I should have been on a 4 wheeler or dirt bike. Still cant believe I made it thru that. I wasn't sure of the name, but I renamed it The Lochness Monster. The dragon aint got chit on that road, esp on a HD...
I wrote a story about that trip:
Well, after trusting the Garmin all week to not get lost, it happened !
After our ride to Clingmans Dome on Friday morning, my trusty GPS advised to follow the group and turn off at Cades Cove Rd which would have brought us to our destination of Deals Gap Store for a few items before we departed for home. This is where the story gets fun...
As we completed the narrow road ride to what appears to be Cade's Cove (we didn't stop), there was a gravel road that my GPS said to follow. Hmmmm, I have seen patches of gravel road connecting pavement, maybe this time also...NOPE.
We started down this 8.4 mile journey with the right mind of being there in 10 minutes or so. About 1 mile into this journey, we started experiencing 6 – 12 % grades of unruly terrain. Washouts on steep climbs w/ 8-10” ruts, loose gravel & sand mixture, creek covered lower passage road, twisties tha make the dragon look like a straight road and an attempt that should have been made on a dual sport bike.
With much consideration, we ventured forth, hell it was only another 6 ½ miles or so. That seemed better that the alternative of backtrackin 60-70 miles or so to get back to our final point.
After losing the luggage twice and snapping all securement for the bag onto the bike, we were approached by a guy on a dual sport bike and asked what da hell were we doin back here on a Harley. He advised he had one like mine at his house, but decided to take the Yamaha on this ride. Dammit, not good news for our immediate future. He offered some rope to tie town our luggage and did so with aspirations of heading on.
The road was treacherous at a minimum, and horrifying to say the least. With my wife so upset and crying, my bike seemed to be falling apart with every jolt, we continued on...
Meanwhile we were followed by our new friend to make sure we made it out alive. We were also passed by an elderly couple in a sedan that advised that it didn't matter the terrain, that they were in a Subaru.
Five miles of terror on a motorcycle later we arrived on The Dragon, but did not advise my wife as such, as she had enough emotions flowing thru her that I didn't think she could handle the Dragon at this time. Needless to say as we approached the Deals Gap store, she asked where we were, and when I said it, She replied” NO WAY”.
I have personally deemed this Gravel, Washed out, Steep Inclined / Declined, POS road be renamed the Lochness Monster. It can overcome the Dragon anyday.
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Topic: My new Hog in my CVO Stable (Read 3039 times)