Hwy 209 will take a bite out of the inexperienced and unwary.

In all of years of riding I have never been to a real “biker bar”. The Bobarosa seemed to be a pastiche of the many I have seen in movies or read about. Heavy and heavily tattooed women wearing bingo wing revealing tops and cottage cheese thighs accompanied by their duck paddling “bikers”.

A beautiful location by the sidof the French Broad river with a decent burger and fairly speedy service considering the amount of customers. Most made a bee line for the bar to get a beer rather than to the restroom leading me to believe that the distance ridden was nearer than further.

I seemed to buck the alcohol trend drinking a Diet Coke.

Heading west on Hwy 321 I see a sign for the Foothills Parkway. Excellent. I'll ride this and then the Dragon and call Sandra along the way to tell her my arrival home will be delayed by and hour or so.

The greenery and scenery is beautiful and I pass a sign telling me I 40 is 6 miles further on???? What? I 40? When did the Parkway get extended to I 40. I rode the new extension a couple of years ago and hadn't read anything about another extension. Oh well into the wide blue yonder we go.

Next I k now I'm having to make a choice between I 40 East or West. I don't want to go back east to where I've been so I'll go west. Looking at Google maps later on I 40 west is going due north at this point and takes me back to where Hwy 321 intersected it.


A little loop de loop and I'm back on track heading towards Gatlinburg.

I had stayed there in the fall of 1993 shortly after arriving in the USA. Did a lot of hiking during my weeks visit and kept out of downtown apart from my arrival and departure. Back then it seemed to be a place to get married quickly and buy a commemorative T-shirt.

Now the main street is lined with stores selling all manner of tchotchkes side by side with a variety of “attractions”. I'm pleased that the throngs are here instead of being where I like to be.

40 minutes later I'm through the 1 mile traffic jam and back in the greenery of the Smoky Mountain National Park.

A side visit to Clingmans Dome shows me more maskless people followed by a visibly masked ride through Cherokee.

Up and over the mountain and home.

80 degrees for the high and 60 up on Clingmans Dome.

https://www.relive.cc/view/vrqDQDwVzLv

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEexxO133lo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jONxcqS4d9M

[henry 008]

 

[cookiedough]

yep,  wife and kid and his 3 friends April 29th or so near 1 month ago said Gatlinburg TN was INSANE and was not even start of tourist season yet.  She said was like WI Dells WI (major tourist trap in the summer here with waterparks/attractions and billboards galore) and she thought Gatlinburg TN was 10x's worse, which I find hard to believe 10x's maybe 2-3x's worse???

There was a backlog of cars stand-still she said driving thru Cades Cove (probably because a few bears were out in the meadow stopping cars galore)  but Clingmans dome was not horribly busy with people.

Best to stay clear of Gatlinburg TN it sounds like to me.  and yes,  wife also said NO ONE was wearing masks in very populated up-close gatherings there.

[Rams]

Except for that one mile, sounds like a wonderful trip.   

Rams

[flsix]

Love using Maggie as the base and riding from there. Hard to find a bad road there.

[Tundra]

Every time I ride through undesirable Florida riding areas I kick myself knowing full well I should've avoided it. Still a great area you chose to live and some of the best East Coast riding available. Florida interstates are getting as bad as California freeways...only your sitting it REAL FLORIDA HEAT.
 

[scooperhsd]

Every time I ride through undesirable Florida riding areas I kick myself knowing full well I should've avoided it. Still a great area you chose to live and some of the best East Coast riding available. Florida interstates are getting as bad as California freeways...only your sitting it REAL FLORIDA HEAT.
 

jUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DROWN in the air down there ?

[cookiedough]

Every time I ride through undesirable Florida riding areas I kick myself knowing full well I should've avoided it. Still a great area you chose to live and some of the best East Coast riding available. Florida interstates are getting as bad as California freeways...only your sitting it REAL FLORIDA HEAT.
 

jUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DROWN in the air down there ?

I do not know how you guys in Florida and other warmer states tolerate 90 plus degree heat at 7 a.m. in the morning and still feel like riding cycles in that heat?  The one time I was in Florida/Alabama gulf shores area was in June a few years ago and was 90 at 7 a.m. already and muggy humid HOT. 

[Rams]

Every time I ride through undesirable Florida riding areas I kick myself knowing full well I should've avoided it. Still a great area you chose to live and some of the best East Coast riding available. Florida interstates are getting as bad as California freeways...only your sitting it REAL FLORIDA HEAT.
  

jUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DROWN in the air down there ?

I do not know how you guys in Florida and other warmer states tolerate 90 plus degree heat at 7 a.m. in the morning and still feel like riding cycles in that heat?  The one time I was in Florida/Alabama gulf shores area was in June a few years ago and was 90 at 7 a.m. already and muggy humid HOT.  

No different than not wanting to live in a snow zone.   Once you're climatized and used to it, it's not that bad.   I used to live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie, that property couldn't be given back to me now.    Only place I ever lived I had to buy a Jeep with a snow plow just to get out of my driveway on snow days.   To each their own.

Rams

[scooperhsd]

Every time I ride through undesirable Florida riding areas I kick myself knowing full well I should've avoided it. Still a great area you chose to live and some of the best East Coast riding available. Florida interstates are getting as bad as California freeways...only your sitting it REAL FLORIDA HEAT.
 

jUST BECAUSE YOU CAN DROWN in the air down there ?

I do not know how you guys in Florida and other warmer states tolerate 90 plus degree heat at 7 a.m. in the morning and still feel like riding cycles in that heat?  The one time I was in Florida/Alabama gulf shores area was in June a few years ago and was 90 at 7 a.m. already and muggy humid HOT. 

No different than not wanting to live in a snow zone.   Once you're climatized and used to it, it's not that bad.   I used to live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie, that property couldn't be given back to me now.    Only place I ever lived I had to buy a Jeep with a snow plow just to get out of my driveway on snow days.   To each their own.

Rams

Yes, every area of the country has its pluses / minuses on weather. The trick is to find a place that you can live with. I have no desire to live any further north than I am right now (within 60 miles north).  I have no desire to see any more snow than I already see in a typical winter ( there is always untypical to worry about). I can deal with heat/humidity alot better than I can deal with cold.

[henry 008]

"I used to live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie,"
where, and when? I live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie. Willard is about 90 mi from CLe. Col. and Tol,

[Rams]

"I used to live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie,"
where, and when? I live about 30 miles south of Lake Erie. Willard is about 90 mi from CLe. Col. and Tol,

Worked in Ravenna, lived north of there.
Mid-Nineties, moved south to KY from there and further south to Mississippi years later.   Next move may be Belize. 

Rams