[Thaxon]

Last week, I went on my first multiple day bike trip. I had some family camping at Devils Fork SP in SC from Thursday through Sunday, and they invited me along. So I rode up on Friday to enjoy some nice mountain twisties for the first time.

I live near Savannah. For those of you familiar with the area, I rode up GA 17 to I 85. Once in SC I took hwy 11 AKA the Cherokee Foothills Parkway to the campground. I logged over 260 miles that day. Though I did get a little wet, it was still a very nice trip.

Saturday was the highlight of the trip. I rode out hwy 11 to US 276. North to Brevard, then hwy 64 all the way to Franklin NC. From there I went 441 north to Gatlinburg, then backtracked all the way to our campsite. I've been on these roads several times before, as recently as this past summer, but never before on a motorcycle. It was quite a treat. The weather was fair, the sights were spectacular. The leaves were the perfect color and I saw a few waterfalls. 64 from Highlands to Franklin is wonderful to ride on. If you ever get to make it that way, you have to ride it, even if it is in a cage. Mileage for Saturday was 340'ish.

Sunday I got an early start but I took my time. I just rode in the general direction back towards home and took in the sights. Logged 299 miles.

I never imagined I would have had this much fun on a solo bike trip. Had I known it was like this I would have bought a bike a long time ago.

I learned a few things for my next trip, however:
1. Not going anywhere without mounting my GPS.
2. Chaps do not keep a certain part of the anatomy warm. I'm buying riding pants this weekend.