At the conclusion of Tanked 08 I continued south for a week at the Gap. Since I had only got 4 hours of sleep the previous two nights my first days goal was only Lexington, KY. This was still a difficult goal because it was very hot and I was very tired and still kind of hung over. I did make it but it was a struggle. We got to bed early and it felt nice to get to sleep in a bed in air conditioning again.
I woke in the morning not feeling perfectly refreshed, but ready to finish the last 200 miles. Nothing dramatic about the ride down until we reached the overlook where a Gold Wing trike pulled out right in front of me. The woman driving seemed to think it was funny, but I really did not see the humor in it.
We saw some of the new signs warning the trucks about the road ahead. I suspect they are working because it seemed like we saw fewer trucks on 129.
We got a warm greeting from Dennis upon our arrival! Dennis is the pin striping guy at the Deals Gap Motorcycle resort and he is a great guy who does great work. The Gap pretty much feels like my home away from home and it is always great to get back. I did a little back and forth and as the sun set we started a campfire and cooked some dogs.
Tuesday we decided to take the boy to Cherokee where they hit the junk stores and we got some pizza. The weather was sunny and warm so we headed to the top of the Smokies. The trip started out excellent with the sighting of several Elk and then the weather went downhill quickly. Soon we were in heavy fog and rain and the view was totally obscured. We did hit some clearing on the way back down and got some spectacular views. Our route back was via Little River Road, but it turned out to be closed due to a rock slide. This was a bummer because it meant we had to get back via Pigeon Forge. It ended up being not all that bad and we were treated to several more spectacular views along the Foothills Parkway. We were followed by a tow truck on the Parkway and figured that meant there was a crash on the Gap, and sure enough when we got to 2 square there it was. I managed to get a little back and forth in and then returned for a delicious steak dinner. We saw some lightning off in the distance and I headed to the overlook to take pictures, but got scared when the winds picked up that a tree might come down and I would not be able to get back to my steak so I turned around at Picnic Tables.
Brady is still up to her old tricks. Walking around pretending to be homeless and then people feel bad and feed her. We know better but she still ended up getting a delicious steak from us and many hot dogs.
Wednesday was all about rain. The weather started out perfect, but by the time I finished my pancakes it was getting pretty dark. I got a half a pass in and got pretty wet so I headed back. It stopped raining pretty quickly and a few hours later the road was dry so I got another hour of riding in before it started raining again. Finally at around 3:30 the sun came back out and by 7:00 the road was mostly dry so we got about two hours of good riding in.
Thursday began with a forecast calling for an 80% chance of rain. It rained pretty hard late into the night on Wednesday so I really had no plans on getting a sunrise ride in due to wet roads. The truth is there has not been much reason to do a sunrise ride because I have had the road mostly to myself all week.
The weather ended up being much better than predicted, and we had more good weather than I had energy. As far as I could see everyone was riding safe and I saw no wrecks all day. We had some LEO presence but I did not see anyone getting a ticket, but like I said people seemed to be riding well so there really was no need for them to ticket anybody. I actually spent some time talking to one of them at the overlook and he was a good guy who has the same love of motorcycles we have. I ended up with a full day of riding before the rain started and once it got wet we jumped into the car and got Mexican food and ice cream in Robbinsville.
The best news of the day was the arrival of Alex – the Arkansas guy! This time he also brought his son. It’s great to see him again! He is a fun guy to hang out with and this makes our visit all that much more fun.
If you run into these guys at the Gap make sure you get a chance to hang out with them.
Friday started out cloudy but we never saw any rain and we had plenty of sunshine throughout the day. I started off with my usual coffee at the overlook, but instead of returning for breakfast I went on a wildlife search. The first thing I found was a huge flock of turkeys. There were at least 30 of them, but I did not get the camera out fast enough and only got pictures of a few.
The next thing I came across was a family of pigs. I managed to get pretty close to them and got some great pictures.
By the time I took the picture above she was staring to get pretty agitated with me so I decided it was time to move on.
Deer were the next animals I found.
All in all I would say my hunt was pretty successful! I also saw some nice Largemouth Bass, but Ben claims they are uncatchable. Next trip down I am going to see if he is right.
For most of the day it was my usual back and forth, and then tragedy struck. A car backed into my motorcycle at the overlook and knocked it over. It broke my turn signal, clutch lever, and bar end and put scratches in my fairing and saddlebag.
Friday night we got together with Alex and his crew and Dennis and his girlfriend and had some awesome BBQ.
Saturday ended up being the best day of the week for us. The morning started out wet for us, but there was no rain in the radar so I slept in waiting for the road to dry then got a full day of riding in.
It was pretty busy and there was one bad wreck that involved the rider loosing his arm to the guard rail. I have heard nothing more on the riders status so I do hope for the best for him.
As usual we ended up with a lot of food on the last day so we grilled it up and offered it to all who wanted it. While we ate Mikey told stories and kept us all laughing.
The last day is always the saddest day because I never want to leave. It helps to know I only have to work three days and then it is off to MotoGP, and then I return home to go to work for two days and then I will return to the Gap again. The weather was pretty poor this week and it really made the trip less than perfect, but we did get a few good days in. I just figure it is payback time for the excellent weather the last two years. I will be camping over Labor Day weekend, so I may cancel the trip if there is a lot of rain in the forecast.
