Day 33: July 4th Riding the Blue Ridge Parkway

Beautiful day greeted Bob and I as we departed the motel in Waynesboro and headed to the entrance of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We took our photo at the big sign then headed on our ride for the next 150 miles.  Only one stop was made by moi….somewhere around the restaurant in Otter Creek.  I had to make a pit stop, then we were off again.  Somewhere along the ride the rain started, lightly, but still rain, so we donned rain gear.

 

 

We reached the 150 mile marker, took our photo, then headed onward to Floyd for gas and a subway sandwich.  From there we headed to Tazewell, took a photo by a new sign hawking the VA16 “Back Of The Dragon” and then headed off on our ride. 

 

We did get a little spooked during the ride.  There were many instances of sand/gravel laying in the curves and once or twice both Bob and I experienced adrenaline wheel sliding.  We reached Marion, took a photo at the City’s sign, got gas receipts, then headed to the interstate to take us to Pigeon Forge and ultimately into Townsend where we had a motel reservation.

This is one ride I don’t ever want to do again!  No sooner were we heading south on I-81 then we encountered a downpour.  And soon after that we were in total darkness.  So here are these two idiots, in the dark, pouring rain, speeding at 75mph, getting to Townsend.  We finally arrived at 11:30, soaking wet, exhausted, and hungry.  Fortunately, we had bought Wendy’s hamburgers in Pigeon Forge just before the restaurant closed for the night.  Within seconds of our heads hitting the pillows we were zonked out!

C ya’ll mañana,
Gonzo
Twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
Email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com
Cell: 949-433-0761

Days 28-32: June 29th – July 3rd, Hanging with Bro in MD

This was a good visit with bro and friends in MD.  Big dinner was in progress at Peggy’s when I arrived.  It was good to get an excellent home cooked meal and bask in the warmth of friendship.

During my visit I went on a couple of job sites with bro.  One very interesting one was a home that was on the side of a hill.  The front of the house sat on basement cinder blocks that were set into the hill.  The back of the basement opened up to a patio and view of the river/creek that ran along the bottom of the hill about 100 yards away.

Here has been much rain in the last month and the hill had basically absorbed all it could and finally slid away, pushing the  front of the basement about two feet inward.  Fortunately the beams and other structural  upgrades had kept the house from collapsing.  Bro was there to give a bid on re-construction.  This was going to be tricky as the ground/hill in front of the house had to be dug out with a backhoe, structural supports would be required to support the house while the basement is rebuilt.

On the 3^rd it was time for me to load up and head out to Waynesboro where I would meet GlideRider (Bob Rogers) for our 15 best ride down the Blue Ridge, Back of the Dragon and Tail of the Dragon in TN.

Of course, it began raining on me just as I crossed into VA from MD.  Never fails!  GlideRider (GR) was already at the Motel waiting for me when I arrived, which was about 7:30 pm, just before sunset.  It was good to see Bob, share a pizza and get some sleep in preparation for the big ride tomorrow down the “Ridge”.

C ya mañana,
Gonzo
Twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
Email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com
Cell: 949-433-0761

Days 25-27: June 26-28, Hanging out in Western NY State

This was a good visit with sis, despite sis having to go to work during the day.  In the evenings we had dinner, both out in a restaurant and in her place by me picking up some take out.  Take-outs made it nice for her as she got a break from

It rained a lot while here.  And sure ‘nuff, on departure day it was raining. But by the time I arrived at the NY/PA border the skies cleared and it was dry all the way south to Lusby MD where my brother was awaiting my arrival.

C ya mañana,
Gonzo
Twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
Email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com
Cell: 949-433-0761

Ursula Wachowiak: Courageous Woman worthy of your SUPPORT!

Morning ya’ll.  Here’s a shocker of a story about a brave gypsy gal who was on her way to her first visit to Sturgis.  Crossing into Minnesota she was struck head-on by a car passing a semi. 

Check out her story on this link to her Blog: 

http://hdbroad.wordpress.com/2013/08/

This is something that can happen to any of us….look what happened to me on July 15^th while riding the Beartooth in WY!

Please take a moment to give Ursula a word of encouragement and support and, if possible, please donate via the link below that was established by her friends.

http://www.gofundme.com/3n44pg

 

How I met Ursula Wachowiac:

Last year, while riding the 15 Best USA Roads, I was in Deal’s Gap TN getting photo’s at the completion of riding The Tail of the Dragon.  A gentleman, visiting Deals Gap with his daughter, volunteered to take a photo of me in front of the Tree of Shame. 

We chatted about motorcycling, life, yada yada.  He asked if he could give my email address to a friend of his who was looking for advice on how to travel distances and spend many days on the road.  A few weeks later I received an email from “The Broad” as Ursula titled herself, and we have been occasionally in touch via email.

Her last note to me was of her plans to visit Sturgis so I sent her my itinerary thinking we may have a point where our travels would intersect and we would finally get to meet each other….two bloggin’ traveler’s having a cup of coffee at some roadside Mom n Pop Café.  I didn’t hear back from her, until August 17^th, when I was home recovering from hand surgery. 

As I told her later, my joy at seeing a note from her turned to anguish as I read the story of her mishap.

Please read her BLOG and give her your support…..it will be greatly appreciated.

C ya’ll mañana,

Gonzo
Twitter: @GonzoCrossUSA
Email: GonzoCrossUSA@gmail.com
Cell: 949-433-0761

Day 24: June 25th Riding NY State’s I-90 Thunderstorms

The morning was dry and the loading went quick.  Breakfast with the Lodge was carbs….waffles, cream cheese and coffee.  Good enough to get me to lunch.  My plan was to retrace my steps and head north to VT-9 west and take that into NY where I would connect onto I-90 and ride it into Buffalo and then North Tonawanda, about 10 miles south of Niagara Falls, to my sister’s place. 

Not expecting much out of the ride I was happily surprised to find VT-9 to be a scenic joy.  Hills, woods, farms, small towns, gentle 2-lane curves with gradual sloping ascents and descents were nicely presented on this state road.  Later, when looking at the AAA map I saw that it is indeed marked as a Scenic Route!

Day 23: June 24th Riding the Kancamangus

The morning was dry with a few puffies floating around 4000 feet trying to team together and build something stronger in the winds.  The Weather Channel indicated possible thunderstorms and isolated showers.  Hell, that’s pretty much the forecast for the northeast for all of June and July!

US2 was right out front of the motel and I headed west for about 75 miles to Gorham then about 6 miles north on NH16 to Berlin.  Upon reaching Berlin, the beginning of the required SCMA Best Ride, the road was split into a northbound one-way running through the small town, and a south bound one-way one block to the west.  The town was old and quaint, I liked it and would have enjoyed exploring it.  But I was on a time limit and needed to complete the ride and then head to Niagara Falls to visit my sister.  So I turned west and got on the south bound one-way, refueled at the town gas station, then headed south on NH16 to Conway. 

After passing through Gorham the 2^nd time and turning south off of 2/16 to continue on NH16, a Forestry Visitors Center showed up.  Usually I’ll pass on these centers, but lately new and interesting facts have been introduced to me via such visits.  So in I went. 

Day 22: June 23, Moose on the Road

It was sometime around 12:30 when I rolled out of Madawaska heading northwest towards Ft. Kent and US11.  The morning goodbye was made to Martins Motel staff and I rode over to Tim Horton’s for breakfast with Joe and Dianne LaChance.  Upon entering Tim’s I was greeted by a customer sitting in a group of laughing elder citizens all chatting in French.  It was one of Joe’s friends that I had met yesterday who kindly remembered me.  Not seeing Joe there I placed my camera and notebook on a table and went to the counter to order coffee and egg sandwich. 

For those of you who haven’t been to the northeast (including NY and Canada) Tim Horton’s is a fantastic coffee and pastry chain, started in the 60’s by Canadian hockey great Tim Horton.  Now their menu includes, in addition to their delicious coffee and pastries/donuts, breakfast and lunch sandwiches and a variety of soups.  It’s a place that I enjoy visiting when my travels find me in the territory.