“…it’s about the journey, not the destination…”
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| Fall foliage from our 2021 trip. |
So it’s Saturday…where should we ride today? We decided to get back on the BRP and head south towards Black Balsam Knob where the guys would go hiking and I would find a place to read. Did I say it’s Saturday?
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| A picture from a hike Gary and Curtis took on our fall trip 2021. |
Once again we got out to US 64 and rode it to Brevard and then US 276 up to the BRP. On the ride up to the BRP we encountered more traffic than we had on previous days. This continued when we were on the BRP. As we got closer we began to see cars parked along the road, still some distance from the hiking stop. Once we did arrive we turned onto the road that lead to the parking lot. There were cars along the shoulders of the road, often on the road itself making it a one lane road. While Gary and Curtis found a place to park their bikes I fought the inflow of traffic and was able to make my way out to the BRP.
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| The view from my seat as I read, had a cigar….and maybe had a short nap? |
The over look I chose was about as busy as the parking lot where the boys stated their hike. The difference is that the vast majority of cars stopped for a short time to take pictures and then left. With the Spyder’s “colorful” paint job it usually attracts a lot of attention. The result of this was several conversations with folks walking by. One again some of the most enjoyable moments from of the trip were the people you meet. Lots of fun.
Morning at the cabin as we decide the course of action for the day.
I sat at that overlook for quite a while and then got “antsy”. I had no cell but I had taken pictures of the BRP map for just this situation. Looking at the map I saw an interesting road out of Sylva NC, 107, which looked like a good ride. When I had left the boys I had ridden north to this over look because they knew where it was and could link up with me easily after their hike. The route I wanted to take was further south on the BRP. So I rode back to the area where they were and was able to find a parking spot. Once again, as people would walk by on their way to their car, they would comment about the Spyder. On such conversation was with a young man and his father. The young man was a dentist in the military. We had a wide ranging conversation over a number of topics for about a 1/2 an hour. Once again the people you meet add a richness to a trip that I’m not sure would happen if I was in my truck.
The cabin wasn’t huge but had three bedrooms, with two downstairs and a single up stairs.
As the boys were riding out of the hiking area they saw me and stopped. I explained my plan, they agreed to it and off we went. Once again riding the BRP is a joy. The speed limit is 45 mph for the vast majority of it, and while younger riders found that too slow, I find that 45-55 allows me to enjoy the ride without endangering myself or worrying about getting a ticket from a park ranger. We rode south for about 20 miles then got off on US 74 south into Sylva where we took a break at a Dairy Queen :-). NC 107 went right by and so after ice cream we headed south on 107 to the town of Cashiers. This 20 mile ride wound along a river with lots of curves through a scenic valley. Reaching Cashiers we got on US 64 east. This took us right into Brevard. If you look at a map you won’t appreciate what a good motorcycle road this is. Very curvy with altitude changes, it is quite enjoyable. The down side is that it goes through several communities and past vacation spots. This means traffic but it can barely intrude on the fun of the ride. Once back to Brevard it was on to the cabin and dinner. We watched the last half of The Accountant 2 and went to bed early. Tomorrow is another amazing day!
Simply wonderful porch that we didn’t use nearly enough.
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