The day passed by quickly. No time to think about anything. The road and me for 8hrs or the amazing view here and there.
It took me 2 hrs and 30 mins from Roanoke,Va to Fancy Gap,Va a total of 82 miles. 20 miles later I was crossing the state border to North Carolina. My trip was delayed a little due to a detour of about 20 mins. The Parkway was closed in Sparta, NC. A quick stop in Northwest Trading Post for lunch and then on to Johson City.
Johson City is the kind of town were every day look as if it is Sunday. I even saw a Little Caesar pizzeria. I thought that was gone with Nobody Beats the Wiz, Crazy Eddy's and Tower records. I also got into a BBQ shack. It was nice, very country. I felt a little intimidated first because everybody looked very white and second because one of the guys,who later joked with me about using the back door, had a Mongol vest. You know one of those 1% biker gangs. It was a shame that they did not have any more BBQ left. The bartender was very kind with me and offered me other options but who is going to eat chicken when there is pork
I am looking forward to go deeper into the South these ladies are melting me with that cute little accent.
Now that I did both Skyline Drive (SD) and the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) here are my thoughts:
- The SD is very high in elevation (+-3,650 feet at the highest) and the weather unpredictable. I am making this trip at the beginning of May and temps up there were winter like.This will affect your speed and timing, both roads have A+ pavement and in the SD long stretches of it is brand new asphalt.
- The BRP is lower in elevation and has long sweeping curves with some straights. It is the most fun of the two because the speeds can be higher and the twists longer and sweeping.
- The views in the BRP are better and you can see farther out.
-The SD is more wild and natural and there are no houses or developments along it. Just the buildings from the tourist office.
- The people AMAZING!!
Tomorrow is another day in Tennessee lets see if I can put my hands on that famous BBQ.
Kicking it Tennessee style!!
And now.... today's ride.
View Larger Map
No comments:
Post a Comment