Ironhorse Motorcycle Resort Part Deux

"It's like deja veux all over again."

                                             - Yogi Berra

1 Week Later

I have never done this before. This weekend was one of "firsts." I have never camped two weekends in a row (except when traveling), and, I have never camped at the same campground two weekends in a row, no matter how great the campground may be. But as Roo and I were riding home from Ironhorse last weekend,

we felt our time spent there was incomplete. It was a nagging feeling we both felt all week. It just didn't feel right, and so we felt the need to make it so. But, the only weekend we had left open between now and mid-October was this one, and Roo had already  made plans for a girl's night out. So, she gave me her blessing (permission) to go back to Ironhorse solo and make it right for both of us. Don't need to tell me twice!

By Friday the beaST was packed and chomping at the bit to be on the road again. Saturday morning was oh so gorgeous as I rolled down my street at 8 AM. I followed the same route as last week up to the Blue Ridge Parkway, where I took a break for a snack and to shoot some pics:



A beautiful day



Stunning vistas



Looking over at NC Hwy 215 from the BRP

 So, a beautiful ride along the southbound Blue Ridge Parkway took me back towards Great Smoky Mountain National Park. But this time there would be no tourist traffic gridlock for me in Cherokee, NC. I made an early exit off the Parkway onto the Smoky Mountain Expressway (NC Hwy 74), a nice, big four lane highway that gets you where you want to go fast, without feeling like you're on an interstate. I shoot past Bryson City, and in no time my exit for NC Hwy 28 north is in my line of vision. This road is a beautiful four laner with sweeping curves and constantly changing elevation that makes you feel like your motorbike is floating under you. A real pleasure to ride. Just past where 28 funnels into two lanes is my turnoff for Ironhorse. A few twisty curves in and I roll onto Ironhorse property. Home again, home again!

I checked in (felt like I never left), and secured my tentsite. After setting up camp, I ate my lunch and prepared to get on the road. The plan today was to ride north on NC Hwy 28 to Deals Gap, home to the Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort and the infamous "Tail of the Dragon", NC Hwy 129. Hwy 28 up to Deals Gap is a beautiful, challenging  ride in itself. It even has it's own tag line: "The Hellbender." I don't know who thinks these things up. Anyway, a great ride up to Deals Gap, I roll into the throngs of motorbikes and people and noise, park the beaST, and start shooting pictures of this over-hyped motorcycle circus.

  As much as it is over marketed and played up ad nauseum, I love this place! The sounds, the smells and the atmosphere of nothing but bikes and sports cars is fantatstic. A real moto circus atmosphere.



I took this shot from waaayyy back on the property. The real
motorcycle mayhem is up front by the entrance!



The "Tree of Shame"
Broken bits of motorcycles that have crashed on this road through the years
A testament to the road's difficulty (not), or stupidity (my vote)?

If you have not ridden this road, do it. It really is a great scenic ride.What makes it dangerous, and thus attractive, is the other users, the Ricky Racers who make it there own personal race track. So avoid weekends. Take a day and do it during the week. It really is a blast. Then stop into the Deals Gap store and get your T-shirt and dragon sticker for your motorbike ( Yes, the beaST has one). You are now a Dragon Slayer, provided you're still upright, in which case if not, you'd be a candidate for the "Tree of Shame." Shame on you.

 Leaving Deals Gap, I head south on NC Hwy 129, descending down to the Nantahala Gorge. A couple of real sharp twisty curves to start with, and then the road opens up to beautiful long sweepers with breathtaking scenery taking me down to NC Hwy 74 and into the Gorge.

The Nantahala Gorge is a beautiful place. Nantahala is the Cherokee word for the phrase "land of the noonday sun." Mid-day is the only time the Gorge gets full sunlight. The Nantahala River flows through the Gorge, and is a haven for whitewater rafting and kayaking. The Gorge is loaded with river rafting businesses and slow moving raft buses on weekends, and exudes a great bohemian atmosphere. Kayak and raft central is the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC), my favorite place on the river and where I learned to whitewater kayak 15 years ago. NOC has a great outfitter store, bicycle shop, and two fantastic restaurants with great food. If you want to see elite and pro kayakers playboating on the old Olympic kayak course, check NOC out. It's amazing to watch.

Blasting out of the Nantahala Gorge, I'm now motoring towards my favorite town in the area: Bryson City. I exit off Route 19 and head into town, making a beeline for my favorite coffee house.

I park the beaST around the corner and walk to Mountain Perks. Closed. After 5 PM. Crap. But the owner is inside sweeping up getting ready for their open mike night starting at 8. He unlocks the door, apologizes up and down, and directs me to another coffee house a couple of blocks away. Who does that anymore? Fantastic. I thank him and off I go, walking across town.

This place is really cool. A coffee house and wine bar. Get jacked up on caffeine, then mellow out on a bottle of your favorite fermented grape juice. Fantastic concept! The Cork & Bean is a more upscale establishment, with decor that is a combo of contemporary and Victorian styles, and probably caters more to the tourists and well-to-do residents, where as Mountain Perks is much more laid back with more of a bohemian atmosphere. I dig on them both. Hey, I can fake it anywhere. After relaxing on a great latte and chocolate brownie to die for, I strolled around this quaint mountain town for a while.



Downtown Bryson City



Downtown Bryson City



Ruth's and my favorite Italian eatery in Bryson City




The Nantahala River flows right through the middle of town.



Another draw to Bryson City is the Great Smoky Mountain Railroad. It's really cool, especially if you like trains. They do day excursions and special dinner trains that are lots of fun. Roo & I did a Mystery Dinner Train one year and had a blast!
A short story: Way back in the last century, 1996 to be exact, I took NOC's whitewater kayak course for a week. The Smoky Mountain Rail day excursion passes through and stops at NOC. By the time it gets to NOC, people have been on this thing, with screaming kids, for a few hours. One day, during my stay at NOC, we were getting our kayaks loaded up and ready to paddle when the train pulled in. My instructor stopped working and said "OK guys. Here comes the zombie train." The zombie train? "Yeah, watch these people as they get off that thing. They walk around like the zombies in Night of the Living Dead." And damn if they didn't. To this day, Great Smoky Mountain Railroad is now affectionately referred to as the Zombie Train by Ruth and myself.



The Zombie Train



A Zombie Train locomotive

 Walking back to the beaST, I bid farewell to Bryson City and  scoot back to Ironhorse. By now it's time to unpack the cooking gear and prepare dinner over my Pocket Rocket stoves. No gourmet lodge food for me tonight. Camp food is my choice when camping solo. After dinner and cleanup, I stroll over to the firepit that has a blazing fire going in it by now, pour out a glass of wine, sit down and chat it up with fellow moto enthusiasts under the stars next to a warm fire (it's chilly up here at night.) A couple of hours later, I'm off to my tent for a night's sleep.

The next morning everyone is up and packing. Time to head home. As I am loading up the ST, there is a fellow parked next to me on a Triumph 800 that was a unbelievable sight to behold. I laughed as I asked him, "Are you by yourself?"  He said, laughingly, "Unfortunately, yes."



This guy was traveling alone, and he only lives in Tennessee!
Everyone gave him a wide birth as he rolled out.
And yes, I did see the kitchen sink in there!

 Everyone gave him a wide birth as he rolled out and watched as he climbed the fairly steep drive up to the road. A collective sigh of relief from all of us was heard as he turned the corner and rolled on the throttle safely. We thought for sure he would just topple over. Thankfully, he did not.
Finished loading up, it was time to head home. Waving goodbye to other riders, I rolled out of Ironhorse. This time I felt good, making right last weeks trip that got cut short. My only wish was that Roo was here to share in it also. So I took a quicker, but very scenic route back home to get to my little fam that much sooner. Another great overnight moto trip that felt longer than it actually was.

                                                                             END
                                                         THANKS FOR READING!















 



The Best Laid Schemes of Mice & Men

But little mouse, you are not alone,

in proving foresight may be vain;

The best laid schemes of mice & men

go often askew

and leave us nothing but grief & pain,

for promises of joy.

- " To a Mouse" by Robert Burns
(English translation)

Labor Day Weekend, 2011

And so it was, this Labor Day weekend, the best laid plans of mice, men, women and motorbikes I mean. Ruth & I bookend our summer season with a two day motocamping trip on Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend every year. But tropical storm Lee was breaking north and threatening to make for a very wet camping excursion, throwing our scheme askew............

Our camping destination this Labor Day was Ironhorse Motorcycle Resort in Stecoah, NC. A beautiful area at the very western tip of North Carolina that borders on Great Smokey Mountain National Park. A haven for motorcyclists, hikers, whitewater kayakers, mountain bikers, campers and backpackers; if you are not engaged in any of these activities you have no business being here. No enclosed malls, no strip malls, no malls period. Well, there you go, that eliminates two thirds of the population right there from coming to this outdoor paradise.

So, with the ST packed, fueled and ready to go, I checked the weather report on Friday morning. Saturday beautiful, Sunday 30% rain, Labor Day 30% as well. Good to go. After a good nights sleep, I get up, pour a cup of espresso and scan the weather one more time. Uh-oh. Big change overnight. Saturday (our day of departure) still looked good, but now Sunday called for 50% rain in the afternoon, 60% overnight and into the morning, and 70% Labor Day! C'mon Rooster, we can still get one night in and and play a rousing game of beat the rain back home on Sunday! Maybe it will change for the better anyway!

So off we go taking some beautiful roads up to the Blue Ridge Parkway. A beautiful, cool, sunny Saturday morning has us smiling in our helmets.



One of many beautiful vistas from the BRP



Even bicyclists ride the BRP



"Bread and Butter"
Motoring around a Blue Ridge Parkway curve.

 Riding southbound on the BRP, we are heading for the southern terminus at Great Smokey Mountain National Park.
We will be on the Parkway for about 40 miles, most of that topography will have us traveling uphill, to the highest point on the BRP at Balsam Bald, then a nice steady, twisty descent into Smokey Mountain National Park.



A refreshingly cool 58 degrees greeted us at 6000 feet. Ahhh......



Hey, it was a tough climb!



More bikes climbing up to the Parkway's highest point.

Oh no! Dat wabbit's back! Where's Elmer? 

After a brief stop at the Parkway's highest point, we started our descent down to Great Smokey Mountain National Park. Unfortunately, our planned route takes us through the town of Cherokee, NC,and the Cherokee Indian Reservation. The reservation is the home of the Eastern Band of Cherokees, and has become the biggest tourist trap in Western, NC. Casinos, Indian trinkets, tribal dance shows, etc. all for the amusement of the touristas. I don't begrudge them for making their way in the world any way they can, given what was done to them at the hands of our government, but now the town and surrounding area is just jam packed with vehicles every summer weekend. Negotiating gridlock on a motorbike is no fun! But hey, our choice, and now as we finally wave Cherokee bye, bye we have clear motoring to Stecoah and our destination for the night, Ironhorse Motorcycle Resort.


One of our top 3 places to camp.



The Lodge at Ironhorse



Bikes parked under the awning at the Lodge

 Ironhorse is probably the most upscale of all the moto campgrounds that we frequent. The owners have dropped many a sheckle into this place over the last 8 years, and it shows. The resort has tent sites for tent campers, RV sites for those arriving with small RV's and campers, and rents cabins for those who really want to rough it. No private cars are allowed on property unless towing a motorcycle. Same for RV's. Food is provided in the dining hall should you not want to cook over your Pocket Rocket stove. Breakfast and dinner are served, and a box lunch prepared by request to take with you on your ride for the day. This ain't no primitive campground pardner! I prefer camp food when I camp, but Roo doesn't get out camping as much as I do, so we come here when she is on board so she can enjoy the beautiful lodge and grounds.



The rental duplex cabin. Absolutely gorgeous!
Inside decked out in pine wood with antique furnishings!



Tent camping by the creek



Rental cabins nestled in the trees.



This is the rear of the dining hall facing the firepit



Tent camping area off to the side of the lodge.
There's the beaST in the center of the picture.



RV section. As long as you have a motorbike on or in your rig
somewhere, you're in!

We arrive at Ironhorse about 2 PM. After checking in, we pick out a tent site and set up camp. The plan (scheme) this weekend is to make a short run to Bryson City 10 miles down the road,  eat lunch, hang out in town awhile, then motor back to camp. Tomorrow, a great ride over the Cherahola Skyway to Tellico Plains, TN for lunch, and a visit to our favorite motorcycle accessory shop; Tellico Plains Motorcycle Outfitters. Top it off with ice cream snack from the ice cream/coffee house right across the street, then back on the Skyway to NC and home base.




Wadda you lookin' at?

Camp all set up, Roo and I gear up, ignite the big V-4, and off we go to Bryson City.
Or so we thought.
Five miles out we roll right into a storm cell that is just hanging out there. We continue on until I couldn't see my nose in front of my face, and as anyone who knows me can tell you, that's a hard probiscus to miss!
Fortunately, right when I couldn't see anything outside my visor, a BP station beckoned us to come in; us and about 30 other riders huddling under the awning. We pulled in, shut the ST down and strolled to the awning. Hell, we were wet anyway. What's the rush!

Rode hard and put away wet.  But she's tough!



Huddling under the awning



A lot of these riders had no riding gear on (?????!!!!!)
This was a HARD rain...it had to hurt!

We waited for an hour for the storm to pass or let up some. It did neither. So we lunched on petrol station foodstuffs (yum yum), and waited, and waited, and......................
Finally, just a wee bit of respite from the downpour, I said to Roo "Suit up! Let's beat feet. I'm done with this." And so, with that, we mounted up, swung the ST around and headed back to Ironhorse. One mile from camp the roads turned dry, not a spot of wet to be found anywhere. It never rained here. Not a drop. Ah, such is mountain weather; all part of the adventure. You've got to love it. Parking the beaST for the night, Roo and I strip off our riding gear and head for the showers. Then it's time to pop the cork on a bottle of wine and head on to the dining hall for a delicious salmon meal with sweet potatos and salad bar fixings. Topped off with a blackberry cobbler for dessert, it was a great meal. We met some nice folks at our dinner table, and now college football was on the big screen TV. It's just as well, because outside the rain was beginning to fall.



Big screen TV and stone fireplace in the Lodge



This is one comfy couch in the Lodge



Dining Hall & entrance to the camp store



The atrium adjacent to the Lodge



The atrium

 Upstairs in the Lodge is a game room with a billiards table, table hockey, and bar chairs and tables to occupy oneself in the evening if you don't like sitting around a campfire listening to moto BS.




Upstairs game room



Roo making her way to the billiards table

Having polished off the bottle of wine, eaten a fine meal and watched some good college football, it was time to check the weather, both outside now and the forecast for tomorrow. We walked onto the porch to a nice cool evening. It had rained during dinner, but only moderately, and had currently stopped. We went back inside and checked out the forecast on the  Ironhorse laptop. It did not look good. Actually, it sucked. Now, the forecast was for 100% rain beginning Sunday afternoon, into Sunday night and all day Labor Day. Ma Nature had spoken, and we shall pay heed. Off to our tent we went for a good nights sleep.

Sunday AM I woke up early, made some coffee, and started to pack up. I let Roo sleep until it was time to break down the tent. It was a beautiful morning, with fog enveloping the mountain sides all around us. There was a lot of activity about, as a number of riders were heading out also to beat as much of the rain as possible. Roo woke up, and we proceeded to the dining hall for breakfast. After eating, we got the tent packed up and loaded on the ST, suited up, and headed down the road. We took the faster route home to minimize the amount of time spent in any rain. As it turned out, we didn't hit any precip at all! Back home in South Carolina, after unpacking and stowing gear, I just had to look up the weather back in Stecoah because it wasn't raining here at all (I would have been really pissed if we cut our trip short for nothing!). But, my fears were laid to rest as the radar showed they were getting pelted with orange and red storm cells, right where we were!

But our trip seemed unfinished, unsettled. There was a sense of a lack of closure that Roo and I both felt. I have a strong feeling that we will be back here very soon...................

 Next up: Deja veux all over again































Asheville Ride For Kids

                                                                                                                                                             Sunday, August 28, 2011

Ride for Kids - To the Bat Cave! - A cool, canine surprise 

Three weeks is a long time. Twenty-one days. Five hundred and four hours. I don't even want to count the seconds. That's how long it has been since me and my ST have danced the tango on the asphalt dance floor. Planets misaligning, mercury in retrograde, mundane chores, and travel have kept me and my dance partner apart these last long weeks.

But all that came to an end today. Ride for Kids (RFK)-Asheville was in full swing, and I never miss a planned RFK event unless Ma Nature says otherwise. But she gave her blessing today. A beautiful, clear, somewhat chilly early morning gave way to abundant sunshine and moderate temps.

The Ride for Kids program is put on by the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF), based here in Asheville, NC. RFK is a motorcycle fundraising program to help fund research to eradicate brain tumors in children. There are RFK events in 48 cities to date. The rides at these events are police escorted through rural countryside to a destination where a Celebration of Life ceremony is held (see below). Ruth and I do two events per year; RFK Atlanta in June, and RFK Asheville in August.

Ruth was out late last night with a friend, and as such, she didn't want to get up at the ass-crack of dawn to ride a motorcycle to Asheville. So she continued to snore away valuable riding time. Some people have their priority list backwards! I ate an eaaaarrly breakfast, geared up and was out the door with tires rolling at 6:45 AM, brother! Time was of the essence, as registration was to close at 8:30 and I had about an hour and a half flight ahead of me. Plenty of time, but who knows what on a Sunday morning, right? So I zigged and zagged getting out of town, then hooked up with the I-26 superslab to make the most efficient crossing to Asheville. Surprisingly, there were a number of vehicles on the road this early morning. With a posted speed limit of 60 MPH, the prevailing traffic was traveling at a bit higher velocity, say 75 or so. Five-O was nowhere in sight, so, when in Rome.........

The start venue for RFK Asheville was at the Biltmore Mall, which I arrived at with time to spare to register and then do the requisite bike shopping. Below are some pics from the start at Biltmore:



The mall parking lot was full of bikes



An estimated 400+ bikes participated this year



Our Po-Po escort. They did a great job of getting us to our
destination in Lake Lure safely and expeditiously!

Motorbikes of all makes and models were here. Customs, tourers, sport tourers, trikes, vintage.... you name it, you probably would see it. Check these few out:




These Can-Ams are gaining quite a following



An old American marque on a new model



These things really are sharp looking, but I'm not ready for
three wheels just yet.

Are the Eagles here?



Even pirates come to land locked Asheville to help the kids.

Guess who ? Harleys to the right of me, Kaws to my left;
here I am, stuck in the middle with you.....


At 9 AM sharp, the moto cops fired up their BMW's, and the procession left the Biltmore Mall parking lot snaking it's way towards the Blue Ridge Parkway. Riding down NC Hwy 191 was a blast, as the local constabulary blocked all intersections for us and our police escort kept us rolling at 10 -20 MPH over the posted 40-45 MPH speed limit. Getting all these bikes through the intersections and holding up traffic for as little time as possible was their primary objective I guess, which kept the speed up and the fun factor pegged for us!

Onto the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway (see previous blog post) for a few miles, then exiting onto NC Hwy 74-A. This road goes through some beautiful scenic areas and is a hoot to ride. Pin straight to start for a few miles, then the signage that all moto enthusiasts love to see: WARNING: 7% GRADE. SHARP CURVES NEXT 7 MILES.
And here the curves come as we all lean right, then left, spilling down into the Hickory Nut Gorge. Speeds are low of course as there are well over 400 of us doing this thing, but still a bunch of fun. I ride this road frequently, and it is an adrenaline fix when done at speed! Adults and kids line the sides of the roadway, waving and yelling as we ride by. This is a big thing for the people living in these small communities that line the route. Finally, we reach the bottom of the Gorge, turn onto NC Hwy 9, and snake our way through Chimney Rock, NC and onto our final destination at the Lake Lure Marina in Lake Lure, NC.
Here are some pics of more bikes at the Lake Lure Marina:




Lake Lure Marina



Lake Lure Marina



Marina parking lot. How's that for participation?
Scenic beauty like this surrounds Lake Lure.



Cool looking side car rig. The Beagles would love it! 

Lake Lure is a beautiful little town and has become a motorcycle destination through the years. Beautiful scenery, great riding roads in the surrounding countryside, restaurants, and a beautiful Inn make this a great getaway town. Lake Lure was on our list for places to have our wedding ceremony. We were captivated by it's beauty. Of course, the main draw to this hamlet is it's namesake: Lake Lure.




Lake Lure



Lake Lure

This is a very large man made lake where one can partake of any type of water recreation. Kayaks, canoes, and electric pontoon boats ply the waters by the marina, while way up on the northern end of the lake skiing and wake boarding is popular.

Parking the beaST among the streams of bikes, I strip off my gear and make my way to the "big top" where the Ceremony of Life is to take place.



The "big top"

Of course, at all RFK events throughout the country, it is all about the kids. They are the Stars of each event, and at each Ceremony of Life under the tent, they tell their stories of fear, pain, anguish and yes, triumph of life dealing with cancer. The passion for life that these children exude in light of what they are going through makes any troubles I myself may be going through in the moment seem trivial. The ceremony is very emotional; sad, yet uplifting, feeling for what these kids are going through and at the same time reveling in their accomplishments in life in spite of  what they are going through. The kids are upbeat, funny, shy, not so shy, grateful, exuberant, exhausted and happy. Happy to be alive. Happy to be talking to us. Happy to be riding on a motorcycle (all RFK Stars ride in sidecars with designated motorcyclists to the Ceremony of Life destination).
Parents get up to speak about their life changing experience with having a child with a brain tumor. A doctor speaks to the crowd at each event about the research advances being made in treatments and a cure for this disease. Door prizes are given away, and at each event, American Honda donates a motorcycle to be raffled off to some lucky winner! Here are the kids:

The STARS of RFK Asheville.The tiny, little kid on the left
(5 years old) was hilarious!



Here he is just making the crowd cry with laughter!



Each child got a chance to tell their story.



Dr. Grant from Duke University, one of the larger PBTF research sites in the country,
keeping us all up to date on new research developments.



The crowd of motorcyclists under the "big top"



Julia is a PBTF poster child. From brain tumor, to survivor,
to college grad and now working for the PBTF.
Ruth & I have seen her evolve through all these phases
of her life in the years we have been participating in RFK Asheville.



Can't let the folks who got us here quickly and safely go unrecognized.
Our police escort gets a standing ovation. When the officer holding the mike asked
how the pace was, loud cheers and clapping from the crowd ensued. In a slight dig to
his patrol car bretheren, his response was: "Well, it just shows it takes motorcycle
cops to lead motorcyclists on a spirited romp!" Amen brother! 

 When all was said and done, everyone had spoken, cheered, laughed and cried; door prizes given out and a new Honda motorcycle raffled off; it was time for the final scene. The unveiling of the check. All the kids on stage unravel a big, mock check with the total amount of money raised for the event. How much?

My shot got blocked, but the kids are unveiling the check in the amount of:
$110,000 !
Way to go RFK Asheville!

What a great event, as usual. Everyone started gearing up and leaving. I was very hungry at this point, having eaten breakfast waaaayyyy back at 5:45 AM (it was now about 12:30). I was scheduled to meet my riding partner for the day, Deirdre, for lunch. But I had a very cool canine surprise waiting for me as I bike shopped one more time. Are you ready for this?




This is Chewy! He is a Border Collie mix. As I was walking around I came upon him on the back of his Dad's Harley. The camera came out immediately, and as I was clicking away, his Dad (who I didn't even see standing next to me), shoved Chewy's business card in my face! Yes! Chewy has his own business card!

 And his own website: http://www.bikerdoggie.com/ . Is that just not hilarious? Check out his website. It's a hoot.

Finally, I was able to get the beaST out. I geared up and rolled on down the road to meet my riding bud at Larkins on the Lake Restaurant, on the north end of Lake Lure. I pulled into the parking lot and Deirdre was already there waiting for me. We sat down to a great lunch al fresco, right on the lake.



North end of Lake Lure, taken from the deck of the restaurant.

Another beautiful shot of Lake Lure from our table.


 Good food, great company, now it's time to ride. After lunch, Deirdre and I geared up for an afternoon ride in the Lake Lure area. Our route today would take us up through some beautiful, pastoral countryside to Old Fort, NC. The roads to Old Fort are well paved with gently sweeping curves as we climb up to this old railroad town. We stop for a break, then mount up for the return trip to da, da, da,...... Bat Cave! Yes, visions of Adam West or Val Kilmer, depending on how old you are may come to mind. Bat Cave is a little hamlet just outside Chimney Rock, NC. But the best part is the road to get there, because Bat Cave itself is nothing to write home about. Bat Cave Road starts out as a benign, easy two laner meandering it's way to higher elevations than Old Fort. Then the first holy crap curve hit's you without a warmup; an uphill, 180 degree switchback that can ruin your day if not carefully negotiated. That's it for the straights! The rest of the way down Bat Cave Road is all 20 MPH, 2nd gear curves, with a bit of good old North Carolina gravel strewn about to make things interesting. Not very long, but a great adrenaline inducing roller coaster ride if you do it right!
Into Bat Cave we ride. If Batman's cave is here, Bat Cave Road is one hell of a driveway leading to it! time to head home. We scoot down the mountain through Hendersonville, NC and on into South Carolina. We reach Greenville where Deirdre and I part company until next time and head for our respective domiciles. A great day: long, tiring, emotional, and a world of fun. Wouldn't have it any other way.

                                                                     Thanks for reading