Riding the Dragon

[Bumpa2]

Heading down to ride the famous Tail of the Dragon this weekend! Was wondering if there are any other interesting rides in the area or things to do?

Thanks in advance :)

[petevandyke]

Heading down to ride the famous Tail of the Dragon this weekend! Was wondering if there are any other interesting rides in the area or things to do?

Thanks in advance :)

not a whole lot to pick from as far as lodging and meals, but who cares?

check out: http://www.dealsgap.com/ and scroll down to "tour guide" on the left for maps and info on what they rank as the 7 most popular routes in the area. Also peek at local attractions, restaurants, maps, history and events. I know this sounds silly, but pack layers of clothes on the bike for your mornin' rides, if you hit something like the Cherohala Skyway early AM with the exceptional altitude changes, you might find yourself awful chilly up top, and sweatin' like Roseanne Barr in Spandex by the time you get to the bottom at noon...

Double check the weather, I was thinking about maybe trekking up there next week possibly (during the week to avoid the massive inflow of weekend riders) and yesterday's weather (there's a link on the page above) showed storms forecasted for the next 8 days.

Pete

[BobW]

I made the mistake of riding the Dragon on a Sunday in May......way to many kamakazee sport bikers. After dodging several of them on the way south I stop at the Resort at the end and they tell me riding in the middle of the week is much better. Also, the LEO's are out in force a lot because there are quite a few deaths each year.
This being Labor Day weekend there will be quite few folks out every where.

Look at a map of the area, there are many good riding roads. The Cherohola (SP?) Skyway is just to the South of the Dragon...runs West from there.

[bmwriderm]

Just did the dragon have made a few trips to the Smokys and this was the
1st time I rode over to the Dragon. Its a real nice ride from the Dragon to
Cherokee NC. Then its a great trip over the Mts in the state park to Gatlinburg TN. For good pizza and micro brew stop at the Smoky Mtn Brewhouse. Also the ride from Cherokee to the Maggie Valley is nice.

[pkpr1998]

WATCH the LEO presence, the commies have attacked the Dragon with a vengence over the past three weeks.

Check out www.tailofthedragon.com

[kellenbenz]

Ride the Cherohala Parkway (143 west)also while you are there. It starts near Robbinsville (on 129)and has many nice sweepers instead of the tight switchbacks of the Dragon . Also there is the Foothills Pkway that runs from west of Deals Gap on 129 to Townsend, Tn. Once you get to Townsend...you are not far from Pigeon Forge.


Have a safe ride and enjoy!

Ron

[DaveRT]

Don't forget the Foothills Parkway, just of the end of the Dragon 2 miles. Little River Road is a 35 mile scenic roadway partway thru the Great Smoky Mt. Park.

[ahpd1992]

In many ways the foothills parkway is a better road than 129 (the dragon) simply because its less tight switchbacks and more lazy sweepers. Take it off 129 into Townsend, in town there are lil mom n pop places to eat. Contine through on the same road going through town and u r rewarded w/ a nice route along the river and through the mountains ending up in the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinberg area. As stated previously, I would recommend a weekday to avoid traffic, but otherwise you will see roads that convince you that God is a biker...

Tom

[pkpr1998]

Little River Road is full of tourists who drive 20 miles an hour!

Beautiful YES, fun NO!

[UncleRock]

Yep there are all kinda nice roads, but I been asked not to let thme out of the bag. :eek:
Rock