(Click on photos to see them full size)
Woke up early to the sound of the rushing river, took a long hot shower, grabbed a good breakfast at the outdoor restaurant and broke camp. I paused to take another photo of the river before riding off.
I'll be back.
Climbed back up onto the Parkway. The mountains at this end of the Parkway were the highest and provided some great views, though this morning was hazier (smokier?) than yesterday.
Passing the highest point on the Parkway, I stopped to take a few photos and chat with other riders.
I met a group of Gold Wing riders from Ontario, Canada, who were on their way home from the Wing Ding, the annual Gold Wing bash, held this year in Nashville. They said next year's Wing Ding will be held in Billings, Montana. Ironically, Michele told me I should keep this bike so I could see more of the country, specifically Montana. I'd already pretty much decided to sell Old Gold and keep this bike, and this pretty much solidified it.
I took a few pictures of the Canadians at the high sign, they took my photo across the parking lot, and we went our separate ways.
The highest point on the Blueridge Parkway
I took no more pictures this day, though I certainly should have. Soon after this the twisty road came to an end in Cherokee country. At the bottom of the road into Smoky Mountain National Park I met a couple donning their bicycling gear. They were from Massachusetts and raced often. I'm sure Michele and Ed have run into them at some time or other. They headed into the park, but I decided to skip it and continue southwest.
The road leaving Cherokee twisted along a riverbank, and the river was full, very full, of rafters. My road this afternoon followed more than one river, and I saw not hundreds, but thousands, of people enjoying the rivers on rafts. The roads were as twisty as the rivers and slowed by lots of Saturday traffic, so the ride was as tiring as it was interesting. There were more rafts in the river than vehicles on the Parkway, by far. I was tempted to stop at one of the many raft companies and take a ride, and now I wish I had.
I am a fan of CBS Sunday Morning, and a couple months ago they profiled a shop somewhere in the South that buys unclaimed luggage from airlines and sells it. It's like a huge department store selling everything from underwear to electronics. It was an amusing piece, and I had mostly forgotten about it. But not far into Alabama, I saw the sign.
Turns out that shop is about 2 miles ahead, in Scottsboro, AL. I couldn't resist. I went to the store and bought a few small items, including a $25 digital movie camera that uses the same memory as my digital camera. I have no love for shopping, but this was a fun rest stop.
As the sun was threatening to set, I rolled into a familiar big red 6 outside Huntsville and jumped into the swimming pool to loosen up my tightening shoulders. Watched a little TV and went right to sleep.
Today's ride was 333 miles. 1664 since starting out.
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