Let's See Jack

June 7, 2012

Day 6

Happy Birthday! Well off we go heading to Lynchburg to tour the Jack Daniel’s Distillery. The ride is away from Nashville so we will not have to battle the traffic. The sun is bright, humidity is very low and the road is two lane most of the way; couldn’t ask for a better day. As we wind our way south we begin to see mountains again and large farms many with horses but we also see several herds of goats and cows. I have toured beer and wine distilleries and I think this one is the best – maybe it’s because I like whiskey – you think? The information was very interesting – Jack Daniel learned the art of whiskey making from a preacher (go figure) and the preacher gave the moonshine business to Jack when he was 13 years old. Jack Daniel’s is the oldest registered distillery in the United States. After touring the distillery for over an hour we headed to Lynchburg to walk around and eat lunch. Lynchburg is no more than a square with a dozen businesses; a general store; hardware store; restaurant; several gift stores selling all kinds of JD items and the county jail museum which was an operating jail until 1990. All UTR members know Andy almost always gets served first when we order in a restaurant. Today we sat down and ordered and as the food was brought out Bonnie was served first, then me and Don and Andy was last. Andy’s plate was brought to the table and it wasn’t exactly right so they took it back finally bring the correct order. We all laughed and thought for once he was last but to our surprise when the bills were handed out Andy didn’t get one! His meal was on the house because it was not correct the first time. So even when he’s last he comes out on top! He thought it was a hoot. DQ for my birthday celebration. Miles today 150.

Hold On For One Wild Ride

Making our way back to the hotel through Nashville at 5 pm on a weekday and with the CMA Fanfest in full swing requires an entry of its own. As soon as we entered Nashville West the traffic began to pick up and it was stop and go at every light. Then we began to sit and watch the lights change from red to green to red again and we didn’t move. Gabby indicated I was to turn right in half a mile and I was in the right lane but don’t you know at the light for 9th Ave the right lane became a turn lane only and I didn’t want to turn yet! How to move over with bumper to bumper vehicles on your left? Well you just do it and hope the vehicle you pull in front of doesn’t cuss you. Sure hope Andy and Don can get over! More stop and go and mostly stopping. Then we turn and weave our way through more cars inching their way to the next intersection. Some want to go left and others want to go right and with no rhyme or reason cars cut in and out. I’m looking for 1st Ave to make my last right turn and get out of Dodge – Oh no the street is blocked off so no choice but to go straight as Gabby recalculates only to take us around the block and get us back to 1st Ave. The bikes are getting hot and my leg feels like it is blistered so we pull off by the curb and stop while I switch Gabby to go ahead and take the highway. Well did she ever! A quick turn over the bridge and we head for route 24 where we enter the rat race on the right and snake our way to the left through 4 lanes of bumper to bumper cars inching their way home; another left and then move to the right now back to the left follow route 40 east watch the split or you could be heading for Knoxville. Ok made it where are Andy and Don? I can hear them on the CB but don’t see them in the maze of vehicles in my rearview mirrors. Got to keep moving with the traffic which is now moving at 70 mph and I want to make sure I get over to the right for which exit now? Oh there it is I call Andy and Don on the CB and hope they know which one to take; there they are and there is the hotel. Wow what a wild ride.

Loretta Lynn's Ranch

June 6, 2012

Day 5

Heading for Loretta Lynn’s Ranch today and we can zig and zag from one exit to the next at 65 mph on route 40 or we can dip and dive over mountains. That’s a no brainer for me – I’ll take the dip and dive any day even though it did require about 10 miles of inner city Nashville which is still no problem for me I really love riding through the city streets some times. Old Hickory Parkway, 2nd Ave.; Charlotte Ave and Charlotte Parkway which turned into TN 70 just outside of Nashville West and we are past the lights and the traffic and begin the dipping and diving on a great 2 lane highway with uncut shoulders with QueenAnn’s Lace, Buttercups, Bachelor Buttons and Lilies waving in the breeze and little to no traffic. Traveling through little communities with little more than a name and a Dollar General.  Loretta Lynn’s Ranch was well worth the 85 mile trip to get there! I asked the girl in the gift shop where I purchased tickets to do it all; we toured the model of Butcher Holler; the replica of a coal mine like her father worked in; toured the Plantation home she and Mooney purchased in 1966 and where they raised their 6 children. In 1988 after the children had all grown and left home they built a smaller house right next door and simply left the mansion just as it was with all their furniture and everything in it. The ranch is 3500 acres which our tour guide says Mooney worked like any other rancher in Nashville; all their children attended public school and I was just impressed with how average the house looked. Leaving the ranch we headed back over TN 70 heading for Nashville with a stop at Carl’s Bar B Que in White Bluff for an early dinner.

Our tour guide dated one of the daughters and was friends with Mooney

What can I say?  Andy being Andy

Great food where the locals eat in a little out of the way community

A Day of Sight-Seeing

June 5, 2012

Day 4

Spent the day sight-seeing in Nashville so we only traveled 45 miles and I left Abigail sitting in the parking lot so I could co-pilot with Don. Went to a couple of museums and then over to the Opryland Hotel just to walk through their gardens but after circling the place a half dozen times we could not find any parking that wasn’t going to cost us $20 so I figured I didn’t need to see their gardens that bad. We headed to the Grand Ole Opry to check out the action there and then Opry Mills before heading downtown to find the American Pickers’ store and the Bicentennial Park which is just beautiful. A walk into the Farmers Market and then we were ready to head back to the motel. This time I decided to take any road other than route 40 which is a jungle of speeding cars, merge lanes, splits and exits. I like twisting and turning on mountain roads but not on a tangle of super highways. Much prefer riding through the city and seeing the new high-rise buildings sitting next to the old stately ones and the people sitting on their steps watching the cars passing.

Andy, Don and Bonnie

The Dukes of Hazzard Jeep

The building housing the Pickers' store

The world constantly spinning on water

We Have Arrived

June 4, 2012

Day 3

Breakfast at the Ramada and then off we go at 8:45 with the GPS set for Nashville, fastest route and allow highways. We traveled a couple of highways named “parkways” in Kentucky and I believe the folks in Kentucky believe in preserving as much of nature as possible while still making highways. To say we were traveling “in” the mountains means I could not have been “in” the mountains more if I had parked the bike and begun walking one of the trails leading up and into the wilderness. Sometimes the road was winding between mountains through natural breaks and other times mountains had been blasted to create a path. The rock faces were layered and stacked. The best I can describe it would be to make a sandwich with 3 types of meat and 3 types of cheese; cut it in half. If you look at the cut side you see layers well that is how the rock face appears. Now take one half and lay it on top of the other half and slide the one on top back about a half an inch creating a step and that is how the mountains have been cut like giant steps. Trees are growing and prospering on these ledges and actually clinging to the faces of the rocks. These parkways are great roads with little to no traffic and speeds of 65 and 70 with gentle curves and great views. When we passed Lexington we suddenly were traveling rolling hills with corn fields on either side but the mountains were behind us. Our hotel is great; an extended stay with a full kitchen completely stocked with dishes and linens and a large room suitable for living a week, no daily room service but that’s fine with me. Cannot beat the price of $44 per night for a full week; not fancy but full of working class people – my kind of people. Total miles today around 331.

Found A Road Better Than The Tail of the Dragon

June 3, 2012
Day 2

The plan was to leave at 8:30 but we were up and ready by 7:30. We had enough of super slabs yesterday so today we headed south on route 11 which is a very good road with little to no traffic and wondered through small towns like Christianburg with more churches in one town than I’ve ever seen and Redford the home of Redford University. It was surprisingly cold and I was wondering why I had not packed the heated jacket. When it started to rain we pulled into a gas station to wait it out and noticed the bank sign was reading 55 degrees. Thank God the rain was short lived and we got back on the road. In order to reach Paintsville KY the plan was to travel 81 and 11 to Marion and then take 16 through Hungry Mother State Park to Tazewell. The road looks like a great motorcycle road on the map and any road up and over mountains has to be good. Well how do I describe this road? It climbs at grades that require you to gear down to second for my bike; there are hairpin curves that begin a sharp climb instantly; first you curve right and then immediately left you can hardly get the bike back up straight before you have to lean in the opposite direction. Many hairpins were so sharp me, God and Abigail were talking “come on girl you can make it” I would say as she leaned and then began to rumble and climb the grade. Hairpins, curves and more curves and we reached the top and then down we headed so steep we had to stay in 3rd gear in order to avoid riding the breaks and overheating them. The last thing I wanted was to burn out the breaks and have a runaway bike. No guard rails on the roads and you don’t dare look at the view I kept reminding myself to look where I wanted to go because you’re going to go where you look. Not a mistake to make on this road. I have ridden the Tail of the Dragon and I honestly think this road is more challenging; the curves seemed closer, non-stop; at least a half dozen or more hairpins that immediately require you to climb; curves so tight you cannot see through them; falling rocks to watch and gravel to avoid and it seems to never stop. The road is wet but I’m not sure if it had rained for if we are just so high it is always wet. The Dragon is 11 miles this is 30 miles and I was ready for it to end.

The next road we ride is 460 and I think whoever designed this road made it for play. Sweeper after sweeper rocks you back and forth; the view is fantastic and you can actually take a second to look to the left or right. The road is a duel highway until you reach Grundy so you don’t have to worry about on-coming cars and the speed limit is 55 and it was easy to take these sweepers at that speed. As we travel along the mountains are so close you feel like you can reach out and touch them on both sides of the road. We see signs to watch for deer, elk and moose crossing; groundhogs run for shelter as we pass and cattle dot the mountain pastures.

We arrived at the Ramada Inn in Paintsville by 3:30. This is the hotel for our UTR rally and I was very interested in checking this place out. We are not disappointed! This place is even better than pictured on the Internet. Not what you would expect in a little Appalachian town.

Shops in the atrium

Indoor pool area

Andy playing in the glass elevators

Lovely Lobby

Here We Go

June 2, 2012

Day 1

Rained during the night but by 6 am it was clear and starting to dry. Pulled out of the drive at 6:40 and into the Hardees at 7:40 am and crossed the Bay Bridge at 8:30 heading out to play. We opted for 301 south and then twisting and turning on 218 to Fredericksburg. Bonnie had found a place to stop and eat in a Food magazine in Stauntan which was fantastic; Wright’s Dairy Rite and we reached Stauntan by 1:30 and found the parking lot full and every booth inside full. We were not disappointed – great food. After an hour we were back on the road with 88 miles to go in order to reach Salem VA for the night. I don’t really care to ride super highways but 81 south was not bad today and the views are hard to explain. Mountains on both sides with the sun streaming over the crest and shadows dancing down the sides making one range appear like two. Total miles 330 today.