JustinNck1 Posted October 27, 2014 Report Share Posted October 27, 2014 So after buying my new FJR a couple weeks ago, I really wanted to get one last trip in before winter. I planned to go to Deals Gap a couple weeks ago but weather didn't pan out so the whole trip was scrapped. Well, this weekend looked nice, I got Saturday off work, and my dad was also off work, so we decided to make it a Father/Son trip. Day 1, We left Saturday morning around 8:00am and it was a frosty 37 degrees. This was probably the coldest I have rode in(Thank Goodness for heated grips). Our reservations were at the Microtel Inn at Robbinsville, NC just south of the Gap so we had to keep a good pace for our first day at 500 miles. We took 77 to Charleston, then 64 over to 75 in KY, and made it through TN just in time for the Football Game to cause all kinds of traffic. We finally made it to Deals Gap around 4:30 and man was it busy. We stopped at the Deals Gap Resort and hung out for a little bit and then got our hotel in Robinsville. Which I might add, the Microtel people were very welcoming to Motorcyclists and offered discounts, provided rags to wipe the dew off your bike in the morning, and even made a campfire to sit around after a long day of riding. Hotel was super cheap at $65. Day 2, We headed to Maggie Valley to see the Wheels Through Time Motorcycle Museum. If you like motorcycle history, its worth the $12 entry fee. Rt 28 by Fontana Dam over was an amazing road and I actually preferred it over Deals Gap, mainly because there was alot less traffic. Virtually every road we took over to Maggie Valley had amazing views and the leaves had changed to so awesome orange colors. After spending a hour or so at Wheels Through Time, we grabbed some lunch and heading to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Once again, the roads were awesome, you just have to work your way through traffic. We rode the Blue Ridge all the way to Grandfather Mountain, where we were told we could not go to the top of the mountain on Motorcycles due to 55+ mph winds. So we rode some more on the Blue Ridge to see the famous Linn Cove Viaduct bridge. It was cool to see, but there is nowhere to get a good photo of it. We also went through about a dozen tunnels that looked really cool. We finished our second day in West Jefferson, NC after 300 miles. Our hotel was "The Hotel of West Jefferson", but is being converted to a Holiday Inn Express, and is very nice. Price wasn't terrible at $100. Day 3, Time to head home. We were 400 miles from home, but we didn't wanna slab all the way up 77 through the turnpike, so we took Rt 52 up through Virginia and West Virginia to Rt119. 52 is an amazing road especially in Virginia. Lots of elevation change, clean corners without gravel, newer pavement, and very little traffic. We did 120 miles on it and had a blast. We then slabbed from 119 into Charleston and 77 to 33 and rt 7 home. Almost 1200 miles for three days on the new bike and I enjoyed every minute of it. Deals was great to see, but all the roads around it are just a nice imo. I plan on going back next summer and spending 3-5 days and maybe some tent camping when its not frost every morning. If you have never been to the Deals Gap/Maggie Valley areas, I highly recommend it. One thing to note is that we did not have phone service 90% of the time and hotel wifi was ok at best. I didn't take many photos, but I have posted a link to my photobucket slideshow. I should be getting my photo from US129Photos soon. http://s622.photobucket.com/user/JustinNck1/slideshow/Deals%20Gap-Maggie%20Valley%202014 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2talltim Posted October 28, 2014 Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 (edited) Nice write, sounds like a fun trip. I love the Microtel in Robbinsville super nice folks and a decent breakfast. One thing you miss out on though was the Cherohala Skyway(the best riding road ever), you were just a few miles away from it and the best BBQ in the area on the other side. Oh well that just means you have to go back now. Edited October 28, 2014 by 2talltim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted October 28, 2014 Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Propane heater in a tent (make sure the oxygen switch works!) makes things quite tolerable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinNck1 Posted October 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Nice write, sounds like a fun trip. I love the Microtel in Robbinsville super nice folks and a decent breakfast. One thing you miss out on though was the Cherohala Skyway(the best riding road ever), you were just a few miles away from it and the best BBQ in the area on the other side. Oh well that just means you have to go back now. We wanted to go to Cherohala, but it runs west and we were running east. Next time I will for sure ride it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinNck1 Posted October 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Just got my photo from US129Photos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2talltim Posted October 28, 2014 Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Love that color Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Z. Heimer Posted October 28, 2014 Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Good for you guys. I test rode an FJR in July and really liked it. I could see one in my future. Almost pulled the trigger on a used one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinNck1 Posted October 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Good for you guys. I test rode an FJR in July and really liked it. I could see one in my future. Almost pulled the trigger on a used one. Coming from a BMW, the FJR was leaps and bounds better on power delivery compared my K1200RS. The machine is so smooth and I was honestly surprised how comfortable it was on this trip. I found mine as a demo model with 500 miles on it. Dealer took off $3000 and threw in a 5 year warranty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustinNck1 Posted October 28, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 28, 2014 Nice bike. I'm not a FJR fan, but maybe it's because they're too comfortable and plush. I've seen riders really rail on them, so they must be decent sport-tourers. I recently serviced a Connie14 that was pretty trick. I'm just not a fan of the weight. If I could pick a bike to replace the Strada, it'd be a Duc ST3S, with ABS and Ohlins. I considered a new Multistrada, but I couldn't do the 33 in seat height. The FJR is about as high as I wanted to go. The concours14 felt heavier than the FJR imo. Someday I will have more than one bike, a sport/naked bike and a sport/tour bike. Maybe S1000rr or R1 Crossplane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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