Virginia

Yesterday I spent the morning with two couples on Goldwings from Montreal riding the Skyline Drive and Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia. This has to be one of the best and least developed stretches of road along the East coast. And they should stay that way because of their protected status.

The Goldwingers stopped at the same hotel to get out of the rain the night before. By chance I got the room next to them and was walking in as they were going to dinner. I asked if I could joiin them at the Tastee Freez next door. After a dinner that bounced between French and English, they invited me to join them early the next day.

We set off around 8:30 for the last 85 miles of the Skyline Drive. We rode along the ridgeline for a several hours with occasional fog and rain. As lunch approached the weather cleared, yielding great views, many from above the clouds. I certainly didn’t expect to have clouds in the valleys below from an elevation of 3,000 feet.

You may think a Goldwing with a trailer looks pretty funny, but when it comes to space, they have a ton. In my bags I have enough room for a Camelbak bladder and some Powerbars. These two bikes had large coolers that were powered by the bike, so they didn’t have their food swimming in melted water. When we stopped for lunch they set up an entire picnic buffet on the wall of an overlook with a valley below. With self-service sanwhiches and Hall and Oates on the bike stereo, we all enjoyed a tasty sun-filled lunch.

Still having a ways to go to get to my 49th state, I set out on my own after lunch. Without a passenger I can go a little faster. I drove for another 9 hours or so to the end of the Blue Ridge in Virginia. I stopped for BBQ in Galax, Virginia and had the best homemade banana pudding I’ve ever tasted.

This morning I’m about 100 (twisty) miles from my goal, Kentucky. After I cross the border and take a picture, I’ll be able to point south again. I have a couple more parks to hit before this adventure winds down.