Category Archives: Travels

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Sit a Spell in Blowing Rock

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As I walked around Blowing Rock – see my previous post for more about this cool little town in the mountains of North Carolina – I kept stopping to admire the chairs and benches.

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I suppose it was the lighting, both indoors and out, that caught my eye, and frankly, I didn’t realize until I got back home that I’d taken so many photos of furniture.

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Of course, the reflections on this table were irresistable, both in color and in B&W.

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The next morning, I was the only up and about in the common rooms at the Inn and the soft morning light, kept me shooting.

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On my next visit, I’ll try to sit a bit more!

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A Blowing Rock New Years Eve

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Despite spending a couple days in Charleston for Christmas just one week ago, I still had the itch to travel, and Blowing Rock seemed like the perfect destination.  Not quite 3 hours from Radford, Blowing Rock is located right off the Blue Ridge Parkway in the mountains of North Carolina.  It’s a small community only 3 square miles in size and visitors can easily walk to shops, restaurants, galleries, and opportunities for recreation.

Knowing that my only time constraint was the start of the VT / UCLA Sun Bowl Game, I took to the back roads.  Old Rt 221 provided pretty views and incredibly curvy roads that really made me miss my bike.

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I tuned the radio to the 740 AM station, WPAQ out of Mt Airy, and in addition to hearing some good old time music, I soon found myself listening to a man reading the obituaries.  Sure enough, it was just as if I was reading them from the paper.  It somehow seemed fitting as I drove those back roads and I imagined what it would have been like to have lived there during a time when local AM radio might have been the only real connection to life off the farm.

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The town of Blowing Rock takes its name from an unusual rock formation which juts over 1,500 feet (460 m) above the Johns River gorge. Due to the rock’s shape and size, wind currents from the gorge often blow vertically, causing light objects to float upwards into the sky.

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Upon arriving in Blowing Rock, I checked into the recently reopened Blowing Rock Ale House and Inn, before heading out to find a place to watch the game.

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The Town Tavern offered a comfortable seat at the bar, right in front of a TV showing my game.  The food and microbrews were great … too bad the Hokies weren’t.  Sigh.  Even still, I enjoyed practicing photography and chatting up the folks coming and going at the bar.

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In the next couple days I’ll be sharing more of Blowing Rock with you, but for now I’ll leave you with a few pictures taken during my walk back to the Ale House.

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Once back at the Inn and while sitting in front of the fire with new found friends, I enjoyed a delicious Grilled Flatbread with Wild Mushrooms, Grilled Vidalia Onions, Smoked Mozzarella, Basil Pesto and Porter-Balsamic Reduction accompanied by a lovely glass of cabernet.

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Not a bad way to spend the last day of 2013.

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The Last Ride … For Now. The Great Smoky Mountains!

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October 18th dawned clear and cloudy with temperatures in the 40s.  Not one to typically wear leathers, I’d borrowed my friend Martha’s chaps in anticipation of a cold ride.  I pulled out of my driveway at 8am, excited about my 4 day ride on the bike.  The plan was to spend alot of time with my camera and also with friends along the way.

Little did I know when I posted to my blog that morning, that the trip would end the way it did.

The ride from my home to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) typically takes about 4 to 5 hours.  I rode the interstate for the first three hours and had to pull over 3 times just to warm my hands and feet.  By 10am though, the fog was gone, the sun was shining, and I was much more comfortable.

My first glimpse of the Smoky Mountains was so exciting and of course, I just had to pull over.  The tops of the mountains were hidden by the clouds and I couldn’t wait to get there!

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Before entering the park, the main drag through the City of Galtinburg has to be conquered. I wish I had a photo to share, but I was not about to try to find a place to park just to photograph the crowds of people walking and driving up and down the street.

Clearly, I had not done my homework.  I would be entering the most visited National Park in the United States during the most visited weekend of the year – “peak weekend” for fall leaf color.

Oh my …

I successfully navigated Gatlinburg and entered the GSMNP.  It was a beautiful day, and I prepared myself for a fairly crowded, bumper to bumper ride.

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My first stop was the Sugarlands Visitors Center for the purchase of a helmet sticker.

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I love to sticker up my helmet. It serves as a fun record of many of the places that I’ve visited on the bike.

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Then, it was off to enjoy the ride.

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I overheard someone complaining that the colors weren’t as pretty as in the past.  Really?  I was just so happy to be riding through these gorgeous mountains.

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I kept stopping along the road and would laugh out loud with the pure happiness of being there.  You’ve seen my photos of the park in B&W, but the landscape was stunning in color, too.

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Despite the crowds, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

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For those who are planning a visit, know that most of the crowd action is between Gatlinburg and Newfound Gap.  It seems that most people drive up from the city, and then turn around and go back down.  Once over the Gap, I kept on going, and I felt as if I had the road to myself.  The sweeping curves made for wonderful riding and I was oh, so happy.  Of course, I still continued to stop.

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The ride over the mountain from Gatlinburg, TN to Cherokee, NC is only 35 miles, but it took me a few hours because of the many stops that I made.  One day allows you to see just a tiny fraction of the park.  My friends, Sheila and John, have been hiking the trails in the park, over many visits and several years. This visit, for me, was just a small introduction.

An hour and a half later, I was in Weaverville, NC with my friends Delores and Gary, enjoying a delicious dinner after watching a lovely sunset.  It was an amazing 350 mile day!

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The next morning I hit the road to visit with more friends, this time in Flat Rock, NC.  Gary took the last picture of me on my beloved 2013 Softail Slim.  6500 miles, no drops, no pipe burns … just one big wreck.

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Donna, Joanne, Janet, and I enjoyed a wonderful lunch in Hendersonville, NC and after several laughter filled minutes of getting me back into my borrowed chaps, we posed for a photo … the last photo of my original smile.  I rode along some beautiful roads, intending to meet up with my friend Christine and her family in Boone, NC.

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Who knew that just 3 hours later, I would be in a bike wreck, hit while riding through an intersection.  Thank goodness for DOT approved helmets, good fortune, amazing family, and wonderful friends!  The bike is totaled, but I am not.  I am healing from my injuries and hope to return to work in a week. I have much to process emotionally, and the wreck has caused pain, tears, time away from my patients and several life changes, but for now …

I am grateful to be alive.

And I will ride again.

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Peak Weekend in the Smoky Mountains

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In my previous post, I promised that I’d be sharing details and photos from my trip to Great Smoky National Park (GSNP).  Somehow I just haven’t been able to get that done.  I don’t know … maybe it was the extensive oral surgery I just had 🙂  (excuses, excuses!)

I’ll get it done soon, but for now, let me know what you think of these.  Leave it to me to post 2 images in B&W, despite the fact that I was in the GSNP during “peak weekend”?  And as you photographers always say, they really do look better if you click on them (I learn so much from you all)

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The First Glimpse

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This was my first glimpse of the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee.  After a chilly, 4 hour ride, I was so excited to be getting close, I just had to pull over alongside the highway and stare.

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This is also my first real glimpse of the photos from that fateful ride.  I look forward to the weekend and an opportunity to spend more time reviewing and editing the images.

After the weekend: my first oral surgery!!

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I’ve Fallen And I WILL Get Up

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The last you heard from me I was heading off to Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I did indeed have a wonderful ride over the mountain and through the park (more on that with photos later). That evening, I enjoyed dinner with Gary and Delores in Weaverville, a small town outside of Asheville.

On Saturday, after meeting Donna and friends for lunch in yet another small town in North Carolina, I headed out to Boone to visit my friends Christine and Bill.

Unfortunately, I had a “slight mishap”, just one mile from Christine’s home while going through an intersection.

Trip aborted and I am home recovering.

I consider myself incredibly lucky.  While I suffered injuries, I am fortunate that they are not more severe.

I have missed reading your posts (and I miss you!) and look forward to catching up with you in a few weeks.

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(Thanks go to my friend Amy for typing for me!)

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And … She’s Off!

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Requesting positive thoughts for good weather, beautiful views, safe rides, and fun times with friends!  I’ll glady return the favor!!

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Great Smoky Mountains, here I come!!

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Unknown's avatar

When I Can’t Travel On The Bike …

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… I can still enjoy the beauty of Southwest Virginia from the truck!  It took me an hour longer than usual to get home from the 80th Birthday Celebration (see below) because I was traveling under this amazing sky and through these lovely mountains.

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Aren’t I lucky to have such healthy, happy, and FUN parents?

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Atlanta!

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My friend Ruth and I traveled to Atlanta, Georgia  this past weekend, the latest installment in our annual road trip to watch the Hokies.  As avid Virginia Tech Football fans (and basketball fans, too, for that matter),  we choose one away game to attend each year.  We’ve traveled to Chapel Hill, NC;  Huntington, WVa;  Morgantown, WVa; and to Washington, DC and Atlanta twice.  We try to find a town or place to explore along the way, and search out the historic downtown of any community we visit.  This was our 5th year in a row, and our 7th road trip overall.

We posed for the traditional start of the trip photo and then hit the road!

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The normal 6 1/2 hour trip turned into 9 due to a combination of Friday afternoon rush hour, labor day weekend, and football traffic.  A stop in Kings Mountain, NC and dinner at the Cherokee Grill was just what we needed.

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We finally saw the lights of Atlanta a little after 10pm.  I was so excited about finally arriving that I attempted to take a picture … with my cell phone … while Ruth navigated the interstate at 65mph!  This picture doesn’t reflect it, but the night skyline of Atlanta is beautiful!

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The next day dawned hot and muggy, but we had plenty of time to explore a few of the neighborhoods of Atlanta while waiting for game time. Theresa, our host for the weekend, was an excellent tour guide.

Photography on a trip with friends is a bit of a challenge.  How do you find time to shoot quality images while spending time with friends?  I definitely want to document the trip but I don’t want to spend all my time behind the lens.

We explored the neighborhood near Emory University and had a delicious breakfast at the Rise-n-Dine.

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Theresa drove us through the Krog Street Tunnel, which is known for it’s street art.  I jumped out of the car and had less than a minute to shoot what the locals call their “living bulletin board and urban art gallery”.

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The CNN Center and Olympic Park were both crawling with Tide and Hokie fans, although Virginia Tech fans were far outnumbered.

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Virginia Tech met Alabama in the Georgia Dome, and while we did not beat the #1 team in College Football, our defense was outstanding.  We held them to fewer yards and our offense gained more yards than most teams did in 2012.

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Sunday morning came quickly and it was time to head back home.  We briefly stopped in Spartanburg, SC and I wish we’d had more time to visit.  The downtown area, while quiet for a Sunday, showed evidence of historic renovation and revitalization.

Loved this Urban Art installation called Artcycle.

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The sun was bright at midday and the photos aren’t the best, but the artcycles were great!

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Locally owned businesses have the most creative signage and curb appeal.

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We were back in Radford in the late afternoon and had a short visit with friends who had gathered for labor day.  A lovely way to end the weekend … even if we did miss the music.

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Green Shoes at the Krog Street Tunnel

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While in Atlanta this past weekend (watching my beloved Virginia Tech Hokies) my friend Ruth and I were given a tour of several local neighborhoods.  Theresa, our friend and tour guide, was good to let me jump out of the car at various times to capture some of the flavor.

These shoes were hanging over the Krog Street Tunnel, which is known for it’s street art.

Locals call it “Atlanta’s living bulletin board and urban art gallery”.

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More Photos from the Road soon!