Hi

I am form Quebec Canada, my wife and I are loolking into taking a trip to ride the Dragon in March 2007. It is still winter for us here so I plan to trailer the bike to get to the decent weather. This is something that we have never done before so there is a lot of unknows, so I will trow a few questions out there in hope of getting some good advice from some of the veterans out there.

What is the weather like in North Carolina at that time of the year?

For those who have trailered there bikes before, where would you leave your car, truck trailer for a few days while you are gone? We plane to be on the bike for a few days and hit a few hotels/motels.

to rent a room around Deal's Gap, do you suggest booking way ahead in advance?

Please feel free to add any peice of advice that you think I amy need to make this a succesful trip. This will serve as a trial rune for Daytona 2008

Thanks in advance

 

The motel at Deal's Gap(CRoT) can be found online at DealsGap.com. I used to go there 10 or so times a year with my sportbikes but in the past 3-4 years the number of non-skilled riders have multiplied 10 fold and now it isn't worth the hassle. I would suggest going and staying at the dragon but explore the other roads in the area on the weekends. During the week, the 'Gap is still fun but on the weekends it gets pretty crazy. Check out these links for some more info.

Deals Gap

Tail of the dragon

 

The weather in the mountains of TN can be a little bit of a question, especially in the early part of March. I have left Ohio to go to bike week and have had 8” of snow in Ohio and ice storms in the mountains of TN. The latter part of March or any time in April would be better for sure, spring in that area is fabulous. I have been to the Dragon several times, well worth the trip.

When I have trailered my bike down in the winter months I have often gotten just in to good weather and will make arrangements with the hotel I am at or a local Harley dealer to leave the truck and trailer.

I am located in the Dayton, Ohio area and have lots of room, if this is far enough south to get you to good weather and not out of your way, you would be more than welcome to leave the truck at our house. We could also find a bed for you for over night coming or going. We are just off I-75.

If this helps or you are interested you can e-mail me at mmharrison.com.

ride safe, nice choice of bikes..............

mike

 

If you plan on staying at Deal's Gap the motel has PLENTY of parking. Plenty of parking and they even have a nice elevated area to load and unload a bike if you want to skip the trailer and just load it into the bed. Back up to the loading/unloading dock and drive it on or off, no ramps needed. Another note about the weather in the area, it might be good weather in one spot and crappy in another, all within a few miles of each other. A good example is the Cherohola Skyway where the temps can easily drop 20-30 degrees from the bottom to the top. It isn't a problem but you need to be aware and if you are in the area you don't want to miss the Skyway, trust me.

 

I tend to agree with the rest, you will probably have a better ride waiting until April to come down. The Dragon is a lot less crowded on weekdays. There are lots of good rides and things to do in the area. We like staying in Gatlinburg. It's a tourist town, but plenty to eat and do at night. Check out this link for some area rides: www.knoxvilleharleydavidson.com/places.php And make sure you ride some of the Blue Ridge Parkway along with the others mentioned in the above posts. Beautiful part of the country.

 

I live just arround the coner from Gatlinburg and our winter dosn't start getting at some freeze over night till mid Janurary. I consider our winters to be the first week of Feb till the end of March. The dragon is about 50 miles below us as the crow flies, so they ain't much different.
In early April you will get 3 or 4 days of nice weather easeing into 3 or 4 days of cold rainny cold crap. The last of April will go about 4 or 5 days of nice to 3 or 4 of crappy weather.
Geewhiz it was 65* here in Knoxville today.
give me a shout as your time gets near and I will give you the low down on the weather, shoot I may even ride some with ya.

 

Here's some advice. Don't do this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whVXD3ex9DA .Ignore the crack about it being a tipical Harley rider. I've been going to Deals Gap for the last seven years and I swear I have seen at least one bike in a ditch each time and I mean that literally. I've come upon two dead riders although one was on the Cherahollow (misspelled) Skyway. Make sure you do the Skyway as it has no traffic at any time. Don't go flying across DGap the first time. There are more than one curve that you think is opening up only to get tight again, real tight. Go slow and if you like it go again and maybe a little faster. Several deaths each year say it all. Be careful and it's a lot of fun. Also the Blue Ridge is traffic free all the time and a great ride. Take the entrance near Cherokee (begining of the BRP). The Foothills Parkway off of Rt.321 which leads you over to DGap is also traffic free and aother great 20/25 mile ride. Turn left at the end of the FHP and you'll be at the Gap in 5 minutes. My idea on leaving your bike is to contact Smokey Mountain HD in Marysville. This is the most friendly dealer anywhere and I am confident they will put your trailer up for what ever time you need. Lastly, We usually stay around Townsend as it is close to all the good rides. It's a small town with a couple of motels and you must eat at the "Back Porch". We rent a cabin most of the time. The Honda Hoot in June is a great time and great weather. Some will make a face at going to the Hoot but it has the best vendors, good entertainment and most bike manufactures so up and have demo rides, even Harley shows up though it's usually about 20 Buells. Victory has about 20 of there bikes to. Too many organized rides to count. This is a riders event, not a drinking event.
Gary

 

Weather in March is iffy. I usually make my first trip for the season some time in April. I wait for the campground at the gap to open. It is closed in March. Even in April it can be cool for my Florida raised butt. I never go on the weekends and I wait till the sun gets high in the sky also (to dry the road). I also hang around till after about 4'pm when the locals come out to play. You can pick up a lot of tips on how to ride a sport bike. It is great fun on any kind of scoot if you know your limits and stick too them. I prefer the Skyway or the BRP if I am on my road bike though. My wife gets sick every time we try to make a run togather so we have to stop along the road some where in the 11 miles. If you do going in March. A good place to stay is the Phillips Motel in Robbinsville. It is just a short very good ride south and they are biker friendly.

 

Cherohala Skyway

 

IMO, March is a little early in the year for trip to the Smokey's. It will be very cold in the morning and late afternoon, so on the best of days you will only have a few hours of good riding weather. The mountain peaks are just over 5,000 feet, so those areas are about 20 degrees cooler than the surrounding communities. If it's 50-60 degrees in Gatlinburg, then it's 30-40 in the mountains.

If you stay in Franklin, you will be central to everything and only an hour or two ride to anywhere you want to go. We made the trip up there during the first week of October and it was definitely worth it. The Cherohala is a must-ride and the views of the adjacent valleys are nothing short of spectacular. The Foothills Parkway is another must-ride. NC28 is terrific and US441 from Gatlinburg to Franklin is just fabulous. Deal's Gap was my least favorite road of the trip. 300+ turns in 11 miles is way too many curves to be able to enjoy the scenery and the number of sport bikes trying to see how fast they can ride it is downright dangerous. It's nice to be able to say you've done it, but I have no desire to spend another hour dragging floorboards and dodging morons for 10 miles.