Vintage Harley-Davidson enthusiast Tom Plackis was used to answering calls for help. He retired after a long career with New York City’s fire department. This time, it was his friends asking to help them escape the devastation of Hurricane Helene in Bat Cave near Chimney Rock, North Carolina. Nearly a year after Helene devastated Western North Carolina, residents who lived … [Read more...] about Evacuation Made for a Different Trip to Chimney Rock
Helene, a Year After: Chimney Rock Remains in Riders’ Hopes and Memories
Nothing much remains of the main street in Chimney Rock, North Carolina. Workers continue to move earth and replace utilities scoured away by Hurricane Helene nearly one year earlier. Demolition of damaged buildings continue. Access remains limited. For decades, this scenic section of the Hickory Nut Gorge attracted riders to the twisting roads through the Hickory Nut Gorge … [Read more...] about Helene, a Year After: Chimney Rock Remains in Riders’ Hopes and Memories
Jocassee Valley Brewing: Great sounds and suds await
Fall makes for the perfect time to venture south of the Blue Ridge Escarpment and explore waterfalls, winding backroads and make a stop for a cold one at Jocassee Valley Brewing near Salem, South Carolina. Located along the scenic byway of S.C 11, this unassuming roadside spot serves a wide selection of regional craft beers and weekend food trucks. More interestingly, Jocassee … [Read more...] about Jocassee Valley Brewing: Great sounds and suds await
A Dragon’s Back: and a Quest to Find Seven Covered Bridges
Motorcycles can often feel like time machines. They encourage you to explore roads that once were main thoroughfares but are now sleepy backroads. They take you along winding paths filled with old barns, small towns and sometimes century-old covered bridges. Feeling a call to revisit Virginia’s Back of the Dragon this summer, I vowed to explore some side roads I’d ignored on … [Read more...] about A Dragon’s Back: and a Quest to Find Seven Covered Bridges
Glorious Graham: The Secret Side of the Smokies
There, in a break in the tree line, flashed a vision as I sped along U.S. 129. Simmering blue-green water, distant soaring ridges, a heavenly sight flashed before becoming blocked again by roadside underbrush. My Yamaha Tracer 9 willingly carved a quick U-turn. I nestled her up against the guardrail in the narrow strip of grass between the open road and the precipice … [Read more...] about Glorious Graham: The Secret Side of the Smokies
