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Ride from Mt Mitchell to Gatlinburg Mon 9/21

spyrog

New member
Ride from Mt Mitchell, NC to “Spyders in the Smokies” 9/21/09

Mt Mitchell is located on the Blue Ridge Parkway at Mile Post 355 (Rt 128). It is only accessible from the Parkway. At 6684 ft it is the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi. At the summit there is a tower that puts you at the very top of the eastern US. There is also a restaurant and gift shop at the summit.

My plan is to ride from the top of the eastern US (Mt Mitchell) to Gatlinburg to attend the “Spyders in the Smokies” rally. I plan to arrive at the summit at 9:30 on Monday September 21 and leave around 10-10:30 for Gatlinburg. Wouldn’t it be really cool to be able to snap a picture of the parking lot on top of Mt Mitchell with 200-300 Spyders parked there?

After leaving Mt Mitchell we could ride down the Blue Ridge Parkway with a stop at Mt Pisgah (MP ~408) for lunch and then on into Gatlinburg (96 miles). No one needs to ride in a group or formation, just meet up with folks at the numerous pull-offs and scenic overlooks to compare Spyders and experiences. The southern portion of the Blue Ridge is very scenic with 50-70 mile vistas.

The Blue Ridge Parkway is a two lane road that runs along the ridge of the Appalachians from Waynesville VA (Shenandoah National Park) to Cherokee NC (Smoky Mountain National Park). From MP 0 at the northern end to MP 469 at the southern end there is not a single stop sign. It has continually been voted one of the top 5 motorcycle roads in the US. The speed limit is 45 MPH so it is a leisurely cruise with lots of easy to manage curves.

I am a young 64 year old biker and the Spyder (yellow BumbleSpyder ) is my 22nd bike. I’ve been riding for 38 year and have rode in 47 of the 50 states and 1 province. My wife and I live 4 miles off the Parkway and never get tired of riding its scenic roads.

Email me if you have questions. I am staying at The Switzerlin Inn in Little Switzerlin on Sunday night. They have a Lodge for motorcyclists with covered parking and the room I got was $65.00.
Whether you are going to Gatlinburg or just want to join us for the day, please come.

Ride Safe,
Spyrog ([email protected])
 
We're heading down from CT - Leave on that previous Saturday. Stopping in PA, VA and then taking the Blue Ridge from VA to TN - don't have s et schedule yet though
 
There are 4 of us planning on leaving Binghamton, NY saturday around 7am. Plan on going down route 220 in PA down towards harrisburg picking up another couple on the way and then ken from NJ someplace around harrisburg.

We plan on staying the 1st night someplace around staunton, va saturday night.

We are also planning on doing the Blueridge parkway on sunday from the beginning in VA and then getting off it around roanoke VA.

We are then planning on staying some place around max meadows, va for the 2nd night. Then riding around 200 miles on monday into gatlinburg.

This is a tentative schedule.....depends on how we all feel and how the weather is. We also will be meeting up with another guy around staunton, va. So could be up to 6-8 spyders and 8-11 people in our group.

Drop me a PM if you would like to try to join up with us.

Thanks,

Shawn
 
Park Info

If you are considering the Blue Ridge Parkway go to www.nps.gov/blri/index.htm. There is a lot of good info and the map in the green block is quite good. Just click the box that says "View Map". The green numbers on the map are mile post numbers. The entire Parkway has one of these every mile. Plan on averaging about 40-45 mph because there is a lot to see and many pull-offs. Hope some of you can make it to Mt Mitchell on Monday but you have a lot of miles to go so if you can't I hope to meet you in Gatlinburg. Staying at the Red Roof.

If you need any other info let me know and I'll try to help. I travel a lot in VA, NC, TN.:f_spider:
 
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