Blue Ridge Parkway Recon

I mentioned my upcoming Blue Ridge Parkway trip to my friend Scott a few weeks back and he suggested taking a ride up there to get a feel for the terrain/twisties. And also to figure out how long my butt can last on the saddle. He invited me to come up with him and some Harley friends of his on a day-trip to Ashville this past weekend. The plan was to meet at the QT Mall of Georgia at 6am (!!!!), ride up to Clayton and get breakfast, then head up to Cherokee follow the parkway to Ashville, get some lunch, then head home.

Me, Scott and the Harley contingent after breakfast:

A couple of the Harley dudes ride FAST on the freeways...85-90mph. Not really my thing on a group ride, but it got us through the boring parts of old SR441 quickly. Minor "holy shit" moment following lunch. One of the Harley guys forgot to cinch up his skid-lid after breakfast and his helmet flew off on the highway--right in front of me. I dodged it ok but def got my heart rate up for a sec. Another of the Harley boys decided to put on a long sleeve tee about 20 miles outside Clayton--while riding. He set his cruise control, took his helmet off, hung it on the bars, dug around in his saddle bag, pulled out the tee, put it on and cinched his helmet back up...all while doing 65mph. Yup...

After another hour of riding we made it up to Cherokee. We stopped at a Harley shop then hit the entrance to the parkway for pics:

Tall Vstrom up front, long & low Harleys everywhere else

Scott  (white shirt) and his red CTX; bearded guy in bomber lead the ride (can't remember name)

The Harleys...

Finally we hit the parkway...it is insanely gorgeous. The views come one right after another and you're constantly forced to choose between concentrating on the road in front of you or craning your neck to take it all in.

Re. the twistys I was concerned about...not much of a concern! At least not on this ride, and not the sections we rode. I spent a day up in the north Georgia gaps a couple weekends ago, specifically riding up and down Woody gap 6-7 times to practice cornering. The corners on the parkway are a bit less intimidating, more "swoopy." I brought up the rear in the group because I didn't know what to expect. Two of the Harley guys in front of me were super cautious on the turns...they didn't seem comfortable and took them real slow. This was fine with me; also good to know that even people that have been riding for a while don't always rail on the corners. I thought about passing them once or twice, but figured I'd just relax and take in the scenery.

Eventually we met up at one of the overlooks. I had some messages hit my phone at this point...kind of a long story. Family emergency and I had to head back home. The rest of the crew headed up to Ashville for lunch, while I stuck around for a bit to make some phone calls. 

Snapped a few pics before I took off...

The 'strom...

That face you make after 5-6 hours of riding

Many views like this just in the short section of Parkway I rode...

Ride home was uneventful...long haul through Sylva, outskirts of Franklin, Clayton. Sadly, missed the following stop with the rest of the group, which Scott sent me later in the evening. Highest point on the Parkway, just 20-30 minutes from where I had to turn around. 

6000 feet!

It will still be there when I come back up at the end of the month!