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Published: April 22nd 2012
DAY 14……14/042012 We left the town of Sparta at around 1030, and headed back onto the Blue Ridge Parkway for the last time, although it has been a fantastic ride over the last 400 miles, I think it has been fairly tiring for Lynne, and the trike suffers a bit on the steep climbs because of the gearing. After about 100 miles we came down out of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and decided to head for Pigeon Forge, which although was another 100 miles on, was on flatter roads, and back to 55mph.
Well we crossed the State line into Tennessee, State number 10, and that’s when our problems began. A sign that said road closed ahead seemed fine, as there was bound to be a detour, well no there was not, the main road was just closed off for repair, no detour signs, no problem I thought just hit the plot alternative route on the sat nav, and there you go. Now this also would have been fine had the unit not been set for shortest route as opposed to quickest, the shortest route began taking us off road and up and over Rocky Top Mountain.
Well I hoped that I would be able to make reference to this type off place jokingly during the course of the blog, but this was it the real deal. The road, sorry track, well when I say track, I mean a place you would think twice about taking a dirt bike up, took us to one of those places in the woods.As I rounded a corner I came upon this old shack, it had what looked like sack cloth in the windows, and one corner had almost completely fallen down, either side of the track there were bits of old trucks, and rusty old farm equipment. From the shacks porch hung ornaments or wind chimes that looked as if they had been fashioned from old car parts, I wanted to close my eyes in case I caught sight of some body parts hanging up that were not mechanical. The track got much worse, and Lynne nearly fell into the river, she was not a happy bunny. A pickup truck came up behind us, was it a monster from the shack, no it was just a local, who looked at us like we were idiots, well that would just be
me then. He said the road ahead would get worse, and that we’d best go back the way we came, what! no please not pass the shack!!!. With the sat nav set to the quickest route, we were soon on our way to Pigeon Forge. We arrived at around seven thirty that evening. Now you would have thought that would be an end to the day’s problems, but no, because this weekend was the Pigeon Forge Hot Rod and Muscle car extravaganza. We queued for ages to get into town, and after finding a space to park, I found out after a fair walk that there was not a room to be had anywhere, oh dear. I said to Lynne that we would laugh about this day eventually, looks and kill came to mind. There were thousands of people everywhere, many hundreds sitting by the main drag watching the fast and the furious strut their stuff up and down both sides of the six lane main street. We asked a couple if there was anywhere else we could try, and they said there were rooms available outside of town about five miles away. We fought our way out of the
madness, and passed five miles of cars in three lanes on the other side queuing to get into town. Eventually we found a nice motel, and Lynne was nearly asleep before I got the room door shut.
Day 15/04/2012 Oh how we laughed this morning, well actually that’s a big fat lie. Lynne was still asleep when I got up and went down to get some coffee from the reception, and while I was there I booked another night at the motel as per the instructions from the previous night. The bikes were absolutely covered in mountain dust from the previous day’s adventure, and so a damn good wash was called for. After a good few buckets of water and a wipe down, it was soon evident that Lynne’s front end had a problem, and no that’s not a double entendre, I am talking about the trikes front suspension, which had taken a real battering on the dirt road yesterday, and there was a fair leak of fluid from one of the fork leg seals, oh dear again. After Lynne’s well deserved lie in, we took my bike back into Pigeon Forge which was a lot
quieter by now, and paid a visit to the local Harley dealership to see what could be done at such short notice. Well they could not have been more helpful, and told us to bring in the trike tomorrow at 10am, and they would sort it out. We spent an hour or two just across the street a great biker bar, and just sat watching the comings and goings of many of the Harley faithful. Pigeon Forge, was a lot like Blackpool, only bigger, there was a lot to do if you like crazy golf, bungee jumping from cranes, or one of the various hillbilly shows. This town is also the home of Dollywood, a theme park based on one of the town’s most famous daughters, we decided to give that a miss.
Day 16……16/04/2012 So we were at the dealership at the allotted time, and we told them what needed to be done, but unfortunately they did not possess all the parts, so after a few phone calls we set off to another Harley shop forty miles away, which was better than waiting around a few days for a delivery. With the items obtained and
Taking Metal to the unbelievers
I'd like to think of myself as a missionary bringing Metal to the heathens.in the mechanics capable hands we were told to come back later. We did a bit of that shopping thing around the town and just generally kicked our heels. Back at the dealership, we were taken into the workshop area where they explained what had been done, front forks rebuilt, and a little misfire corrected by a change of carburettor jets, and some new spark plugs. Lynne said the difference in the pickup was noticeable, and that it ran a lot smoother, it’s a Harley she must have turned off the engine and coasted, well anyway problem sorted. We walked out that evening and had a meal at a local Outback restaurant, terrific steak. The weather forecast for late evening was not good, a storm was apparently on its way, so we will see in the morning whether we will move on or not, the sky was becoming quite black to the east over the Smokey Mountains, so the bikes got their covers on for the first time.
Day 17……17/04/2012 Well there was no evidence of storms this morning, no thunder and lightning in the night, not even any rain, so with that we loaded up
and headed out of Pigeon Forge. The sky was a little overcast, and there may still be a threat of rain the further West we went.Today we will head for Nashville TN, it was just around the two hundred mile mark, so to get the miles done we took Interstate 40. Lynne did very well, and the trike thundered along merrily. The Interstate is a good way to put some distance behind you, but you do have to contend with the trucks, at home they are limited to 55mph ish, and you pass all of them, not here where it is the other way around. No truck sticks to the speed limit, so you do get a little jostled when they pass due to their size, and I don’t think the police care, or are told to turn a blind eye if there not doing anything dangerous. Road haulage in the US must be a huge part of the American economy. We were only ten miles short of our lodgings for the night when the rain came, and while just a little inconvenient when trying to see the road because of the spray, the main problem was that I now
had two bikes to clean again.
Day 18……18/04/2012 This place is having crazy weather just like home, this morning there was not a cloud in the sky. After the complimentary continental breakfast, where I impressed myself with my skill in mastering the waffle machine, and Lynne deciding against the biscuits and gravy, we rode the short distance into Nashville. We had a walk up and down the Downtown main street, and around the historic district, where countless thousands have come over the years to find fame and fortune. No visit to Nashville would be complete without seeing the world famous Ryman auditorium, the home of the Grand Ole Opry, which has seen stars on it’s fairly small stage from all genres of music, but mainly country. The Ryman originally built as a church to hold Nashville’s lost souls, eventually fell into disrepair and was taken over as a cinema, and then as a music hall. Many famous artists still jump at the chance to perform here, and there is even the original recording booth there, where for a price you could make your own recording, I was thinking of doing a cover of that beautiful Crystal
Gayle number, "You've been fartin in your sleep", I could have been a star. Lunch beckoned and Lynne spied a Coyote Ugly bar, and what, yeap, one beer and she’s up on the bar. What am I going to do with her?
Day 19……19/04/2012 Another beautiful sunny morning was most welcome for today’s ride to Memphis, and at around 230 miles on an almost dead straight road, you would not want it raining. The route although tedious was quite pretty at times and within a few hours we had the ride done, The sat nav took us straight to the motel in Memphis that I had stayed at before, which was close to the downtown area, and once unpacked and freshened up it was time for a walk down Union Ave, apparently where someone saw the ghost of Elvis, Cher I think. We walked right past Sun records, and ended up at Beale St, the world famous home of the “Blues”, where there was live music in almost all of the bars, and the whole place had a brilliant atmosphere.
Day 20……20/04/2012 Today we are booked on the tour to Graceland’s, a
place that probably needs no explanation to anyone with even a modicum of musical knowledge. It was home to the King, Elvis Aaron Presley January 8
th 1935 – August 16
th 1977. Standing in Elvis’s hallway, one thing is immediately obvious, this is not a museum of his house and possessions, but the overwhelming feeling that this is still his home such is the atmosphere here, you could be forgiven for thinking that he or his family might just come walking down the stairs at any time, even thirty five years after his passing. Graceland’s is not a huge mansion, in fact it is quite moderate and understated for the home of such a super star. Each room we passed through gave up a little of the family man that once loved this house. In a purpose built structure in the grounds is housed the collection of his life’s work, gold disc’s, stage outfits, and all kinds of other memorabilia. Just outside in the gardens is his final resting place, along with his parents, and twin brother who died at an early age. We both enjoyed this day very much, and I thought it would be good idea to take this
opportunity to dump my girlfriend Little Lynne, and get me a Fiancée, so I did right there and then, and she said?
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Julie Craig
non-member comment
Fiancee
I can't believe you ended your blog like that! Ian thinks you are a real romantic. Hope Lynne said yes. Looking forward to the next update. Take care.