6-21-2011 - Summer Smokies (Ride Report)

[maddiedog]

Back in June, I went on an epic ride, traversing nearly 500 miles in under 24 hours.

The plan was to go up and meet everyone for the Summer Smokies Ride for the ride Saturday, then drive back home.

I mapped out my route in advanced, hoping to ditch the GPS in favor of enjoying the ride. Here is the route I mapped out: http://goo.gl/maps/2UP5J

I rode up from Atlanta, GA on a Friday night to meet everyone at Dock's motel in Townshend, TN. The ride was relatively uneventful, just a lot of flat, two-lane or four-lane road. I rode the limiter most of the way, and only got 72mpg . Usually I get around 100mpg.

Here's my PCX at the state line into Tennessee (shitty picture):

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My decision to leave the GPS bit me in the ass. I got lost several times, because of poor labelling along the road. After asking some locals, I figured things out eventually, and rolled in to Dock's Motel at around 11pm. I met Pete (Kapang!) there and crashed on the floor of the hotel room he was sharing with a friend.

We got up at around 7am the next day, and hung out for awhile. One of the Ruckus riders, Larry, had been having some mechanical issues, so we waited while Brandon, another Ruckus rider, worked on the bike. Brandon got the bike working good enough, and we left.

We rode towards Deals Gap, or more commonly called, the Tail of the Dragon. We took the Foothills parkway there, and stopped for a picture by the sign:

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We passed by Chilhowee Lake on the way:

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And kept climbing higher and higher, soon leaving the lake way behind:

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The ride was really fun, with lots of sweeping turns:

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Then, we drove through the tail of the dragon. It wasn't as bad as I had heard it would be, but our pace was pretty relaxed. We did pass a couple of Harleys though, and even passed a Ninja club at some point... Not entirely sure how that one happened...

We arrived at the end of the dragon safely, stopping at the restaurant / souvenir shop / gas station there for lunch. Their food was good.

Stopped after "taming the dragon":

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So many bikes at the dragon:

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Next, we drove past Fontana Dam. Here's Fontana lake:

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Riding across the dam:

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Stopped on the dam for pictures:

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Whoa, we're a long way up:

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We found a small waterfall next:

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Then, we rode onto the Cherohala Skyway. This was my favorite part of the whole ride, because of how huge the skyway was. We climbed nearly 4000 feet in altitude only a few miles. Larry was having a bit of trouble uphills though, he's a big guy, the Ruckus is a small scooter, and his was crippled at best: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHO_IgLyXG0 He was apparently WOT the whole time too

Awesome view from the top:

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I parted ways from the rest of the riders at this point, they turned back to ride the dragon one more time to get back to the hotel. I kept going on the Cherohala Skyway, entering the Cherokee National Forest:

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I passed back into Tennessee from North Carolina, getting a few more scenic views in as I rode down the mountains into the foothills:

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Then, I got monsooned on as I rode into Georgia:

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All in all, it was a great ride and a good way to spend a Saturday. I'm looking forward to the next one.

[maddiedog]

One of the guys riding with us had his picture as the pic of the day on Killboy, it was a cool picture. I'm jealous of his halo headlights.

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[rainburg]

Great trip report and photos! You and Skuuter are making the Smokies look like a wonderful place to ride . I wish it were closer.

[skuuter]

Great Pics....We arrived at DOCKS MOTEL in Townsend right after You had headed Home.....!!!

[Black Bandit]

NICE! Beautiful scenery and group. Love the shield Maddie

[Taz]

Smokey Mts are great and Ive hiked, driven and rafted around there. But you missed out the best nearby feature, 'Dollywood'

[Shoe]

What a cool ride!

One on my list, along with the hills around Asheville.

[ScooterKim]

the nice thing about just signing up on this site is that you get to see all the good articles and rides that people have taken before you. one of my need to do's is the Smokies and the tail of the dragon that you told about here. we went down to Mississippi in 2006 to help with Katrina. coming back a 10 days later, we camped in a little campground at the base of the Smokies. as I looked up that morning, I knew we needed to drive the 12 hour drive home to get our dog from the kennel. but, my heart was in the Smokies and I made myself a promise to come back. the tail of the dragon would make me come back. trailer the Rebel and the PCX, camp in the Smokies in the truck camper, and do the tail of the dragon and the Cherohala Skyway. now that sounds like a good vacation in Aug / Sept! ScooterKim

[Shoe]

Cool stuff, Maddie!

After my Easter ride in the frigid temps, I'm heading back down next week. Did they ever open the road to the Gap? Seemed it was closed to Cherokee do to a wash-out....

Thanks for the pics!!!

[maddiedog]

The Dragon's open for riding, as far as I know. I haven't heard anything one way or another. I know there's a whole lot of tourism up there, so if it was closed, I'm sure it wasn't for long.

We'll be up there again the 13th, should be a good ride. I'm not sure if I'll be riding the PCX or my friend's Buell Blast though.