Conquering the Smokies into North Carolina

The last stretches of Tennessee as I head into the Smoky Mountains

Looking down the road back towards Townsend, TN

Autumn in the Smoky Mountains

Descending from Newfound Gap to Cherokee, NC

Lunch in Cherokee, with Frank "Bones" from Jupiter, FL

Pam and John Hunt joined us

Pam, Mark and John in Cherokee

We got to sleep in today; breakfast wasn't served until 7:30. Breakfast was 1.7 miles down the road this morning as the Lodge we slept at didn't serve breakfast. With the restaurant opening at 7:30 and sunrise at 7:43, the group didn't depart the lodge until 7:40.

The rains were gone but the moisture was definitely in the air. After a breakfast of Blueberry pancakes, country cured ham and OJ, I headed out with Matt, Archie and Stephanie as we headed for the Great Smoky Mountain National Forest only 1.8 miles further down the road. Once there the first climb started immediately.

The climb ran along the Little River for 13.5 miles up to 2,310' from 1,080' provided extraordinary scenery but also many cars and pick-up trucks. The leaf peepers we out in force at 8:45 in the morning. Fortunately commercial vehicles are not permitted on this national forest's roads. This climb was a nice gradual warm-up for what would come next. For the first 4 miles I rode on 39x17 then 39x19 for 8 miles and the last mile and a half was a combination of 39x19, and x21 as the grade topped out at 6%. The first climb today took just under one hour.

After a short downhill, the real work started. Thirteen miles to the top, Newfound Gap and the TN NC border. We started at 1,452' by turning onto US 441 South (I thought I was heading home!). Our group split towards the end of the first climb as Matt fell off of the pace early. Archie was next to lag behind. I followed Stephanie up the mountain as she stay ahead of me by 20-80 yards as we climbed. Once we got up to 2,500' or so the moisture turned to fog, getting thicker as we climbed further up the mountain. The grade also turned steeper settling in at 8% with some sections reaching 9 or 10%. It didn't take long for me to settle into my granny gear - 39x27.

After 1 hour 37 minutes I reached the top not before passing through three tunnels while riding alongside hundreds if not thousands of leaf peepers. The fog was dense; at 4,000' I broke through the fog layer which would make the last 5 or so miles infinitely easier. Not to happen as the second fog layer rolled in at 4,600-4,700'. The last tunnel came at 12 miles in the climb. Near the top I was passed by a caravan of corvettes.

At we neared the top I was passed by Greg and Ricky-Bobby who finished 1-2 on the climb. I was fourth to the top. Grateful Dave and Gary came in shortly after I parked my bike against the van. Everyone climbed into the van to warm up as it was only 39 degrees on the top of this hill, at 5,080'.

Ricky-Bobby, Stephanie and the Colordao Trio headed down the mountain first. I left after changing into some dry socks and adding another layer, my Gore Tex rain jacket. The descent, like always, made the climb worthwhile. After a few miles, the fog was not only gone but the sun was shining brightly through the trees. I rode for miles without hitting the brakes; the ride was awesome.

On the way down, about halfway to Cherokee, I noticed my friend Pam Hunt taking my picture. She and her husband John took time on their vacation near Lake Lure to try to find me in the mountains. Based on the limited route knowledge and timeframes I could give them earlier this week, it worked! As I speed by them at nearly 40 mph I recognized them at the last moment. Luckily they got back in their car and drove further down the mountain. On a long straightaway I noticed Pam once again on he side of the road. This time I was able to slow and stop. We shared hugs and had a nice conversation. While talking with them the Trek Travel van came by so I told them to follow the van as we were heading to lunch. We reconvened at a local restaurant in a few miles.

After lunch we still had 3 miles to the Hampton Inn which I arrived at 2:30. Time to relax, wash clothes, work on the blog and watch some football. On Saturdays I wear my Ga Tech cycling jersey; they won again this week beating Clemson 21-17.

For dinner we opted to go to Granny's Kitchen for a buffet of home cooking based on the recommendation of the hostess at the Hampton Inn; we were scheduled for another pizza dinner. Good decision! Besides the usual salad bar and selection of veggies, the buffet included chicken noodle soup, fried chicken and hand carved beef tenderloin, all of which found my plate. Pumpkin pie for dessert as the waitress claimed everything was made on site. All was delicious, even the fried chicken! It's been a long time since I've eaten fried chicken.

We left the hotel for dinner at 6:00 pm and the temp was in the high 40's. Tomorrow morning will chill the bones as the temperature at sunrise, 7:44 am will barely break freezing - 33 degrees! I will put more layers on tomorrow that I used today to stay warm.

One bummer today, the cold weather caused my SRM not to function properly by missing my power output nearly all morning. I sure would like to have known what kind of watts I generated going up those climbs. The entire ride took me 4:03:23 over 55.7 miles for a 13.7 mph average.