| Author | Message | ||
     Racerboy |
Court...Loved your account of the roadside assistance provided the Japanese couple and your pun..."the S3T and the transporter disappeared into the rising sun."...Still chuckling... Tripper...Jeez, I forgot to thank you for having the cold adult beverage waiting for us...That capped it... Jerry... Keep 'em coming...I don't know about the rest of you but long about mid February it is going to be great to be able to go back and look at these pics... Bob | ||
| Josh_ |
>I’m famous for answering to the question “How long will it take us?…”Oh, about an hour”… ha ha ha ha Where's my video of you looking at a map while I query "Trying to find us? What state are we in?" Bob:"We're still in Tenn" Me:"we're still where?" Bob:"Tennesee. No No, North Carolina. Yeah North Carolina" The map he's looking at? Georgia. I only start paying close attention when he starts riding with both hands. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
...and the transporter disappeared into the rising sun. gotta agree with you, Bob - classic.  I only start paying close attention when he starts riding with both hands. Josh, as you apparently already found out he ain't kidding about the "Oh, about an hour" comment above - the longer we rode, the farther away we got! | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, 9/14/04:  finally, one of my most anticipated goals for this trip, the Blue Ridge Parkway. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  i HAD been here once before, in 1999, for all of about 12 hours, with JB2, Fireman Jim, Henrik, and a few others, but mechanical gremlins on several of the bikes - and a hurricane by the name of Floyd - had transpired to make my view of the BRP excruciatingly limited. THIS time we had several days, altho... ...hurricanes were again going to be a force to be reckoned with, as several portions of the southern BRP had just been washed into oblivion by Fran, and Ivan was literally snapping at our heels. TODAY, however, was looking good. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  "Big Witch"? that's no way to talk about my motorcycle. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  from the overlook. too bad you can't actually BE there, instead of just looking at a 2-D image on a computer screen. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  if THIS don't put a smile in that hooligan heart of yours, NOTHING will!!! it was always an exercise in restraint, however, knowing that the Parkway is regularly patrolled, knowing that we ALREADY had a pair of Federal speeding offenses on this trip, yet knowing that we were riding nearly 500 miles of some of the finest pavement ever laid. verrry tempting... (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  Looking Glass Falls, on U.S. 276 just off the BRP. in 1900 this area was part of the giant George Vanderbilt estate that he called "Pisgah Forest." a cool guy, Mr. Vanderbilt. in 1912 he sold timber harvest rights to nearly 70,000 acres of his forest, but stipulated strict measures to prevent the logging operations from permanently marring the land he loved, and didn't allow ANY logging around Looking Glass Falls. U.S. 276 follows much of the old railroad route used to haul the logs to the mill - Vanderbilt forbid floating the logs in the river. btw, 276 ROCKS! thanks JB2. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  a nice combination, the cascading water, swirling mists, and early morning sunshine streaming down. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  these two little beauties were posing for their mom as she took photos of them in front of the falls, laughing, giggling, innocent and sweet. i was captivated as i watched discretely from a distance. when they were done i approached and asked the mother if i might get a photo, too. she was cool, as were the girls, altho they would not "relax" for me like they did their mom. still, i love the shot, and showed it to the girls and their mother, and they all beamed. as did i. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  this is cool. this is from the junction of 276 and the Parkway, looking down over Pisgah Forest. Looking Glass Falls is down there. as i gazed out over this idyllic scene, i wondered what it was like to have been George Vanderbilt and actually OWN all of this. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  they spelled "Ferris" wrong, but it's cool nonetheless. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  "Darkside" Danny Goldsmith, if you're out there, we took this shot in honor of YOU! (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  it's a bizarre feeling to be up there and have a car emerge from between your legs... (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  what better way to cap a long day on the road than spending the night in a cold, uninsulated tool shed? (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  just kidding, just kidding. (well, i AM serious about the cold and uninsulated part...) welcome to the Rider's Roost, in Ferguson, North Carolina. the tool sh...er, cabin on the right is my digs for the night. JUST big enough for a bed. not insulated. a single 60-watt light bulb hanging from the ceiling. i called Denise from the main lodge and told her where we were. she seemed a little perplexed when i said i couldn't give her the phone number to my room. darn lucky my "room" even had electricity. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY TWELVE, cont.  ah, but check out the view. Elk Creek it is, a river as far as i'm concerned, making the most delicious racket, and soothing away the aches and pains (like there WERE any) from another fabulous day on the road. we'd had to navigate around THREE different closures on the Blue Ridge Parkway, all flood damage from Hurricane Fran, which added a lot of time and mileage to the day that COULD have been spent doing more of the BRP. that's ok, seeds for next time. JB2 has a relationship with the Roost and the colorful owners that goes back a ways. it's a cool story, and i'll let him tell it, if he so chooses, at a time and opportunity of his making. we didn't log a TON of miles on the day, but it felt like we did, and what a treat to do the BRP all day, even with the major detours. i spent a peaceful night in the wilds of northern North Carolina, next to a waterfall, and slept like a baby. TOTAL MILEAGE FOR THE DAY: 278.3 (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 01, 2004) | ||
| Dino |
"Big Witch"? that's no way to talk about my motorcycle. What....wrong consonant?  | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
you were reading my mind. | ||
| Eeeeek |
I have never seen a Spiral Curve sign before. Damn, that's cool. Vik | ||
| Henrik |
darn lucky my "room" even had electricity Darn right you are. Last time I was at the Roost, Roy was looking for a break in the cable feeding the cabins = no power at all But that creek is a great sound backdrop for sleeping. Great for swimming in the summer too. Like a big natural jacuzzi. Thanks for the pictures and the stories. Wish I'd been there. Henrik | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
Vik, i've got another sign coming up that i think you'll get a chuckle out of. Henrik, as you know me 'n JB2 wish you'd been there, too. maybe NEXT time... | ||
| Jb2 |
Henrik, we had a blast. Roy was gathering and burning the debris along the bank that was left from Fran when we arrived. Ferris and I returned from supper with more than enough beer to get two guys drunk. I told him about introducing you to the Roost crew and our eventual first meeting there while we fed and stoked Roy's fire until well past midnight. I've sat below that waterfall on more than a few occasions, in the company of good friends around a campfire, swapping stories. Good times. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, Wednesday 9/15/04:  these folks showed up about dark last night, a couple, on a cross-country "fact finding mission" as they prepare to open their own rider's only campground. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, cont.  they're from the San Francisco area, and had heard of (or, more likely, simply HEARD  ) Fireman Jim, who lives near there. tough life, riding around the country, visiting all the m/c only places to stay, taking notes. tried to talk the fellow out of some spicy details about their operation, such as WHERE?, but he was playing his cards pretty close. when they DO open, i'm betting all their cabins are insulated. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, cont.  i did a REALLY crappy job of taking pix of the Rider's Roost before we launched this morning, as in this is about it. it's a cool place, near the Parkway but off the beaten path, and i've heard stories of legendary biker parties being thrown there. i met Uncle Roy, one of the owners, and he is perhaps the most "colorful" human being i've ever had the pleasure of being been entertained by. if you like to laugh until your face hurts (and don't mind the constant "F" bombs), Uncle Roy's your man. while we were there i bought a copy of his book "Shovelhead Red - The Drifters Way" and had him sign it for me 'n Denise. a cool guy, as raw and uncensored as they come, comical, hilarious, quick on his feet, and a long distance ridin' machine. Uncle Roy was worth the price of admission alone. the rest was just a bonus. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, cont.  ahhh, back up on the Parkway again. (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, cont.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
DAY THIRTEEN, cont.  (Message edited by jerry_haughton on November 02, 2004) |
