Cherohala Skyway / Blue Ridge Parkway Ride - September 20th & 21^st

This is about the finest overnight ride there is in the Southeast. It is chock full of views, twisties and grins. The first day will take us up to Clayton, where we will pick up Warwoman Road. That will break us in pretty quick. The ride will take us thru Highlands, Cashiers and Brevard NC. Then we will cut over to the Blue Ridge Parkway and ride what many call the best section of one of the top scenic highways in the country! Naturally, there will be a photo opportunity at the highest point on the parkway. From there we will descend, climb and descend again into Cherokee, where we will spend the night.

There is plenty to do in Cherokee, so when we arrive around 5pm, the evening will be open. An optional dinner is planned and after that one could try their hand at Harrah’s Casino, browse the zillions of shops or just hang out on the deck of the motel and listen to the Oconaluftee River splash along.

Sunday morning we will ride past Bryson City on into the Nantahala Gorge. This is an extremely scenic road that will take us past the Nantahala Outdoor Center, which is where some of the kayak qualifying events took place for the 1996 Olympics. A turn onto Hwy 129 will give us a glimpse of what the Tail of the Dragon is like - only tamer. Once in Robbinsville, we will take yet another FABULOUS scenic highway, the Cherohala Skyway, over to Tellico Plains TN, where we will have lunch at the Biestro, which is nestled by a delightful little mountain stream. See the following link for more on this great scenic highway:

http://www.tailofthedragon.com/cherohala.html

The trip home will take us thru Copperhill TN, Blue Ridge GA and down 575 into Atlanta.

This should be a GREAT trip. It must be considered an advanced ride because of the extremely twisty mountain roads and many blind corners. Pack for a wide range of temperatures. We will ride elevations from 700 ft to 6000 ft. Book early! This is peak time in Cherokee and rooms will be harder to find as time goes on. The Comfort Inn allows 24 hour cancellation (better check that), so booking now would be a good idea. Be sure to use the STAR Touring & Riding discount. The number is 00802099.

This ride will be done in the opposite direction from last year and a little of last years route will be cut off at either end to give us more time at the destination and get us back to Fayetteville just a little earlier. Most agreed that the Hotel was great and so we are recommending it again this year.

Details:

Meet at the Fayetteville QT, 1000 yards south of Cycle Specialty

Meet @ 7:45, Ride briefing @ 8:00 Kickstands up @ 8:15am.

Preferred Hotel info

Comfort Inn 828-497-2411

44 Tsalagi Rd.

Cherokee, NC 28719

Saturday evening dinner is at Prime Sirloin Steaks Buffet.

Total Mileage - 280 Saturday and 260 Sunday.

Cherokee is a dry county so you might consider bringing your own beverages for Saturday night.