Last weekend my riding buddy Tom and I headed to Virginia - it was time for our annual motorcycle trip! (photos here)
We left Thursday morning headed for Meadows of Dan and the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was wonderfully cool in the mountains compared to the 90 degree heat we had at home. We putted up the parkway all day, dodging deer, RVs and the occasional bike rider. Around 6 we arrived in Natural Bridge, VA and found a cheap hotel to crash for the night.
Friday we headed to Green Bank, VA to check out the radio telescope located there… the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope is the world’s largest fully steerable single aperture antenna. We had a great ride up on some terrific mountain roads. On arrival we were informed there was a tour bus just leaving so we ran to catch that… During the tour we were informed that no cars or digital equipment is allowed near the telescope to avoid interference. All the vehicles on the site were diesel (no sparkplugs)! The tour was great and very informative. Tom had an old school disposable 35mm camera so hopefully he got some good shots… We had a bit of rain while at the telescope but it quickly cleared up and we headed back to the hotel.
Saturday found us on the Blue Ridge Parkway again - we only had about 60 miles left and we could say we rode the entire thing - so we headed out. At the end of the BRP - it turns into the “Skyline Drive” and we decided to ride a bit of this as well - which ended up to be a mistake. First - it was $10.00 for motorcyclists, and then the speed limit was 35mph, and being Saturday - traffic was heavy. We rode up as far as the Skyline Lodge but had to turn around - driving 35 was just too boring… It was a nice area - and if you are visiting I would check it out - there were frequent places to stop and get gas and food (unlike the BRP).
Sunday found us headed home - back to the heat! All in all we averaged around 300 miles a day. Neither of us had any bike troubles and no spills - though I ran off the road once - and we both had several close encounters with deer.
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