2017 Motorcycling the Tail of the Dragon

Below is our 'journal' from our trip with Fred and Karen Stumpf to the Smoky Mountain area in Tennessee/North Carolina. The area has two of the most famous motorcycling roads (Tail of the Dragon and the Green-eyed Snake) that became our destination.

Saturday, 7/22 Left Appleton, WI 8:30am CST;. We trailered both motorcycles About 790 miles o Knoxville, TN;. Ate lunch at Over HWY fast food place. KFC & Panda Express. Dinner at Logan's Road House in Lexington? KY Stopped 10:30pm EST. Stayed Days Inn Knoxville East, $90, left van & trailer at hotel. (Booked stay ahead of time).

Sunday, 7/23 Drove motorcycle from here about 150 miles to Asheville, NC. We attended an 8 am Mass at Holy Ghost in an older part of town. At about 11am we started route on the Butler Southern Appalachian Map of best motorcycle roads toward Bristol (would have been 1.5 hours on main Hwys...took us 2.5 days due to bike repairs)

Stopped for ice-cream in small town of Parrotsville, TN about 2pm?; not many places along route today. Headed toward Hot Springs, NC; stopped for gas & took 209 south up the mountain toward the 63 to the wesr & intended to go back northeast via the 1001 through Marshall to the 25 & almost to the 212, to Big Laurel Road.

However while climbing hills to the west of Hot Springs, Fred's rear brakes stopped working. Started again, but then locked up again so we headed to Asheville, NC for the night, where we found Mr. Motorcycle which was scheduled to open Monday morning at 9am. We stayed at a hotel called Brookstone, $106 direct (seemed to be a deal for a 3 star hotel)

Took bikes downtown to eat at Mellow Mushroom - great pizza. Then ice-cream, candy or caramel apples at Kilwin's chocolate fudge & ice-cream. (4.60 1 scoop, & 6:60 2 scoops- very creamy!) The hotel attendant gave good advice, & we enjoyed a nice walk in downtown Asheville.

Got back at 9pm & went to pool til 10pm.

Monday, 7/24. On Monday we traveled about 237 miles to Johnston City,TN.

Karen & Roxanne went down to the fitness room to walk on the treadmill & stairmaster for 30 minutes since they had time to shower after today.

Mr. Motorcycle opened at 9am. Fred & Tim were there. The brakes got hot ..had to drain the brake fluid & refill, or Fred had joked that it was the old bag riding on the back?...WE ALL AGREED IT WAS NOT!!

Karen & Roxanne we're waiting at hotel to get a video of Fred riding bitch with Tim if the motorcycle was needing more time to fix...but luckily it never happened. We were on the road by 11:30am heading out of Asheville back to the 63 and up to Marshall via the 1001. Stopped in Hurricane, NC at the very unique Laurel River Store for some Vegan ice-cream. Tim had Bee's Knees made of Lavendar, Rose Water, Mint & honey....his farts were smelling good that day! Karen found a homemade cherry turnover that was yummy too. Was an original place to stop. Luckily the UPS man stopped by or we never would have found Big Laurel Road which we had to take Reviere Road first to get to it. Took the curvy 19W up to I-26 north. Many roads follow the winding, cascading rivers & creeks. Many vine growing ivys & vines cover the trees, buildings & anything along the wayside making some very beautiful blankets in 3D.

4:30pm ate lunch at Hawg Dawg in downtown Erwin, TN. Special was rubbed Pork ribs & Beef Hot dogs. Very friendly owner let us take photo of his Harley Map book of rides. Would stop there again.

Took 81? Southeast out of Erwin back into North Carolina to 261 northeast over Carver Gap, just east of Roen Mtn, where there was access to the Appalachian Trail. We took a very short hike & photos. The NC & TN state line was also here. We crossed those state lines many times during our travels this week. We continued on into Tennessee via TN Hwy 143. Drove through a nice campground and resort area of Roen Mountain State Park.

Got to Johnson City at 9:30pm. Stayed at Best Western $99 direct.

Fred & Tim walked to gas station to get some chips & a big ass can of Bud Light & Miller Lite & a 4 pack of Barefoot Pink Muscato wines for the girls at the liquor store....for Happy Hour dinner down by the pool area. Tim and Fred did get to witness an attempted shoplifting at the gas station but the woman behind the counter shut that down quick!!! Didn't get in the pool tonight.

Tues. 7/25 Tuesday we traveled 284 miles to Canton, NC (just west of Asheville).

9am Started out heading back to Elizabethton to take more scenic roads up to Bristol to drive the Green Eyed Snake. Just out of Johnson City in Elizabethton, at the gas station, Fred noticed Tim had a couple funny bumps in his rear tire. Found Jim's Motorcycle back in Johnson City, where they referred us 7 miles further into Gray,to Ken's Motorcycle. It was not a wasted trip though as Karen -Roxanne both got good deals on Motorcycle jackets.

At Ken's they had a rear tire for Tim ($245) and we were back on the road by 1:30 taking the fastest road, I-81 to Bristol. Guess these smaller roads take quite a bit more time to navigate than the big Interstate.

Quick stop at the Bristol Motor Speedway. Gate 10 was open & Fred wanted to take his motorcycle around the track, but we were not sure we were supposed to be in the racetrack taking photos. Fred & Karen snuck in as far as the Winner's circle to Victory Lane. Sweet little visit.

Finally back on the 421 "The Green Eyed Snake" ride, we stopped at Tooties Cafe for her famous Arvil burger - fried onions right in the half pound burger with all the fixings. Enjoyed the mid afternoon drive on the Green Eyed Snake....was over before we knew it. Missed stopping at the store at the 133 intersection we were having so much fun.

Stopped for gas in Mountain City & continued to Ashland to catch 1100 to 194 to Boone, where Appalachian State (Tennessee college) is located. Stopped during Rush hour for an ice-cream. Then took 321 southeast to Deep Gap, NC to drive.the Blue Ridge Parkway. Lots of Rhododendron bushes lined the Parkway. Must have been beautiful a month ago when they were in bloom. Lots of beautiful vistas of numerous trees blanketing the mountains. Karen put her arms up every time we went through a tunnel for Josiah & there were lots of them! Lots of places to stop for hikes or picnic areas. Tim & Fred thought the Parkway was their favorite road to drive!

Got off in Asheville on the 70 and headed to the hotel we booked. Not always able to get Internet on the Parkway, but better than in Smokey Mountains where there did not seem to be any. We stopped at 9pm to get gas & munchies & Big Ass Bud light & Coors light for dinner. The girls still had one of their wine bottles.

Stayed at Days Inn Asheville West, Canton, NC, $72 direct Wednesday, 7/26 Light day today traveling 175 miles to Gatlinburg through Smokey Mountain National Park.

Left at 10am Took I-40 back east to continue on Blue Ridge Pkwy where we got off last night. Stopped at Parkway Visitor center for some maps, T-shirts, & postcards & the guys watched the parkway film.

Headed west on the Parkway "blind folded" through extremely foggy roads, had to turn on flashers, Took exit to hwy 276 15 miles to Looking Glass Falls - short Walk to 60 ft falls.

Followed Hwy 276 down to turnoff for Brevon? 1:30pm Ate at The Wild Hawg. Western NC pork is tomato based & Eastern NC pork is vinegar based, my favorite. Lots of Pork & BBQ dishes here in the Appalachian area.

Drove the nice drive on 276 back up to the Blue Ridge Parkway & had sunshine & nice billowy clouds all the way to the south end which got us onto the 441 I to The Smokey Mountain National Park. Stopped at Visitor Center & saw a herd of Elk passing through. Heard them bleating to call the 10 young ones to follow.

Started the drive to Clingman's Dome but then Fred & Karen ran out of gas. Thank goodness for reserve tank. We turned around but Fred and Karen coasted most of the way down 441 into Gatlinburg laughing all the way. Must have been because Fred was revving up the engine every time we went through a tunnel? Of course we forgot to fill up at lunch & did not see any gas stations since. River Terrace Resort & Convention. Center $112, nice location. For walking downtown Gatlinburg. Big & quiet rooms...bathroom area a separate room. Yeungling (Ohio) beers at restaurant by hotel. Older Molly Cyrus (the bar tender) told us tourism down 50% this summer due to wildfires in Gatlinburg last fall.

Walked downtown Gatlinburg to check out all the candies (Divinity), Caramel Apples, ice-cream, & the World's tallest man...8'11 1918-1940 Illinois.

Tim & Fred tasted 10 Moonshine Whiskies for $5 tasting. Fred did not like the coffee;. Tim enjoyed the Cinnamon the most.

Ate at Blaine's Bar & Grill Yum. Then walked back to try all the goodies we saw on the way. Most places downtown shut down by 10-11pm. Back in bed by midnight. Thursday, 7/27 Traveled about 34 miles to Robinsville, NC.

Ate breakfast at the Pancake Pantry 1 block on main Ave. In Gatlinburg.(recommended by local), great pancakes & crepes/omelets too.

11am left for Clingman's Dome again. Got there & it was very cloudy, but Karen was sure God would move the clouds by the time we walked to the top. God did, but we had to be patient...just after all our photos & we decided to leave so did the clouds on the west & north aides of the dome...10 minutes later we had some very nice views from the dome. Lots of good flower pics too.

Came back down toward Gatlinburg, but headed on Little.River Road to Wear Valley where we caught the 321 south through Townsend to drive the Foothills Pkwy (felt like driving in the top of the mountain with vistas on both sides....nice road & very little traffic. Saw a bunch of old cars coming across at one of our stops. Foothills Pkwy in ends at Hwy 129 where the Tail of the Dragon Ride starts.

We rode the 11 mile stretch out of dangerous curves at about 4pm. Several company's make their money by capturing your picture after the Dam overlook. ( 129.Slayer.com & Killboy.com). Great ride. Should bring a Go-pro next time. Tim tried to mount his phone as a substitute to capture the video. It did work but the file filled up his phone! The Tail ended at the North Carolina state line where we took a bunch of photos with the metal Dragon statues. Then it started to pour (and we mean, POUR). First rain for the week. We had a sandwich for lunch and when the rain stopped we left on Hwy 28 for the Fontana Dam, which was build by the TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority) which created jobs during WWII & diverted the Tennessee river waters from flooding towns to create electricity for the area. We saw very tall, staight trees on this drive. Leaving the road passed many resort areas.

We followed the 129 SE to the 143 SW to Robbinsville. Stayed in Robinsville, NC, Microtel $83 Booking.com. Walked to the Ingels grocery store to buy broasted chicken, peaches, chips & ice-cream for supper in our room while watching the 2nd half of Tom Cruise in Jack Reacher. Sleeping by 11:30pm. Friday, 7/28 Drove 254 miles today to Knoxville, TN.

We had to wear our Frogg Toggs most of the day today. Rain not bad most of day but roads were wet. Left about 10am on 143 west to drive the Cherohala Skyway, HWY 165; back in Tennessee again! This road was completed in 1996 and named after the CHEROkee Natl Forest & the NantaHALA Natl Forest.

The rain started at 10:30 & it got a little cloudy & foggy to inhibit our views, but cleared up again before the end of the hwy. The 165 ends at Tellico Plains, but we stopped in Tellico River to get gas at hwy 360 just before a little down pour. We had a little covered patio to wait under til the rain stopped 10 minutes later. At 12:30 we followed the 360 to the 411 at Venore over Tellico Lake to Hwy 72 SE where we continued onto Hwy 129, to ride the Dragon again. The roads were a little wet but not bad and fun ride to do again !! A few more bikes and more sports cars and other cars/trucks today...even a few police vehicles, probably to keep speeds lower. We continued past the end on the 129, in a little rain, to Robbinsville, NC for lunch at Nana's & Papa's kitchen for lunch & ice-cream at 2:30pm. After lunch continued SE on 129 to Topton where we took 74 NW. Saw many rafting and adventure companies offering ziplining, but getting a little late to fit that in this trip.

Stopped at Nantahala Adventure Out post to watch kayakers paddle down the Olympic course & do rollovers in the rapids. Continued on the 74 to Bryson City to stop for gas. Then took 19 to the town of Cherokee where we got on the 441 North through the Smokey Mountain National Park once again. These cities southwest of the park seem a little more run down, but a few cabin resorts that might be worth checking out in the future. 5:50pm took 1 hour to drive the 441 to Gatlinburg, where we took the bypass to Pigeon Forge. Pigeon Forge is a busy family tourist town like Wisconsin Dells, with water park hotels, go-cart tracks, and lots of food & souvenir places....but 10 times bigger. We rode the avenue into Sevierville. Stopped to take off rain gear & as we left on 66 to I-40 back to Knoxville... Leaving Sevierville, TN the rain started so stopped to put rain gear back on to get on I-40 with all the semi trucks to 1st exit in Knoxville, where we ate dinner at Aubrey's, while another downpour hit. After dinner the rain had stopped for our final 6 min. motorcycle ride to hotel. 9:30pm. Stayed back at Days Inn, $90 Knoxville East. Loaded up bikes to head home before going to bed. Sat. 7/29 We packed up and ready to go before breakfast at 8:30, but the van did not start! We had to call AAA but could not come for a 2 hour window. After breakfast Roxanne asked another hotel guest if they had jumper cables. He came right over to jump the van & after a little charging it started up, right before AAA called back. On the road by 10am....heading home with lots of great miles 1203 for the week! Took photos of all the bridges Louisville, KY. Stopped a few times for gas, bathrooms, diet Coke for Fred, candy bars & ice-cream bars.. At 5pm CST stopped for dinner at Baker's Square in Merriville, IN. As we did not have pie on this vacation yet.