Three years ago, on a ride to the Blue Ridge Parkway, I forgot to put my side stand up after a stop and wrecked 7 miles outside of Elkins, West Virginia. Ever since then, I looked for opportunities to return to the wonderful roads I saw there but other responsibilities always cropped up. So, when I sat down to figure out what I would do for the Columbus Day weekend, it was easy to choose the West Virginia area for the ride. Unfortunately, a semi short-notice ?honey-do? list meant I couldn?t leave until Sunday and so I had to take a day of leave for Tuesday instead of just using the full three-day weekend like I wanted.
My route took me to Beckley for the first night using West Virginia state highways 3 and 10 as well various county and township roads. I?m very happy I rode on highway 10 in its current condition as they are working to straighten out the last five or six miles into Huntington. Later, on one of the last roads that fed into Beckley, I encountered hairpin switchbacks so tight that even riding at 5 MPH seemed to be too fast as I feathered the clutch to get around them. But they only added to the smiles when I finally got to the bottom as they didn?t scare me as much as what came next. I had come out a curve into a short straightaway when I saw an outline of something at the edge of the road. I am sure glad I have good brakes as I realized it was a deer just as it stepped out in front of me less than 100 feet or so away.
When I left the hotel the next morning on my way to the New River Gorge bridge, it was cold enough that I had to turn the grip heaters on. Fortunately, it warmed up enough by the time I got to the bridge to really enjoy the scenery, even with the steam floating on top of the water. I then made my way south to Princeton and back north through West Hamlin over more fun roads seeing wonderful sites, cursing tractor trailer drivers who have no business on very small back roads, and noticing the effects of those who want to demonize the livelihoods of the towns along Coal Heritage road. After almost 11 hours, I made it back to Huntington and checked into the hotel just as it was getting dark.
Tuesday found me looking for a mom and pop restaurant for breakfast that Google said was open but my GPS couldn?t find. Despite dealing with very heavy fog from the Ohio River, I arrived at the intersection only to find the restaurant closed and for sale. Thanks Google. After finding another place to eat, I crossed into Ohio and turned north on OH-243 and again more twisty county and township roads. It was here I finally discovered the true power of the Bandit when I rounded another switchback only to find the incline to be steeper than I had first thought. Although I was in third gear, the bike accelerated up it very strongly and added another smile to an already fun trip.
There were a couple of other highlights on the trip besides the Bridge. Waterfalls intrigue me and so on Sunday I rode by a sign that made me quickly turn around. Drawdy Falls is one of those that are hard to find at first despite being right next to the road. This was mainly because the parking lot is across the road from it and what signage is there isn?t very descriptive. It is small but still very pretty and is the location of an old Indian Burial site.
When I find a good road that I?m really riding well on, it gets hard to want to stop for any sightseeing. However, I am glad I had to stop in at a park on my way back Monday to use the facilities instead of waiting for the next gas station. That?s because I came across a structure that turned out to be an old furnace built back in the 1800s. Named for the famous volcano, Vesuvius Iron Furnace was used to melt the iron ore for making cannons and other necessities. You can learn more from this website - https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/wayne/specialplaces/?cid=fsm9_006044
I am really hoping we?ll have an easy winter so I can make another trip out that way for the roads and scenery.
My route took me to Beckley for the first night using West Virginia state highways 3 and 10 as well various county and township roads. I?m very happy I rode on highway 10 in its current condition as they are working to straighten out the last five or six miles into Huntington. Later, on one of the last roads that fed into Beckley, I encountered hairpin switchbacks so tight that even riding at 5 MPH seemed to be too fast as I feathered the clutch to get around them. But they only added to the smiles when I finally got to the bottom as they didn?t scare me as much as what came next. I had come out a curve into a short straightaway when I saw an outline of something at the edge of the road. I am sure glad I have good brakes as I realized it was a deer just as it stepped out in front of me less than 100 feet or so away.
When I left the hotel the next morning on my way to the New River Gorge bridge, it was cold enough that I had to turn the grip heaters on. Fortunately, it warmed up enough by the time I got to the bridge to really enjoy the scenery, even with the steam floating on top of the water. I then made my way south to Princeton and back north through West Hamlin over more fun roads seeing wonderful sites, cursing tractor trailer drivers who have no business on very small back roads, and noticing the effects of those who want to demonize the livelihoods of the towns along Coal Heritage road. After almost 11 hours, I made it back to Huntington and checked into the hotel just as it was getting dark.
Tuesday found me looking for a mom and pop restaurant for breakfast that Google said was open but my GPS couldn?t find. Despite dealing with very heavy fog from the Ohio River, I arrived at the intersection only to find the restaurant closed and for sale. Thanks Google. After finding another place to eat, I crossed into Ohio and turned north on OH-243 and again more twisty county and township roads. It was here I finally discovered the true power of the Bandit when I rounded another switchback only to find the incline to be steeper than I had first thought. Although I was in third gear, the bike accelerated up it very strongly and added another smile to an already fun trip.
There were a couple of other highlights on the trip besides the Bridge. Waterfalls intrigue me and so on Sunday I rode by a sign that made me quickly turn around. Drawdy Falls is one of those that are hard to find at first despite being right next to the road. This was mainly because the parking lot is across the road from it and what signage is there isn?t very descriptive. It is small but still very pretty and is the location of an old Indian Burial site.
When I find a good road that I?m really riding well on, it gets hard to want to stop for any sightseeing. However, I am glad I had to stop in at a park on my way back Monday to use the facilities instead of waiting for the next gas station. That?s because I came across a structure that turned out to be an old furnace built back in the 1800s. Named for the famous volcano, Vesuvius Iron Furnace was used to melt the iron ore for making cannons and other necessities. You can learn more from this website - https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/wayne/specialplaces/?cid=fsm9_006044
I am really hoping we?ll have an easy winter so I can make another trip out that way for the roads and scenery.
