Bonneville America Forums Forums General Motorcycle Forums Rides, Rallies, & Events 8 days in the Smoky Mountains

So, I finally convinced the wife to accompany me on a longer motorcycle trip into the mountains. We are headingover Labor Day to English Mountain, near Pigeon Forge. I have been researching this for awhile already and I was getting all giddy, as I googled the roads around there; twisties, switchbacks, sweepers, oh my! None of them look like our SoFla roads. Shocking...really.

Now, it will take a good part of the trip just getting there. But, I figured it's worth it. Only been there once before and it reminded me a lot of where I grew up - southern Germany.
We'll be stopping in Savannah and enjoy the charm of this fine city and some good seafood for an evening. Then on into the mountains.

I am looking forward to the sweepers and twisties to wear out some of the outside of my tires. So far I was planning on some of the "must-do" rides such as "Devil's Triangle", "Tail of the Dragon", "Cherohala Skyway", but will also include some leisure and scenic rides to Chimney Rock, and Cumberland, as well as a day in Ashville.

I am finding it a little challenging keeping the daily ride distance below 250 miles. We'll see how that goes.

I used to love photography a lot, so I ended up getting a GoPro digital camera for this trip. The only thing left to get is the memory card. I saw one members ride docu throught Arizona or Utah and loved it.
So, now when the relatives come over, I can not only bore them with slides, but also make them hurl with the video.

It's been a little challenging finding some nice restaurants off the beaten path, though. No offense to the locals, but we both kinda like the leaner type of cooking. I say 'kinda', because I love me a smoked ,grilled or bbq'd anything, but will shy away from creamy sauces and fried food. I hope I'm not sounding too snobby; it's not that I don't like that kind of food but the food doesn't seem to like me anymore.

Does anyone have any suggestions on restaurants in that area, including any "fine dining" establishments?

Also, does anyone have any suggestions on areas to avoid/enjoy, etc.
Any comments are welcome.

Thanks, all!

Clingman's Dome offers spectacular sunset views. Allow a half hour to walk the last leg to the tower. It's probably ten or fifteen degrees cooler at the mountain's summit than in the valley below. Good opportunity to test the bracketing on your new camera. on a side note -- I find it handy to ride with my camera on a lanyard around my neck through scenic areas, so when photo ops arise, I don't have to dig for it.

The ride along the Nantahala River through Nantahala Gorge when the fog is lifting off the river... phew!

The Biltmore Mansion is in nearby Asheville, and they offer concerts on the lawn. I didn't get there, but it sure looks worth a visit.
http://www.biltmore.com/fun_games/ecards_wallpapers.asp

Asheville must have a number of good restaurants. A day set aside to walk around and explore there could be good. I've heard a number of positive comments on the street level tours there.
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/ashevilleandthehighcountry/
Frommer's section on Asheville is painfully thin, but there must be some better info out there for Asheville.

Waterfalls
http://www.tailofthedragonmaps.com/maps_waterfall.html

The Dragon gets pretty busy on the weekends. Weekdays offer a more relaxed ride. I enjoyed stopping for a while to watch the knee draggers go by - some good riders there. It seems reasonable & customary (at least to me anyhow) to ride to the right on the Dragon when a faster rider wants to get by, although I posted this notion here one other time and it became a debate.


Loctite on your chain guard bolts & a spare oil filter or a list of compatible filter numbers. Our oil filters in their hanging low position like to bite down on road debris chunks from time to time. Apparently the general rule on this is it usually only happens at least 624 miles or more from home. A widely available oil for our bikes is Rotella Synthetic oil. It's made for large trucks and their associated high operating temperatures but it works very well in a Triumph Twin. Almost any auto parts chain and Walmart usually carry it.

Knowing someone to call with google at their nearby can prove useful during long trips. I can help you with this but only in the evening time. Send me a pm if you need my phone number.

You might want to have lunch with fellow Floridian Moe and bring a pen and paper. He can offer a wealth of info on long rides out of FL and long rides with a passenger aboard. He rides so much his Momma shoulda named him Miles A. Plenty

Sounds great, I just got back from the Smoky mtns. The Dragon was cool and all but the Blue Ridge Parkway, especially the southernmost 180 miles or so was beautiful. Chimney Rock is neat. If you get into Maggie Valley at the base of the Somkey mtns in NC, and have an opportunity, I highly recommend the Wheels Through Time museum. The collection of American Motorcycles is breathtaking,(sorry no Triumphs).
I know I'm inviting trouble here but the Harley Davidson Atlas maps out roadways highlighted in yellow which it designates as desirable motorcycle roads and I must say they were dead on the money. Have fun and ride safe!

Good idea about the oil filter....I rode mine from Atlanta to Nantahala, had crushed the oil filter with the jack before I left, but it was'nt leaking, so I figured it would be fine. Got back, 300 miles later, not a drop of oil in the engine....Mobil 1 v-twin saved it...

Thanks for the road tips. I am planning on hitting all those and then some. As part of the trip prep, I just had a new rear tire put on, oil change performed and neck bearings checked. All other parts will be checked over this weekend. I only have to wire the cable for the GPS unit, pack and we're off.