Venture South - Sort Of

[Evan]

Many of the group followed our blog for our five week Venture West trip to the west coast and our four week Venture East trip to the east coast last year. For each ride, we never knew each day where we would end up that night, but had fun getting there. With four aging parents (from 88 to 95), we weren't sure we could get away this year, but it now looks like we have a couple weeks following the WNY rally this weekend, which we are also looking forward to. So, we hope to ride south from the rally and head for the Smokies by way of the BRP. I am sure my wife Anne will start another blog for this trip as it is a great way to keep connected with friends and family.

 

Anyway, any suggestions about great sites along the way will be appreciated. We are also looking foreword to connecting with Brown Angel and Lori in North Carolina.

[cowpuc]

ALLLL RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Open the gate and get out the way,, Evan and company are coming outa chute 9!! CANNOT WAIT FOR MORE TRAIL TALES AND PICS!!!

My mind reels with places that are beautiful down there BUT I also know how much more fun it is to follow your story as it unfolds into another epic adventure... Kind of a,,, wonder what kinda things will happen tomorrow type of guy I guess....

Will say this, finding ol coal mines is a riot, sleeping behind abandoned gas stations is fun, ghosts can be heard at Gettysburg, gotta watch for bears (of both types) on the Parkway, the Curtis Museum in NY is unreal, drivers anywhere near DC are blind, you can coast a long long way when you leave the Visitors Center on the Parkway near Cherokee if your not going toward Cherokee, Tail of the Dragon dont have the only AWESOME twisties, lots of friendly people live between NY and Florida, gas always seems cheaper in Missouri, bring dry clothes cause even if it dont rain the humidity will get cha wet and stay away from Home Made Wine unless you like to see things...

OH YEA,, HAVE FUN AND TAKE LOTS OF PIC TO SHARE WITH YOUR RIDE STORIES!!

This will fun,,, Ride safe brother!

Puc

[Evan]

Five days into our Venture South and so far, the Ride Gods have blessed us. It started with the WNY rally - and Spanky 's video captures the great time there. Got lots of good advice for the rest of our two week ride to the Smokies from others at the rally. Thanks to all including Jayceesfolly for route suggestions. Rode south from the rally down 219 into Maryland and then over some other fabulous roads to get to Front Royal and the Skyline Drive, and now the BRP. Enjoying some of the best riding weather this summer. Roads and scenery are intoxicating. School has started so there is very little traffic on the Parkway. Stumbled onto some fabulous places to stay. Been meeting some great people along the way, including a couple from Whales who rented a Road King and were riding south from NYC to the Florida Keys. Also met and spent some time talking with two great biker guys - Bob who is now 82 and had to give up his Ventures (an 83 and 88) for a Road King; and his good friend Jennings Glenn who is also a passionate rider and author of the book Great Roads, Great Rides and a Back Road Touring Guide for the North Carolina area. He gave me both. Been in touch with Brown Angel and we plan on connecting when we reach North Carolina. Life doesn't get much better.

 

Looks like my wife Anne will not be doing a blog of this trip but here are a few pics so far:

[Wizard765]

looks like you two are having a GREAT time.. Keep it up..

[saddlebum]

Oh I am soooo Jealous

[Marcarl]

And you didn't Evan ask me if you could go,,,,,,,, kids now-a-days!!!!

 

Well,, now that your out there,,,, have fun,, see you when you get back.

[cecdoo]

Been wondering how you guys were doing, enjoy the ride and the scenery!!

 

Craig

[steamer]

Don't forget to visit Magee Valley and wheels through time. Be careful and have a great time.

[Evan]

Thanks all for the comments. Another great ride day. Staying tonight at a neat "bikers" motel at Laurel Springs NC called Freeborne's. Pics include some from there. Also pics of my wife at a rest break, an old mill which is the most photographed site on the BRP, a whiskey still, and an old manure spreader turned into a southern garden. In case you can't read the sign on it, the little concrete "bunker" at Freeborne's is the local jail and wedding chappell for bikers.

Edited August 28, 2014 by Evan

[Marcarl]

Keep it coming Evan,,, you're doing almost as good as Ann.

[Bob Myers]

Is Freebornes the one across the street for Stations Inn?

[Evan]

Is Freebornes the one across the street for Stations Inn?

 

Yes. Apparently, it has a new owner and they just reopened their motel.

[Brown Angel]

Evan and Anne came to town here in Waynesville NC. Had a wonderful time enjoying a drink. :178m

[Evan]

Another great day with a great finish. Rode the BRP all day ending up near the south end in Waynesville, NC.

More great roads, great sights and weather. Hard to describe how good it was. Ended the day having a great visit with Brown Angel and his beautiful wife Lori. Tomorrow - the Tail of the Dragon. Here are a few pics from today. One of a log cabin (saw many like this along the way), one of a road sign that speaks for itself, one of a tunnel through the mountains (went through many

Ike this), one at the highest elevation along the BRP and one of or good visit with Angel and Laurie. --- the speedo reading pic doesn't show that this is the second time around.

[stickhandle2]

Thanks for letting us all ride along with you and Ann.

 

Looks like your having a great time.

 

Mike

[Evan]

Stayed a couple of nights in Waynesville, NC for great visits with Brown Angel and his wife Lori after our day rides. He took this picture while I was changing oil in his garage.

[dogman]

Evan, I really enjoyed seeing your updates and pictures.

 

I'm glad the weather is so good for you and Anne, and I hope it continues.

 

Keep living the dream and following to roads. The two of you are very blessed.

[sleepy2]

I like others are really jealous of your great weather/roads and visits with many new and old friends.!!!!!!!!!

Continue having a well deserved adventure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[XV1100SE]

Sounds like a the two of you are having a great trip ! Stay safe !

[Evan]

Can't believe our good fortune on this trip as each day has been filled with beautiful scenery, exciting roads and great weather. We met others who rode the interstate (I81) and hit heavy rain. Here are a few pics from Friday. We did a day trip from Waynesville (where we stayed two nights for evening visits with Angel and Lori). We started by riding the last 30 miles of the BRP. On our way to Deal's Gap, we stumbled across a place that hosted the world whitewater kayak championship. After riding the Tail of the Dragon, we circled through the Smoky Mountains Park. What an experience.

[Evan]

--- after changing my oil at Angel's on Saturday, we started our journey home. Our first stop was at the amazing Wheels Throughout Time museum in Maggie Valley. Met the guy who created the Barn Find TV show there, with some of the found bikes. While a pic of a HD "mechanic on duty" clock from there is included, I didn't think that was an interesting museum piece as VentureRiders know that HD's require that. On to more hair pinned roads that in some cases, were scary steep, for miles. Then on to Virginia which really is for lovers. To our surprise, we saw Texas Longhorns along the way.

[Evan]

--- Sunday was another good day with more amazing roads and sites. First we experienced the 35 mile Back of the Dragon ride starting in Marion VA. From there we roughly paralleled I81 on more amazing secondary roads through the Virginia countryside. Along the way, we saw and I walked across this swimming bridge over a river that bounced so much with each step that Anne refused to walk on it. So many rural Virginia sights along the way such as this log cabin. During the day, I watched my speedo turn over for the second time around (because it reads in kms, that's about 125,000 miles). As you can also see, I spent some time trying to decide what roads we took next. In fact, we were lost a number of times each day.

[Evan]

--- today was another good day as we rode from Virginia through a bit of West Virginia and on through Maryland, ending up in State College PA, although distance traveled was not much more than 200 miles. That is generally all we do each day given the type of roads we take and our frequent "unplanned" stops. Despite black clouds in sight all day as you can see, we managed to ride away from them and to,our amazement, stayed dry although frequently, the road was wet from rain. Because the road was so twisty and narrow, we had to follow this farm implement for a mile or so. Once again, I spent time figuring out what road to take next, several times as you can see. The day ended with this fabulous burger. A great ending for another great day.

[Evan]

The last few days of our 4300 km Venture South were filled with a bit of bad luck followed by some amazing GOOD LUCK experiences. Here are some examples:

Bad Luck - I pulled over to check the map going into Wellsboro, PA and the bike quit and wouldn't start due to weak battery. Out of desperation, tried to push start. GOOD LUCK - a woman in a pickup who just happened to have bought a power pack that day stopped to see if we needed help.

Bad luck - She gave us directions to a NAPA auto parts store in Wellsboro. However I made a wrong turn and the bike quit again in a parking lot where I was turning around. GOOD LUCK - Right beside the parking lot was another auto part shop and the owner helped to diagnose our problem with his equipment (stator tested good when bike was cold and battery tested bad ). He also checked and told us that a severe rainstorm was heading our way so we had a wonderful overnight stay at the Canyon Inn (recommended by Wizard 765) and picked up a new fully charged battery the next morning (another sunny day)

Bad luck - we decided to do a one hour run to view the PA Grand Canyon before the rain. Rode the five mile road up to the viewing area and just before we got to it, encountered a very large tree down and blocking the road, so had to turn back. By then, it had started to rain. GOOD LUCK - made it back to the Canyon Hotel seconds before a one hour torrential downpour. Watched the rain from the front of our room sitting with and enjoying beers given to us by another biker from Toronto, Ontario. Great visit.

Bad Luck - after riding through the Finger Lake area, started to head towards Buffalo on secondary highway with numerous stops. Voltmeter showed same charging problem. GOOD LUCK - stopped to remove headlight fuse and phoned jayceesfolly (Jim). Found out I was 20 minutes from his place near Rochester and rode there to charge battery and check out problem. With Jim's help, confirmed it was stator, and had a fabulous visit and dinner with Jim and his wife while waiting for battery charge.

Bad Luck - to make it back home from Rochester, had to ride after dark without stopping and with no headlight. GOOD LUCK - Jim filled my tank with his gas. Made it across the border at Buffalo with no lineup. Had just enough gas to get home. My recently installed LED running lights were bright enough to ride safe.

Overall, it was a fabulous two week 4300 km trip and my wife is ready to head out again as soon as my stator problem is fixed. In addition, the fellowship and help from so many members of our VentureRider family has been just plain amazing.

 

Here are a few pics from last two days, including pics of a buggy waiting to cross a four lane road, stalled next to the auto part shop, checking the stator, calling VentureRider friends for advice, the PA Grand Canyon, watching torrential rain, the Montous Waterfalls and sites along the Finger Lakes.