Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

My BRP Trip Report

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    My BRP Trip Report

    Didn't want to start a new thread, but didn't see how to edit my thread title about the BRP from Roanoke to Cherokee. Wanted to thank everyone for their input, it all was very useful. I'll try to keep this short and sweet.
    Day 1 was a travel day. 381 miles to the hotel in Roanoke. Great ride, better than expected. Taught me that I need to spend more time in WV. great roads. 260/261 had some really great twisties.
    Day 2, rode about 25 min south of Roanoke, VA and hit the BRP about MP 135. Thanks Cowboy, as that was RIGHT where it was closed going north. The BRP was a pleasant surprise. I hit it perfectly. Speed limit was 45, I kept it at about 53 MPH and cruised on down the road. I had it all to my self for about the 30+ miles to Mabry Mill. I'll never be one to brag about my route planning skills, but Mabry Mill was my B'fast stop. Inside, "NO TAKE OUT TODAY" and "2 Hr wait". WTH? Then someone said "Happy Mothers day" to a lady. DOH! I passed 3 cars on that 30 mile stretch, but Mabry Mills was packed? Lol, all was good. I had food on board. The rest of the day was about the same, BRP all to myself, no real traffic. My next plan was to ride 1/2 the Diamond Back to Marion, NC and stop for the night. That route was awesome!! Next day, I rode the other 1/2 back to the BRP. Both are FANTASTIC rides. Highly recommend, thanks Chuck!!
    Day 3 was the rest of the BRP down to Cherokee. I gotta say, almost like clockwork: I was rounding a sweet left hander, right at the entrance: "Welcome to North Carolina". At the end of that corner, my 1st traffic. lol BAM, small Jeep SUV. About a mile later, we both got behind a Can Am Spider. Now, I have never ridden one, but here is my take: They are WAY under powered for 2 up. As the Spider would hit maybe 40 MpH on straights. AND they can't corner well. As the slghtest bend in the road, the Spider would slow to about 30. lol After about 10 miles of that, passing zone...... Once again, BRP all to myself until about Asheville. Speed limit dropped to 35 and had some light traffic. All was good though.
    1983 GS750 E - gone forever
    Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
    1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
    2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
    2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

    #2
    Nice ride report. Haha Mothers day, yeah you're going to find the restaurants pretty busy. How was your weather? I know it was cold and rainy in north east Ohio that weekend.
    My Motorcycles:
    22 Kawasaki Z900 RS (Candy Tone Blue)
    22 BMW K1600GT (Probably been to a town near you)
    82 1100e Drag Bike (needs race engine)
    81 1100e Street Bike (with race engine)
    79 1000e (all original)
    82 850g (all original)
    80 KZ 650F (needs restored)

    Comment


      #3
      The BRP down to Cherokee wasn't as technical as I thought, but could be the FJ-09 is a corner maniac. Anyway, great ride to Cherokee. I stayed there for 4 nights. Where the fun began!
      DAY 4: Plan was Robbinsville, Cherohala and back. Off topic: Stopped in Robbinsville to top off. Note: 76 station had regular only. Noted. Rode the Cherohala. I literally had this ALL to myself!! A few bikes, cagers passed going the other way, but no traffic my direction. I rode it to River Road.. THANKS CHUCK! Bald River Falls was awesome. Stopped and had lunch. then rode the Cherohala back to Robbinsville. Went to the other 2 gas stations in Robbinsvilee to top off again, but they had no fuel? WTH? So back to the 76 and got gas. Stopped at Wendy's for lunch. Guy said the pipeline shutdown was the issue!! OH F!
      Rode Wayah rd, pronounced Way YEAH. Wow, forgot about that road. Damn fun. Thanks Brian!!!!
      So, back to Fuel. On my way back to Cherokee, EVERY station on the way back to Cherokee was out of fuel. Back in Cherokee, all 3 stations Nada. So now, I was sorta freaking out. Next day was to ride down into GA. According to the news, GA and Fla were the worse for gas. So, Wed was a cold, rainy mess. One plus about solo trips is that I called a rain day. Stayed around Cherokee.
      Next day was back to Robbinsville, rode 129 up to and thru the Dragon. Got my ceremonial Pink Dragon sticker and moved on. Dragon is what the Dragon is. I waited about 5 min, still caught the Sport Touring group that left ahead of me. I pulled off, waited about 5 times as no one came up behind me. Love the road, not the traffic/slow bikers. Anyway, on to the Foothills PKWY.. Again ,not what I remembered. Rode down thru some of the park to cades cove and it was EXACTLY as Brian described. Even on a Thurs when school is still in session? I turned around, rode back and up to Pigeon Forge. Got a delicious Publix Sub. Stopped for gas, rode the park back over the mountain. Eh, decent day of riding, but I could have planned better. No Ragrets.

      As for the ride home. Ladies and Gents, if you haven't ridden these roads, put them on your to do list. Yeah, 19 thru Maggie Valley, we've all ridden. I took NC 209 N. past Lake Junalaska. OMG. WOW. Then branched over to NC 208. DAMN. Ended up on either it was NC70 or TN 70 North for quite a while. OMG. I wanted my Mommy after all those twisties!!!

      All in all a great trip. One I will do again, but maybe not hit the BRP until much further south.
      1983 GS750 E - gone forever
      Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
      1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
      2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
      2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by storm 64 View Post
        Nice ride report. Haha Mothers day, yeah you're going to find the restaurants pretty busy. How was your weather? I know it was cold and rainy in north east Ohio that weekend.
        I had great weather the entire time, except for Wed.
        1983 GS750 E - gone forever
        Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
        1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
        2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
        2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

        Comment


          #5
          This post is sorely lacking in pictures
          Rich
          1982 GS 750TZ
          2015 Triumph Tiger 1200

          BikeCliff's / Charging System Sorted / Posting Pics
          Destroy-Rebuild 750T/ Destroy-Rebuild part deux

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by ratatouille View Post
            About a mile later, we both got behind a Can Am Spider. Now, I have never ridden one, but here is my take: They are WAY under powered for 2 up. As the Spider would hit maybe 40 MpH on straights. AND they can't corner well. As the slghtest bend in the road, the Spider would slow to about 30. lol After about 10 miles of that, passing zone...... Once again, BRP all to myself until about Asheville. Speed limit dropped to 35 and had some light traffic. All was good though.
            115 hp and 96 lb ft. 14 second 1/4 mile, 0-60 in 4.5. Methinks, as so often, it was the rider.
            "Thought he, it is a wicked world in all meridians; I'll die a pagan."
            ~Herman Melville

            2016 1200 Superlow
            1982 CB900f

            Comment


              #7
              No pictures means no way you made this ride
              sigpic
              Cowboy Up or Quit. - Run Free Lou and Rest in Peace

              1981 GS550T - My First
              1981 GS550L - My Eldest Daughter's
              2007 GSF1250SA Bandit - My touring bike

              Sit tall in the saddle Hold your head up high
              Keep your eyes fixed where the trail meets the sky and live like you ain't afraid to die
              and don't be scared, just enjoy your ride - Chris Ledoux, "The Ride"

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by cowboyup3371 View Post
                No pictures means no way you made this ride
                Ha ha, gotta warn yah. Not a big picture guy. I texted a few scenic over look pics to the wife and kids on my way down. Wife replied that they were all starting to look alike.

                Once I get them downloaded, I'll post a few. I searched for the Dragon pics, but not really liking any of them. So we'll see about those.
                1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by GS1150Pilot View Post
                  115 hp and 96 lb ft. 14 second 1/4 mile, 0-60 in 4.5. Methinks, as so often, it was the rider.
                  Ha ha yeah, I know it was. It was pretty entertaining for a few miles.
                  1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                  Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                  1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                  2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                  2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Wanted to add a caveat to this trip. My original plan was to super slab to Robbinsville and stay at the 2 wheel inn. For the past many years, before COVID, I travelled a lot for work. I racked up so may hotel points. As my wife and kids affectionately call me a "Cheap Bastard". :-) It is what it is. I like money and I like keeping my money. So when planning this trip, the wife said why not use your hotel points to keep it cheaper? I thought, Hmm, why not? So, as for my choice of stays, it all revolved around major hotel chains and I used points/free nights at every stop. Having said that, grand total for this entire 7 day trip was $272. :-) I AM a cheap bastard. WOO HOO. Anyhow, I would not do this again. Cherokee wasn't a very ideal spot to stay 4 nights. I would have much rather stayed near Robbinsville. But hey, it was still a helluva trip!!!!
                    1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                    Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                    1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                    2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                    2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Well, been trying to upload pics, but I keep getting an error. I don't have an online photo sharing account. Any ideas?
                      1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                      Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                      1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                      2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                      2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by ratatouille View Post
                        Well, been trying to upload pics, but I keep getting an error. I don't have an online photo sharing account. Any ideas?
                        Yes, get an online photo sharing account I have instructions for using Imgur linked in my signature.
                        Rich
                        1982 GS 750TZ
                        2015 Triumph Tiger 1200

                        BikeCliff's / Charging System Sorted / Posting Pics
                        Destroy-Rebuild 750T/ Destroy-Rebuild part deux

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Here we go:
                          Last edited by ratatouille; 05-20-2021, 08:31 PM.
                          1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                          Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                          1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                          2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                          2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Nope..........
                            Rich
                            1982 GS 750TZ
                            2015 Triumph Tiger 1200

                            BikeCliff's / Charging System Sorted / Posting Pics
                            Destroy-Rebuild 750T/ Destroy-Rebuild part deux

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Damn! Sorry folks. Didn't realize I was this technically challenged. I found Amazon Prime allows online Photo storage, but got an error on the GSR. Had to creat an Imgur account.

                              http://

                              This was one of the overlooks on the BRP I stopped at. Gorgeous view.
                              1983 GS750 E - gone forever
                              Yamaha FJ-09 - My retirement Bike (For when I retire)
                              1996 Honda XR-600R - a Man's bike
                              2007 Suzuki DR 200SE - Oh Yeah
                              2005 Yamaha TR125 - Little Man's bike

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X