First Road Trip in New GT3: PA->VA->TN->TOTD
06-06-2019, 02:40 PM
#16
Rennlist Member
TOTD is one of the roads you have to do, and as others have shared there are better roads in the area. Here are a few of my favorites along with great lodging in the NC mountains. If you would like more details, please PM me. Have driven several thousand miles in the Mountains with the SmokiesGT group over the years.
1. Hellbender - Route 28 from Fontana Dam Basin to Deal's Gap.
2. Rte 129 from Deal's Gap to Tapoco Lodge. I refer to this as the TOTD extension. A lot of fun. Stop at Tapoco for a drink and good pizza creekside. Good place to stay as well.
3 Cherohala Skyway. A charm.
4. Blue Ridge Parkway. Beautiful but can get crowded and patrolled often. However, nothing like the sound of launch control inside one of the tunnels.
5. Blue Ridge Parkway to Heintooga Ridge Road. Has a few epic overlooks and less traveled road.
6. Rte. 215 & Rte. 276 will not disappoint.
7. If your willing to travel to North GA don't miss Wolf Pen Gap Rd and Rte. 19.
There are others I can share that are not well known and will rock your socks. PM me if you'd like.
Check out these excellent lodges.
https://www.bluewatersmtnl.com/
https://snowbirdlodge.com/
https://tapoco.com
1. Hellbender - Route 28 from Fontana Dam Basin to Deal's Gap.
2. Rte 129 from Deal's Gap to Tapoco Lodge. I refer to this as the TOTD extension. A lot of fun. Stop at Tapoco for a drink and good pizza creekside. Good place to stay as well.
3 Cherohala Skyway. A charm.
4. Blue Ridge Parkway. Beautiful but can get crowded and patrolled often. However, nothing like the sound of launch control inside one of the tunnels.
5. Blue Ridge Parkway to Heintooga Ridge Road. Has a few epic overlooks and less traveled road.
6. Rte. 215 & Rte. 276 will not disappoint.
7. If your willing to travel to North GA don't miss Wolf Pen Gap Rd and Rte. 19.
There are others I can share that are not well known and will rock your socks. PM me if you'd like.
Check out these excellent lodges.
https://www.bluewatersmtnl.com/
https://snowbirdlodge.com/
https://tapoco.com
06-06-2019, 03:00 PM
#17
Drifting
I’ve had my share of VA law enforcement in my younger years so I will definitely be taking it easy for the most part. Thanks for the note on Tellico Plains, I will add it to the list. I let the wife know about this thread so she is monitoring it and will look up Nantahala. I didn’t think to stop in Asheville but I’m a sucker for good food & drinks. Thanks!
Point taken about VA cops. I wish we could move the entire state to the Midwest...lol. I told the wife about The Red Hen so we will likely stop there at least to try it out. I keep hearing about roads of North Georgia so depending on how long we plan to stay, I may venture a little further south to check it out. Cherohala Skyway is definitely on the list. Didn’t think to venture to Ohio although Hocking Hills sounds awesome.
Point taken about VA cops. I wish we could move the entire state to the Midwest...lol. I told the wife about The Red Hen so we will likely stop there at least to try it out. I keep hearing about roads of North Georgia so depending on how long we plan to stay, I may venture a little further south to check it out. Cherohala Skyway is definitely on the list. Didn’t think to venture to Ohio although Hocking Hills sounds awesome.
One item that has come up in nearly every post is that the dragon - the presumptive centerpiece of your trip - is just ok, and that there are superior roads nearby, so be sure to hit as many listed.
06-06-2019, 03:14 PM
#18
Rennlist Member
This is exactly the type of food info that I am looking for. I only mentioned Knoxville since that seems to be the closest big city near the mountains. I can only go by local reviews so if Archer's & Dead End is one of my best bets in Knoxville, I'm sold.
Thinking second wknd in July.
Thinking second wknd in July.
That weekend is a zoo for me, but keep us posted on your plans and I will see what we can do. Would love to cross paths!
06-06-2019, 10:48 PM
#19
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
I've done the trip to the Tail of The Dragon a few times with motorcycles. I'd echo the point about it being very tight and suited for smaller vehicles. That being said you should absolutely do it. My favorite ride is called the Six Gap. It heads into Northern Georgia and it a great drive. Map is Here. Easily done in a day.
The one road you can't miss is Rt 39 out of Lexington, VA. Perfectly cambered roller coaster and one of the best roads I've ever driven. Loop back via 780/64 from Goshen or 42/64 from Millboro Springs. Or if you're looking for a great overnight keep on 39 all the way up the mountain to 220 then head south to The Homestead at Hot Springs, VA.
https://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/ho...medium=organic
Another fun side trip is Route 60 from Buena Vista, VA up to the Blue Ridge Pkwy. You can then take Blue Ridge south to 130 and drop back down to 81 via Natural Bridge or continue a bit further to 43 and down to Buchanan.
With the Blue Ridge on one side and the Appalachians on the other you can literally throw a dart anywhere around the Shenandoah Valley and find great roads. Enjoy.
https://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/ho...medium=organic
Another fun side trip is Route 60 from Buena Vista, VA up to the Blue Ridge Pkwy. You can then take Blue Ridge south to 130 and drop back down to 81 via Natural Bridge or continue a bit further to 43 and down to Buchanan.
With the Blue Ridge on one side and the Appalachians on the other you can literally throw a dart anywhere around the Shenandoah Valley and find great roads. Enjoy.
After PEC in Feb we planned to do a similar route.
The Devil's Whip kept coming up in local posts about being a better road but less known than Tail Of The Dragon
http://www.thedevilnc80.com/
The Devil's Whip kept coming up in local posts about being a better road but less known than Tail Of The Dragon
http://www.thedevilnc80.com/
06-06-2019, 11:40 PM
#20
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Honestly, I don't see all the fuss over the Dragon. It is an icon though - especially for motorcycles - so definitely run it if you're nearby. I've heard that the police there are more concerned with respecting the double-yellow lines than speed limits...
There are much better roads in the area though. Foothills Parkway is very fun and scenic - especially the newly-opened section.
There are much better roads in the area though. Foothills Parkway is very fun and scenic - especially the newly-opened section.
TOTD is one of the roads you have to do, and as others have shared there are better roads in the area. Here are a few of my favorites along with great lodging in the NC mountains. If you would like more details, please PM me. Have driven several thousand miles in the Mountains with the SmokiesGT group over the years.
1. Hellbender - Route 28 from Fontana Dam Basin to Deal's Gap.
2. Rte 129 from Deal's Gap to Tapoco Lodge. I refer to this as the TOTD extension. A lot of fun. Stop at Tapoco for a drink and good pizza creekside. Good place to stay as well.
3 Cherohala Skyway. A charm.
4. Blue Ridge Parkway. Beautiful but can get crowded and patrolled often. However, nothing like the sound of launch control inside one of the tunnels.
5. Blue Ridge Parkway to Heintooga Ridge Road. Has a few epic overlooks and less traveled road.
6. Rte. 215 & Rte. 276 will not disappoint.
7. If your willing to travel to North GA don't miss Wolf Pen Gap Rd and Rte. 19.
There are others I can share that are not well known and will rock your socks. PM me if you'd like.
Check out these excellent lodges.
https://www.bluewatersmtnl.com/
https://snowbirdlodge.com/
https://tapoco.com
1. Hellbender - Route 28 from Fontana Dam Basin to Deal's Gap.
2. Rte 129 from Deal's Gap to Tapoco Lodge. I refer to this as the TOTD extension. A lot of fun. Stop at Tapoco for a drink and good pizza creekside. Good place to stay as well.
3 Cherohala Skyway. A charm.
4. Blue Ridge Parkway. Beautiful but can get crowded and patrolled often. However, nothing like the sound of launch control inside one of the tunnels.
5. Blue Ridge Parkway to Heintooga Ridge Road. Has a few epic overlooks and less traveled road.
6. Rte. 215 & Rte. 276 will not disappoint.
7. If your willing to travel to North GA don't miss Wolf Pen Gap Rd and Rte. 19.
There are others I can share that are not well known and will rock your socks. PM me if you'd like.
Check out these excellent lodges.
https://www.bluewatersmtnl.com/
https://snowbirdlodge.com/
https://tapoco.com
You're getting a lot of feedback from people - more than you could possibly incorporate into a trip unless you're on the road for weeks.
One item that has come up in nearly every post is that the dragon - the presumptive centerpiece of your trip - is just ok, and that there are superior roads nearby, so be sure to hit as many listed.
One item that has come up in nearly every post is that the dragon - the presumptive centerpiece of your trip - is just ok, and that there are superior roads nearby, so be sure to hit as many listed.
Corky's is added to the list my friend. Thanks. I will reach out the week of with final plans & see if you can break away. Cheers.
Last edited by Advisor; 06-07-2019 at 10:51 AM.
06-07-2019, 10:32 AM
#22
Rennlist Member
I'm the Shenandoah Valley, run a restoration and motorsport workshop for JMU students, so if you're traveling down I81 feel free to stop in to MAAP in Harrisonburg. Most of the Virginia "wife winery" fare is on the Rt29 corridor through the Charlottesville area, one of our favorites is Early Mountain and while not a winery the Bold Rock Cidery is a lovely visit too. Great scenic roads too.
If you need any other insider info re Va stops lmk
Cole
If you need any other insider info re Va stops lmk
Cole
06-07-2019, 10:53 AM
#23
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
As of right now we are planning for second week in July, probably starting trip in the middle of the week. I will reach out as it gets closer to see if you can make it down. Thanks again.
06-07-2019, 11:49 AM
#24
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
I'm the Shenandoah Valley, run a restoration and motorsport workshop for JMU students, so if you're traveling down I81 feel free to stop in to MAAP in Harrisonburg. Most of the Virginia "wife winery" fare is on the Rt29 corridor through the Charlottesville area, one of our favorites is Early Mountain and while not a winery the Bold Rock Cidery is a lovely visit too. Great scenic roads too.
If you need any other insider info re Va stops lmk
Cole
If you need any other insider info re Va stops lmk
Cole
06-07-2019, 12:08 PM
#25
Rennlist Member
I would definitely drive the car. C2Spin is a fantastic source for information on the best roads.
06-07-2019, 03:59 PM
#26
Jump on the blue ridge in VA and run it to Cherokee. Get a map at the deals gap stop and hit the best roads around. As you can see, we grab a beer, plan our next few days. 28 rocks, 281 rocks, just about everything outside or around the tail of the dragon is amazing. The dragon is a "do it one time" kinda thing" but fun to do and fun to hang a little while and BS
06-07-2019, 04:15 PM
#27
Rennlist Member
Getting on and off the Parkway at select points is a great idea, but riding that whole thing at 45mph gets a little old if you have anyplace to be.
Jump on the blue ridge in VA and run it to Cherokee. Get a map at the deals gap stop and hit the best roads around. As you can see, we grab a beer, plan our next few days. 28 rocks, 281 rocks, just about everything outside or around the tail of the dragon is amazing. The dragon is a "do it one time" kinda thing" but fun to do and fun to hang a little while and BS
06-07-2019, 04:20 PM
#28
If you are doing it during the week, its dead, if the weekend is the plan, yes its slow going. Its just an easy way to drive great roads, no stop and go, no highway, and the best scenery you can find. hope you have a great trip
07-09-2019, 01:28 PM
#29
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Thanks again for everyone’s input & feedback with the upcoming road-trip. As it stands currently the itinerary for the trip looks to be as follows:
Day 1:
-Leave PA area Wednesday 7/10 sometime around 7-7:30 am. Head southwest towards the Shenandoah National Park. Should take about 4 hours or so depending on traffic. Not sure if we will pick up Skyline Drive above or below Route 33 around Swift Run Gap entrance. TBD. Open to suggestions.
-Once we drive through the SNP looks like there are a few wineries that we will chose from to have lunch & some crushed grapes. Right now I’m thinking Veritas Vineyards & Winery. Appears to have pretty good reviews.
-*Question: Should we get on the Blue Ridge Parkway at the northern entrance off of I-64 or should I hop over to I-81 to travel further south & pick it up a little later? Looks like it adds about 45 minutes to take the BRP all the way to the end just north of Roanoke. I don’t care as much about the extra 45 minutes. Just wondering if it is worth it from guys who have already done that route. Any thoughts?
-We will end the day at/around the West Wind Farm Vineyard & Winery for dinner.
-Total travel approximately 450 miles & 7-8 hours of seat time.
Day 2:
-We plan to start the next morning by driving to the Back of the Dragon (Route 16). Thanks for the suggestion Ric In RVA. We will continue down 81 towards Foothills Parkway, TN. Should arrive to that area around midday Thursday. Will probably try Corky’s Ribs & BBQ since we will be so close. After a short blast & exploration of Foothills parkway we will no doubt head towards our hotel.
-Although it will be midday, it will give us our first taste of TOTD as we travel down to our hotel. Wife would like to try River’s Edge Treehouse Resort as our choice of lodging for a couple of days.
-Total travel approximately 300 miles & 6 hours of seat time.
Day 3:
-We will no doubt wake up relatively early on Friday morning to begin exploring the mountains.
-Not too sure which direction to head but based on you guys feedback I’m thinking to take the Cherohala Skyway towards Tellico Plains.
-Totally open after this as everything else that I would like to do appears to be the opposite direction further south & east. May end up back in Knoxville area
Day 4:
-Haven't quite figured out the order for Saturday that makes the most sense. In some form or fashion I would like to do Heaven's Landing ->Fontana Dam via Moonshiner 28 & maybe end at Tapoco lodge for lunch.
-May venture back up to Knoxville to try Dead End Bbq and Archers BBQ for dinner. OR I may do everything clockwise and end up at Heavens Landing on the tail end. That will tempt us to make the 1.5 hr trek towards Atlanta to meet up with some family at Pappadeaux in Alpharetta.
So in case you haven't picked up on it yet, I decided not to trailer the car halfway. I rented a trailer to do a trial run & realized that it takes some creativity to get the GT3 to clear the front of the U-Haul trailer. Funny thing is, there was a guy in a Voodoo Blue GT3 at NJMP a couple weeks ago who rented the same trailer and showed me how to make it work. In any case the wife feels she will be ok in the LWB's so we should be fine. In preparation for the trip, I did decide on adding an exhaust to really make ole girl come alive. I decided to try the Graham Rahal Performance exhaust. I'm loving it so far. Although it gives much more volume I wasn't in love with the whole valved bit so I disconnected the valves to see if I can live with it. So far so good but the next week will be the real test. I'll be sure to post up some video as soon as I get around to it.
I will do my best to update the thread over the next week for any who might be interested in a similar road adventure. If anyone is local enough to meet up or cross paths for a brief run on one of these glorious mountain roads, feel free to reach out. I'm always game.
Day 1:
-Leave PA area Wednesday 7/10 sometime around 7-7:30 am. Head southwest towards the Shenandoah National Park. Should take about 4 hours or so depending on traffic. Not sure if we will pick up Skyline Drive above or below Route 33 around Swift Run Gap entrance. TBD. Open to suggestions.
-Once we drive through the SNP looks like there are a few wineries that we will chose from to have lunch & some crushed grapes.
Right now I’m thinking Veritas Vineyards & Winery. Appears to have pretty good reviews. -*Question: Should we get on the Blue Ridge Parkway at the northern entrance off of I-64 or should I hop over to I-81 to travel further south & pick it up a little later? Looks like it adds about 45 minutes to take the BRP all the way to the end just north of Roanoke. I don’t care as much about the extra 45 minutes. Just wondering if it is worth it from guys who have already done that route. Any thoughts?
-We will end the day at/around the West Wind Farm Vineyard & Winery for dinner.
-Total travel approximately 450 miles & 7-8 hours of seat time.
Day 2:
-We plan to start the next morning by driving to the Back of the Dragon (Route 16). Thanks for the suggestion Ric In RVA. We will continue down 81 towards Foothills Parkway, TN. Should arrive to that area around midday Thursday. Will probably try Corky’s Ribs & BBQ since we will be so close. After a short blast & exploration of Foothills parkway we will no doubt head towards our hotel.
-Although it will be midday, it will give us our first taste of TOTD as we travel down to our hotel. Wife would like to try River’s Edge Treehouse Resort as our choice of lodging for a couple of days.
-Total travel approximately 300 miles & 6 hours of seat time.
Day 3:
-We will no doubt wake up relatively early on Friday morning to begin exploring the mountains.
-Not too sure which direction to head but based on you guys feedback I’m thinking to take the Cherohala Skyway towards Tellico Plains.
-Totally open after this as everything else that I would like to do appears to be the opposite direction further south & east. May end up back in Knoxville area
Day 4:
-Haven't quite figured out the order for Saturday that makes the most sense. In some form or fashion I would like to do Heaven's Landing ->Fontana Dam via Moonshiner 28 & maybe end at Tapoco lodge for lunch.
-May venture back up to Knoxville to try Dead End Bbq and Archers BBQ for dinner. OR I may do everything clockwise and end up at Heavens Landing on the tail end. That will tempt us to make the 1.5 hr trek towards Atlanta to meet up with some family at Pappadeaux in Alpharetta.
So in case you haven't picked up on it yet, I decided not to trailer the car halfway. I rented a trailer to do a trial run & realized that it takes some creativity to get the GT3 to clear the front of the U-Haul trailer. Funny thing is, there was a guy in a Voodoo Blue GT3 at NJMP a couple weeks ago who rented the same trailer and showed me how to make it work. In any case the wife feels she will be ok in the LWB's so we should be fine. In preparation for the trip, I did decide on adding an exhaust to really make ole girl come alive. I decided to try the Graham Rahal Performance exhaust. I'm loving it so far. Although it gives much more volume I wasn't in love with the whole valved bit so I disconnected the valves to see if I can live with it. So far so good but the next week will be the real test. I'll be sure to post up some video as soon as I get around to it.
I will do my best to update the thread over the next week for any who might be interested in a similar road adventure. If anyone is local enough to meet up or cross paths for a brief run on one of these glorious mountain roads, feel free to reach out. I'm always game.
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Jim137a (07-10-2019)
07-09-2019, 02:20 PM
#30
SJW, a Carin' kinda guy
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
81 is pretty boring and miserable. I’d get on the blue ridge early and if you tire of it, go to more major roads.
I am sure you have heard this, but Virginia takes speeding very seriously. It’s especially bad on the interstates.
I am sure you have heard this, but Virginia takes speeding very seriously. It’s especially bad on the interstates.