Hundreds of miles of twisty roads on a low-powered 500cc motorcycle means lots of shifting. I'm wearing out the toe on my left boot. But I'm having a hell of a good time. Today was another 300 miler, with at least 200 of those miles on great two-lane twisties. Carolyn followed me when she could, but when it got real tight or there were cars to pass the car was at a disadvantage.
We went through the heart of Appalachia and the coal mining area of West Virginia. Things are not looking too good there........lots of abandoned mines and equipment along with houses and businesses. I searched for a place for us to get lunch from 11:45 until 1:30 and could not find a restaurant, even though we passed through numerous small towns. But the countryside is pretty and the roads are to die for. What does seem to be thriving is the off-road recreation vehicle use. We saw tons of UTV side-by-sides and quads and even some off road motorcycles on the roads and in the towns. I talked to one guy who said he comes down from Ohio to ride the trails and they are marked for difficulty in three levels.
The days haven't been without some difficulties. The weather is unseasonably warm with highs in the upper 80's. I brought my vented mesh jacket, but left the pants at home, so I am wearing jeans. At least it isn't raining, which would be worse and rain was predicted for several of the days, but now is not in the forecast. My Garmin gps continues to send me off into the hinterlands periodically, buy I always manage to find my way eventually, and it is a great help in riding a pre-planned route.
Mark and Jon both reported getting home safe and Jon got the rental bike returned in time. It was great having them along for the day and the evening of conversation, even if it was a little too heavy on motorcycles for Carolyn's taste.
Tomorrow Carolyn takes a day to rest and catch up with some computer chores and maybe visit a local Civil War site and park.
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