| Author | Message | ||
     Mikef5000 |
I had 2 days off in a row with perfect weather, so I ran away!  I had heard route 50 out of Athens and through WV and a bit of Maryland was very twisty, then I found Back Mountain Rd (County Rd 1), and heard great things about it. I messed around with Google Maps a bunch, found a state park that looked like I could get to before dark, and away I went. Trip Stats: Left Sunday at 8:00 AM Arrived home Monday at 4:00 PM Total Mileage: 800 Mi. Total Gas: 16.9 Gal. Trip MPG: 46 MPG (I'm pretty impressed with this number! All the main roads I was cruising 70mph+, and all the small roads I was NOT going easy on the throttle) Route (I followed the blue, not the optional shortcut in the middle)  I did end up finding the awesome twistys I was looking for. And I successfully got a knee down, even with full camping gear loaded on the bike. THAT'S Sport-Touring for ya.  The highlight of the ride was definitely Back Mountain Rd. I spent a good couple hours on this road, and the name suits it perfectly. It's just over 1 lane wide, a tiny road that cuts across the back of many mountains, absolutely in the middle of nowhere. It was NOT a road to go fast on. Even so, it demanded your full attention. There were many Y's and intersections, NONE of which had road signs or names. It was truly an adventure. Try one direction, 10 minutes later it turns to gravel, go back and try the other direction. I passed a car about once every 10 minutes. The views were awesome. Back Mountain Rd:    This caught my eye, and I had to go back and snap a picture. It had slid off Back Mountain Rd and down an embankment MANY years ago, and I believe it will still be there MANY years to come.  This was the creepiest place I've ever been. Notice the odd raised sidewalk, ALL the houses were identical, and there was NO ONE to be found. Not ONE person outside. Twilite Zone anyone?  Camp at Watoga State Park:  It was a great place. That's a river right behind my tent, providing a nice water noise to sleep to. I did NOT plan ahead in this department. I figured, 80 degrees Sunday and Monday? I should be fine at night with a small tent and standard sleeping bag. HAH! It was down to THE FREAKING MID 30's!!! Ehh, I lived. The worse part was packing up at 7:30, and being back on the road at 8:00, while it was STILL in the 30's! I wore everything I had. PJ's under my riding suit under my rain suit (to block wind). I had one scare. While starting the bike in the morning at the campground, it had a major backfire, and all the guages went dead, and the starter switch didn't do anything. I fipped the key off and back on a few times, and got NOTHING. I checked the fuses to see if that was it, but nothing seemed wrong. By this time I was in full panic mode. I flipped the key again, and all was back to normal. Lights were on, and it started right up. Rumor has it these engines have some circuit breakers, so I may have blown one, and had to wait a minute or so for it to reset. All in all, it was a GREAT ride. I found a bunch of great roads in WV, and I was a littler earlier than expected in OH, so I took a long way through Hocking Hills, and found a couple new great roads down there. I learned a couple of things too! 1) My race suit is perfectly comfortable for touring. 2) The rear sets aren't too bad for touring. 3) I LOVE Pirelli Diablo Strada's! | ||
| Blackbelt |
I am jealous... looked like a great ride... | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
That "Ghost" town you went through looks like Cass. It was a small logging town way back when. You can rent one of the homes to stay in during the summer and then catch a ride on the Cass Railroad. If you go in the Cass General Store there is a picture from on top of the Mountain looking down into the town and there is not a tree to be seen.... now look how wooded it is.... You may end up a tour guide for the next WVSC Rally. the 3rd weekend in August | ||
| Glitch |
2 days off in a row, and not a bit of wasted time! Nice write up Mike, looks like a real nice ride. I'm envious! | ||
| Mikef5000 |
That "Ghost" town you went through looks like Cass. We have a winner! | ||
| Mikej |
"I had 2 days off in a row with perfect weather, so I ran away! " You have no idea how tempting that sounds right now. I just filled out my remaining vacation request for the balance of the year. 3-1/2 day work weeks until December 31st. I might have to run away a few times. Thanks for sharing, looks like you had a good ride. | ||
| Bcordb3 |
Great trip, the roads and scenery looks fantastic. | ||
| T9r |
I was out near Webster Springs WV a couple weeks ago. A co worker has 89 acres of walkable land out there for sale if anyone is interested, on RT 15. It was fun getting out there, even if I was driving the wifes Mustang GT. |
