Sunday, July 9, 2023

Day 02: Smoky Mountains

Day 02 - Columbia, SC to Knoxville, TN: 3 states (SC, NC, TN), 270 miles 10 hours on the road, 7 in the saddle.

Another great start to a full day of riding and fun with comfortable weather and light traffic. We spent the first 100 or so miles on I-26 to allow us ample time to spend in Maggie Valley. We then traveled some nice roads by Lake Lure through small towns such as Bat Cave and Chimney Rock. I really enjoy riding along side creeks, rivers and lakes. It's definitely my happy place.


We arrived in Maggie Valley just before noon, grabbed a bite at a local hometown restaurant, and then spent a couple of hours enjoying the Wheels Through Time museum. A must see for any motorcycle enthusiast. This was our second visit but with so much to see and several new exhibits, it's nearly impossible to see everything in just one visit.

One of the items on exhibit was a route planner attached to the motorcycles handlebars. Something like this would have been very helpful yesterday during our GPS issues. Thankfully, Curtis' Garmin seemed to work as expected today. We also had our Google maps that I created last night as a backup. 

After leaving Maggie Valley we turned onto the Blue Ridge Parkway and enjoyed about 60 miles of absolutely beautiful scenery. The weather was cool but comfortable (I added a layer before leaving Maggie Valley). Parts of the road were a bit challenging for me but I prevailed and made it safely over the mountain. I really don't know why I continue to have so much fear on the tight, hidden curves. Sometimes I feel like I'm in the groove and then the next minute I'm tensing up. Ugh. Will I ever get over my fears? 

We're a bit disappointed with the "ride in" Harley Davidson dealership events. Nobody seems to be able to tell us much about the rides, such as who's leading and routes they're traveling. Oh well. We are quite happy with riding our own rides and will see what happens tomorrow in Louisville. 

We have a pretty big day planned tomorrow which includes a tour at Maker's Mark distillery. Fun.

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