Tag Archives: great ride

Planning Your Motorcycle Vacation Trip – What Will The Weather Be Like?

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Photo - Rain clouds swirl over Waynesville, North Carolina

Rain clouds swirl over Waynesville, North Carolina

The weather on your motorcycle vacation trip will probably be better than you think or what the weatherman says, – or not. I swear that guy drinks. I know I would be hitting the old mason jar if I had his job. Predicting the weather in the Smoky Mountains is tough. Sometimes, there’s little question about taking that great ride. When there’s a massive front coming through or some system stalls for a while, you can pretty much go with what’s obvious.

In the Smoky Mountains each little valley has its own weather. It can pour down rain all day in one spot, ride your motorcycle over the hill, and the sun is shining. If I had a dollar for every time they’ve predicted rain and I’ve spent a dry day riding the great roads…

My advice – if there’s any question, get on the bike and go for it and always have some rain gear and a warm jacket or fleece in the bags. The highest elevations, like the Blue Ridge Parkway, see the most intense weather. If something’s going to happen it’s going to happen up high first. Coming down, or staying low when planning your motorcycle rides on the iffy days will often do the trick.

Weather also stalls when it hits the mountains and can’t quite make the climb over them. Try heading in the opposite direction and you can often avoid it. Bottom line, when planning your motorcycle vacation, be ready for anything.

Useful Web Resource:

One of the best resources for weather in North Carolina is Ray’s Weather site -http://www.raysweather.com/

How Long Does It Take To Ride The Blue Ridge Parkway?

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Photo - Detour sign on the Blue Ridge Parkway

It’s not a detour, it’s an opportunity to explore!

10 Hours, 47 minutes, and 27 seconds, so long as you get at least 469 miles from one tank of gas, don’t eat, wear a diaper, and they miraculously resolve all the Blue Ridge Parkway closures and detours. Obviously, that’s not the answer you are looking for.

Riding the Blue Ridge Parkway end-to-end on a motorcycle is a goal for many. It’s our nations classic motorcycle ride. But in planning your motorcycle trip, it is a goal that should be approached like sex – you don’t try to see how fast you can get it done and really enjoy it. Realistically, you could do this great ride in two long days, just to say you’ve done it, but the “I’m an idiot award” would be waiting for you at the end of your scenic ride.

Photo - motorcycle on a Virginia section with caption "Never rush the Parkway - it's meant to be savored".

Never rush the Parkway, it’s meant to be savored.

The more time you put into it, the more pleasure you will get out of your motorcycle vacation. It would be better to focus on exploring small sections of the Blue Ridge Parkway and truly enjoying them. It’s not going anywhere. You can always come back to it. The same spot in the morning is a new experience in the evening, another view with a change of seasons.”

Look at those detours as opportunities to explore the thousands of miles of great roads that surround the Blue Ridge Parkway. The mountains are full of good rides which are devoid of traffic, chock full of scenery, and often more challenging and rewarding to explore.

If you must hurry through, or cover the distance for whatever reason, note those places that were special to you and plan on coming back. The Blue Ridge Parkway is best when you’re not moving at all.

For info about Blue Ridge Parkway Road Closures,
go to http://www.nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/roadclosures.htm

Wayne Busch - AMERICA RIDES MAPS

Wayne Busch – AMERICA RIDES MAPS

America Rides Maps

Celebrate Blue Ridge Parkway Anniversary 75

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Photo - View of the Blue Ridge Parkway from Waterrock Knob overlook

View of the Blue Ridge Parkway from the Waterrock Knob overlook.

2010 kicks off with celebration of our nations most popular national parks 75th anniversary. Construction on the 469 mile long Blue Ridge Parkway scenic road was started in September, 1935 at Cumberland Knob near the border between North Carolina and Virginia (milepost 217.5), though it would take 52 years until the last section was completed in September, 1987 not far from where it all began.

The mission of the Blue Ridge Parkway is to provide a scenic link between two of the easts grandest parks, Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina. Inspired by great rides built in the parks of the American west and patterned after earlier scenic roads in the east, the Blue Ridge Parkway was constructed utilizing native materials to emphasize and highlight extraordinary views worthy of national recognition and preservation. In making that link, the Blue Ridge Parkway in some ways eclipsed these other national parks and opened up the isolated and remote areas of the Smoky Mountains for all to enjoy.

Nowadays, more than 18 million people each year come to enjoy the relaxing and inspiring views found along this two lane ribbon of asphalt, more than 1/4 of them on motorcycles. The Blue Ridge Parkway has become our nations most classic ride. What better year to celebrate and enjoy it?

I’ll be highlighting some of those celebrations and relating the often controversial history of one of the best rides anywhere in future posts. Here’s a video to get you started.

For more info about the Blue Ridge Parkway go to http://blueridgeparkway.org

For info about celebrations and events go to http://www.blueridgeparkway75.org/