Hi Everyone,
Having just finished storing my car, I've begun to look ahead to next year. I'm "testing the waters" on this to see if there is any interest in driving down to North Carolina either this coming spring or next autumn to check out the Blue Ridge Parkway and the "Tail of the Dragon". The Chicago metro area has a lot of things going for it, but interesting driving roads is not one of them. The Blue Ridge Parkway, the southern terminus of which begins near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is one of the most scenic drives in the eastern United States if not the whole country, and would be well worth the drive down there. It essentially parallels the Appalachian Trail, the famous footpath extending from Georgia to Maine, and while the road is two lane and has a low speed limit, it compensates by offering countless curves and views galore. We will also be near the well known "Tail of the Dragon", the endlessly curving road which attracts drivers of sports cars as well as motorcycles from all over. If you're into carving the curves and testing your driving abilities as well as seeing what your car can really do, this road is for you. It's essentially a day's drive down and back, so we're probably talking 3-4, perhaps 5 days maximum. As far as timing, springtime would offer the possibility of seeing many of the hills abloom with azaleas, rhododendron, or dogwood, and fall would offer the chance to see the turning of the maples, sweetgum, and other trees. I'm flexible as to dates.
I realize that it's significant amount of milage, but personally I've become tired of just looking at my car and not really driving it anywhere. The BRP itself is over 400 miles long, extending from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park up to the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. I don't envision driving the length of the entire BRP, but rather spending as much time on it as possible while allowing everyone the opportunity to enjoy the "Tail of the Dragon" and any of the other sights in the area (the National Park, Asheville, etc.). I've been to the Smokies and BRP before, and they're both nice. The only problem was that I wasn't driving an NSX at the time! Anyway, if this appeals to you, post here or drop me a pm should you prefer. I'm in the earliest phases of planning this. Should a bunch of guys want to go, great! If nobody goes, then you'll have to suffer through me telling all of you what a great time my solo trip was!
Having just finished storing my car, I've begun to look ahead to next year. I'm "testing the waters" on this to see if there is any interest in driving down to North Carolina either this coming spring or next autumn to check out the Blue Ridge Parkway and the "Tail of the Dragon". The Chicago metro area has a lot of things going for it, but interesting driving roads is not one of them. The Blue Ridge Parkway, the southern terminus of which begins near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is one of the most scenic drives in the eastern United States if not the whole country, and would be well worth the drive down there. It essentially parallels the Appalachian Trail, the famous footpath extending from Georgia to Maine, and while the road is two lane and has a low speed limit, it compensates by offering countless curves and views galore. We will also be near the well known "Tail of the Dragon", the endlessly curving road which attracts drivers of sports cars as well as motorcycles from all over. If you're into carving the curves and testing your driving abilities as well as seeing what your car can really do, this road is for you. It's essentially a day's drive down and back, so we're probably talking 3-4, perhaps 5 days maximum. As far as timing, springtime would offer the possibility of seeing many of the hills abloom with azaleas, rhododendron, or dogwood, and fall would offer the chance to see the turning of the maples, sweetgum, and other trees. I'm flexible as to dates.
I realize that it's significant amount of milage, but personally I've become tired of just looking at my car and not really driving it anywhere. The BRP itself is over 400 miles long, extending from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park up to the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. I don't envision driving the length of the entire BRP, but rather spending as much time on it as possible while allowing everyone the opportunity to enjoy the "Tail of the Dragon" and any of the other sights in the area (the National Park, Asheville, etc.). I've been to the Smokies and BRP before, and they're both nice. The only problem was that I wasn't driving an NSX at the time! Anyway, if this appeals to you, post here or drop me a pm should you prefer. I'm in the earliest phases of planning this. Should a bunch of guys want to go, great! If nobody goes, then you'll have to suffer through me telling all of you what a great time my solo trip was!
