Blue Ridge Parkway Tour Part II

Every morning just a few miles into riding, Darwin would ask me how I was feeling. I’m not sure why he did this because I would give him a full list of my pains and discomforts. This list basically stayed the same however the order would change. I would end this list with a question of how many miles we would be riding that particular day and a request that Darwin lie to me regardless and never tell me how many miles we had already ridden or had left to go. After this morning routine of complaining, I would then tell both Darwin, and myself I just needed to make it to our friend Roub’s house in Roanoke, VA and then I could quit.

I watched as the numbers next to Roanoke on road signs got smaller and tried to make sure I stopped and enjoyed the views, cabins, and other interesting stops along the way. We rode past Mt. Mitchell one day with not even a thought to ride the extra five miles to the top, passed by some pretty waterfalls and I was shocked to have their cold water splashed in my face as I rode over the streams they left flowing over the road. Another morning we stopped to take in some history at a Mineral Museum, got disappointed by arriving at a closed Apple Orchard and then to got turned away at Little Switzerland Inn when we tried to eat second breakfast. We were thankful to finally find Christa’s Country Corner later in the day where I ate a large amount of food and then seriously considered asking if I could just sleep there on their hardwood floor; a weird fantasy of mine that would continue for the rest of our tour.

We rode in rain and fog, enjoyed the sun when it was out but also appreciated the coolness of an overcast day. We missed the Linn Cove Viaduct, one of the most iconic parts of the parkway due to thick fog and dropping temperatures. We rode right over it and couldn’t tell you anything about it. Our toes and fingers had gone numb and we were soaked thanks to a previous downpour. It was this day I screamed out to the parkway, “I hate you!” “I hate this!” as I climbed another steep mountain dripping and soggy with rain, before giving up completely and just pushing my bike onward.

We found a sanctuary that day in Moses Cone Memorial Park where I was comforted by history and the warmth spurting from old furnace vents. Everyone else inside was warm and dry, polished and primed for a day on the parkway regardless of the weather as they traveled by car. Although they looked at both Darwin and me in our saturated and unkempt state, no one dared to question us. We were both at such a raw, inhuman state at the time, I doubt they had the nerve. When we returned to our human forms, we somehow managed the courage to head back out for a few more miles into Blowing Rock, NC. Where our efforts were rewarded at Camp Coffee. It was here that I started planning a way out, I felt I was holding Darwin back, and I wasn’t adjusting to the ride.

Part III Of The BRP Bike Tour Will Be Posted Next Week!