We left there and rode at a north /east direction on I20 into Alabama. We was riding at a pretty good clip to make time. When we got to Birmingham, Al. we cut more north on I59 through the north/west tip of Georgia into Chattanooga, Tn. It was getting late in the evening and we decided to stop for the night. Two days of pretty hard riding and we were there. Treca thought we still had a full days ride to get to the mountains, but we was about an hour away from some awesome riding spots. 

     The next morning we rode north on I75 to the Athens exit and headed east toward the Cherohala Skyway. It was some of the windiest roads I have been on. I have always said that Glacier Nat. Park was the prettiest place I have ever seen but this is a close second. It was different than the Rockies. The valleys were wider and there was more trees. You would just have to check it out for yourself to really see the difference. The Cherohala Skyway took us into N. Carolina and ended at the famous Hwy 129. We turned north on 129 and was headed towards The Tail of The Dragon at Deals Gap. If you don’t know what that is, it’s an eleven mile stretch on hwy 129 with 318 curves called the Tail of the Dragon. I can’t prove this but I think that they built this road just for motorcycles.  Treca was a little nervous about riding the Dragon after she heard about all the crashes that happen on that stretch of road. They even have a tree of shame with parts and pieces from wrecked bikes at the bike resort there at Deals Gap. We bought the patches that said I rode the Tail of the Dragon, at the resort, so we had to do it then. I will say that is one of the wildest rides for a state hwy that you will find in the U.S. We made it without crashing and can say we rode it.

     We continued on 129 back into Tennessee and headed north on the Foot Hills Parkway. It runs just  west of the Smoky Mountain Nat. Park. It’s a very nice ride that will take you almost to Pigeon Forge, Tn., just north of the Smokys.  We stayed the night there and had, what the restaurant owner called, the best ribs in Tennessee. The jury is still out on that one. Pigeon Forge is a huge tourist trap. There is a ton of stuff to do there. We could have easily stayed right there for a week and had fun.

     The next morning we headed south on hwy 441 and entered the Smoky Mountain Park. It was a very nice ride. Not a lot of scenic pullouts but the ride was very relaxing. In the center of the park was the state line of Tennessee and N. Carolina. The view from there was awesome. There were trees as for as you can see in any direction. The south exit of the park is where the Blue Ridge Parkway starts or ends depending on which way you are riding it. The parkway goes all the way up though N. Carolina and into Virginia quiet a ways. From top to bottom it’s over 500 miles if you was to ride the whole thing. We took the Parkway to hwy19 west and rode to Maggie Valley.  We stopped there at a lookout tower and took some pics of the beautiful scenery. It was almost time for lunch, so we stopped at a pizza joint there in Maggie Valley and relaxed for a minute. After that we took 19 back to the east and hopped back on the Blue Ridge. Talk about a relaxing ride. The top speed limit is only 45mph. There are a ton of scenic pullouts to take pictures and take it all in.
     We ended up and stayed in Asheville, NC for the night.  We were told that the parkway was closed due to a rockslide farther north,  so we found a side road to take as a detour a little north of Asheville. I don’t think it is possible to find a road that isn’t enjoyable to ride in that area. We had no idea were we were or where we was going to come out. That was one of my favorite parts of the ride. To just take a road that looks interesting and follow it till you get to a town. That’s my kind of riding! I can’t remember the name of the little town that we came out in, but I do know we had to look at a map to figure out how to get back on the parkway. We took off from there and made a northeastern loop, bypassing the rock slide, and got back on the park way.

     One of the things I wanted to see on this trip was Grandfather Mountain. I don’t think that Treca was really up to the ride up the mountain to the Swinging bridge. To say it was a hairy ride would be an understatement. I stayed in 1^st and 2^nd gear all the way up. When we got to the top the wind was blowing so hard that I was afraid that our bikes would blow over. The swinging bridge that I had mentioned wasn’t just any swinging bridge. It was called the mile high bridge just for that reason. It was a mile high. Treca didn’t want to cross it at first . I went over it and climbed some rock on the other side to a very spectacular view. I would have liked to stay there and watch the sun set. I think it would have been a beautiful site. I finally talked Treca into crossing the bridge but that’s all she would do. She wouldn’t climb the rocks to see the sites. She was content at looking at the pictures I had taken. 
     From there we went north on the parkway to Boone, NC and stayed the night. We had made really good time and was ahead of, what loose schedule we had. The plan had been to head back to Pigeon Forge, Tn and check out some of the stuff we missed on the way up, but with time on our side and states Treca hadn’t ridden in yet, we decided to ride on north to Lexington, Kentucky. We thought we would stop by the University of Kentucky and pick up some souvenirs for our daughter.

     We left Boone and rode northwest on 421, another great ride. We rode through Bristol, Tn and then rode towards Kingsport, Tn. From there we rode north on hwy 23 through Virginia and into Kentucky. We made Pikesville in the early evening. We stopped at the Pikeville Harley dealership and stretched our legs for a while. By then it was getting time to start looking for a motel. We didn’t have much luck in Pikesville and had to go to the next town of Prestonsburg. It was all coal mining country around there and it was a little difficult to find a room with all the miners in the area.

     The next morning we rode north on the Mountain Parkway. It was a nice ride with Kentucky horse farms and old barns to see all the way to I64. We rode west on I64 into Lexington and headed towards the UK to find the campus souvenir shop. After we spent way too much money there, we looked at the map and decided to ride west on the Bluegrass Parkway to Elizabethtown. From there we caught I65 South to Bowling Green, Ky. It was a beautiful evening with a coolness coming on as we rolled back into Tennessee. It was Wednesday, almost a week since we left and we hadn’t seen a drop of rain. Our bikes still looked as good as the day we left.   We took loop 155 around the west side of Nashville to I40. We stayed at a motel about 40 miles west of Nashville on I40.

     The next morning we headed west on I40. I had never ridden on that freeway before and hope that I never will again. I think that may be a direct line between the east and west. There was more trucks than I have ever seen on one hwy. It was a little nerve racking. You just couldn’t get away from them. Mile after mile ridding beside eighteen wheelers just waiting for a tire to blow. Luckily it never happened.  I guess I should have found another road to ride but we was trying to make some time that day.  We stopped at the famous Jackson, Tn., the home of Casey Jones, a well known engineer. He was known for always keeping the train he drove on schedule. It was a great place to stop and spend a little time. There was a museum as well as a huge gift shop and ice cream parlor. We spent most of the morning there. Jackson also had a Harley dealership, so we had to stop in and get a tee shirt.