Exploring the Mountain *Gems* - Tryon, NC

As an extension to my previous post, WNC Mountain Road Trip!, this one discusses some of my personal favorite mountain towns.  If you're planning a day or weekend trip to our Blue Ridge Mountains, this will be a great start for places to explore.  Because this subject could go on and on, I will have to make multiple posts to cover WNC.  Please keep checking back in for updates to this theme!
In the next several posts, I plan to get into waterfalls, historic points of interest, mountain overlooks, great hikes, mountain bike trails, camping, horseback riding, rock climbing, fishing, boating, motorcycling, shopping, dining, B&B's, and scenic drives.  Whew...
To keep with good blogging etiquette, I can't get too long winded in each article, so just as I said in my previous post, I encourage you to do a little online investigation for yourself!  Doing this will help you to learn more about the places you want to visit and experience, and will ultimately lead you into many more adventures!  Here I want to highlight some of my personal favorite mountain towns, some attractions in each one, and some of what to look for along the way!

WNC Mountain Road Trip!

Even before I became a WNC (Western North Carolina) transplant, I have been an expert on the Blue Ridge Mountains (BRMs) and their alluring mystical ambiance. I have spent the past 20 years visiting every small town that I could get to in a weekend day trip, sometimes taking the whole weekend to explore!

I was born and raised in Spartanburg County, SC, which is less than 20 minutes from the base of the BRMs. Spartanburg is defined as the Upstate of SC, the Piedmont region of the state.

The Right One - Part II

I felt like that last post needed some clarification, because I received a few private comments through Facebook where some thought that my "list" sounded demanding.
On the contrary! Those are not demands. Those are qualifiers.
Remember - I don't want a "steady."  I want multiple friendships.  Platonic, if you prefer that term.  No ties.  No expectations.  No deep personal divulgence to have to maintain...  Just friendship!

The Right One?

I've had this conversation more than once this year with various friends, and I've not been supported in full by any one person, although a couple friends do agree with me on this topic.
The right "one" for me.
To catch you up with where I'm at (this present time), here it is. 

Weekend Ride Report - Little Switzerland

What a gorgeous day to ride! Best day of the year, in my opinion, for clear skies and air temps.
We had 6 bikes with 6 riders meet at the Waffle House on 176 & Springfield, one of which was new to our group! Kim Barnette from Harley of Greenville, invited by Doc.


Kim Barnette and Sarge

 The lineup consisted of Ben "Sarge" Rodgers, Mike "Doc" Driscoll, Kim Barnette, Brian "Stick" Hightower, Will "Stud Muffin" Yarborough, and "Big Ben" Steagall.

Weekend Ride Report - Sapphire Valley Run

Southern Curisers Riding Club

  Spartanburg, SC Chapter 313

   September 3rd, 2011

    250 miles - 8 hours

Well, the SCRC 313 finally got The Sapphire Valley Run under its belt. After a year and a half of making attempts and being rained out, we beat the rain and had an awesome run!

We began the ride from the Waffle House at 9:23 a.m. with Mike "Doc" Driscoll, Raymond "Ray Dawg" Nyhart, and Mike "Hoss" Hosom.

As we headed down 176 into Inman, we were ambushed by Carl Briles and Diane on the beautiful Black Beauty (Carl's '08 black & chrome Goldwing).

We followed 176 into Camp Pueblo, bared left on 11 and headed for Echo Valley in Cleveland for our first stop.

From there we turned off 11 in Pickens onto 178 for Rosman, NC.  We had an awesome ride up 178, with no cars ahead of us or behind us!  We made our second stop at Jarrett Bros Gas Station in Rosman to top off our tanks and rest our butts.  Because the weather was way too nice, we made our stop very short and headed to 64 for Sapphire Valley. This was a bit slower going as we got behind a few carpet baggers that had apparently never driven through mountain curves...  They held us at 20 mph under the posted speed limit...  Not to worry, as it is a short 16 miles from Rosman to Sapphire, and we were still making good time.We arrived right at noon to the Sapphire Mountain Brewing Company, which is tucked away nicely within the beautiful Sapphire Valley Golf Club.  We got a great table out on the covered deck out back with an outstanding view!  See next pg...

Motocross Racing - most physically demanding sport?

I've read statistics that Motocross is the #1 most physically demanding sport in the world, with which I agree.  Some have said that soccer is most physically demanding.  I suppose that everything polled is based on opinion of each individual, and their prior experience with a particular sport.
I can say that, for me, I believe it is.  I've played several different sports for several years each, and Motocross was definitely the most thrilling, exhilarating, and the toughest on the body.  I've played baseball, football, soccer, golf, wrestling, track running, trail running, rock climbing, weight lifting, water skiing, Jet Skiing, snow skiing, snowboarding, and mountain biking.  Each of these sports present their own challenges on the mind, the spirit, and the body.  But in competitions where there is no break, no rest period, no bench seats, and "it ain't over til it's over," those are the most physically demanding.

Cigar Night At Mill Farm Inn

When I bought my home in Tryon, NC, I immediately became friends with my realtor, Gary.
Gary owns a large, rock house named Mill Farm Inn, which he had registered a few years back on The National Register Of Historic Places.  I won't get in to the history of this property here, but it is very interesting.  It would be worth your time to look it up & read about it!
http://www.presnc.org/Preservation-News-Roundup/Mill-Farm-Inn-Earns-Register-Listing

About my background image...

I took this photograph, the one you are looking at behind my profile (left), during an early morning ride one year ago.  I was riding from Greenville, SC to Pigeon Forge, TN to spend the day with my (soon to be) fiancee and her father.  They had a tradition of visiting the Great Smokey Mountains every year to kick off the beautiful Fall season, and had invited me to join them for a few days of lodging, shopping, and eating in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge.
Since it was a Friday, and I still had work to finish up for the week, I decided to leave extra early from home and make the 5 hour bike ride through the backroads of Western NC and the magnificent Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP).  Normally this trip only takes 3 hours to make via I-26 to I-40 to Hwy 441, but when you travel the snakey mountain roads of the Blue Ridge and Smokies, it's a little slower going.  So I left the house at 4 a.m., having strapped my K2 backpack to the backrest, and lit out for the mountains!
I headed up I-385N from Simpsonville, Hwy 276 through Greenville, Hwy 11 through Cleveland, up Hwy 178 through Rosman, NC and then up Hwy 215 to intersect the BRP and follow it on to Cherokee, NC and on to the Smokey Mountain Parkway into Tennessee.
It was an exceptionally clear morning, so I was certain that I would enjoy several photo ops as the sun came up! Racing up Hwy 215 in the dark was thrilling, and I had my headphones plugged into my Sirius Satellite Radio, which is mounted to my handlebar.  As I approached the BRP, I began catching the early glimpse of deep purple light creeping over the distant peaks and through the hardwood forest.  My stomach was beginning to churn with excitement as the light went from that deep purple to periwinkle, and then began to blend with a rosey-pink.  When I got to a curvy section of Parkway with some overlook views, I pulled over onto the shoulder to capture my first image.