We took a much needed RR trip looking for some good riding options within an hour or two of the Dragon. If you are concerned about the LEOs on the Tennessee side of the line we suggest that you come to the Dragon, make a couple of passes at low speeds and then head for North Carolina where the speed limits are reasonable and the LEOs much more tolerant. Be warned, you can still get ticketed in North Carolina if you twist it up too much.
We found mostly 55 mph speed limits on the North Carolina back roads, plenty fast enough to have some fun on these mountain roads. Crossing into Tennessee we were greeted almost instantly with the ridiculous 30 or 35 mph zones. Guess this allows for ticketing just about anyone they want. After a short run over the border we dodged back to the much more comfortable North Carolina side and found 55 right away.
HOT SPRINGS TOWN
This is a Bohemian town with many hikers, rafters, mountain bikers, motorcyclists and common tourists. The town was very eclectic. We didn’t have time to explore as we were having too good of a time relaxing. There were a couple of restaurants with decks over the river (Bridge Street Café and Inn) and curbside dining (Paddlers Pub). We were told the best place to have breakfast was the Smoky Mountain Diner, but it is hard to beat our camp breakfasts. And our Bubba Burgers by the camp fire are sooooo good.
MONDAY - DAY ONE
We packed-up the Fun Mover with our trusty KLR 650s and headed east. At Waynesville we turned northward onto NC 209 and enjoyed the rural views and sweeping corners all the way to Ferguson’s Crossroads. Here NC 209 takes a sharp right and in a few miles really tightens as it skirts Hebb Mountain. The sweepers return through Luck and Trust before tightening one again at Bluff. Some of the curves were tight enough to make even me get a little nervous in the 35 foot RV.
We passed through Hot Springs, a tourist destination  dating back into the early 1800s, and found the Hot Springs Resort, Spa, and Campground. Pulling into the RV park we saw it was nearly empty, just the way we like it. The campground offers primarily tent camping for the Appalachian Trail hikers, but also has camp cabins, some two dozen 30 amp RV sites $30 a night) and six 50 amp pull-through sites ($35 a night). The pull-throughs have the most room.
The campground, located directly on the French Broad River, is heavily wooded with huge oak trees providing plenty of shade. Just across the street is the Hot Springs Spa and downtown Hot Springs is just a quarter of a mile to the south.
After making a reservation for a hot tub later in the evening we headed right out hoping to beat the late afternoon thunderstorms which were in the forecast. We had planned a route that I had wanted to try for several years. It more or less follows the Tennessee/North Carolina state lines for some 20 miles and looks on the map to be rather remote.
From Hot Springs we headed west on US 25/70 and crossed into Tennessee passing the Bobarosa Saloon. This “biker paradise” according to their website offers camping, restaurant, bar, fire pit, and lots of bikers on the weekends. It is not exactly our style of getaway, but many might like it better than the laidback atmosphere of Hot Springs. http://www.bobarosasaloon.com
We turned to the south at Del Rio onto TN 107. We had six miles of decent pavement before taking a left onto the gravel mountain road designated Round Mountain Road. After some seven miles of well maintained gravel with hit the North Carolina state line and the skies began to drizzle. For the next four miles NC1182 (Max Patch Road) borders the state line and passes the Round Mountain Campground in the Rattlesnake Branch Recreation Area (3100 feet elevation). We took a quick spin around this extremely remote campground and saw only one brave soul tent camping.
Continuing south on Max Patch Road the storm hit. We were dodging torrents of water washing down the gravel roadway as lightning bolts were flashing every few seconds. The corners were especially tricky and visibility through the helmet wind screen was none too good. We passed Max Patch Mountain at 4300 feet and quickly recalculated our route. We turned left onto Little Creek Road (NC1181) taking it easy on another three and a half miles of gravel before finding pavement at Meadow Fork Road. We love gravel, but this downpour made it an attention draining chore.
On the pavement heading home there was trash all over the roadway. We dodged limbs and fallen trees in several places and gravel washouts from intersecting driveways were an added hazard.
There was quite a bit of fallen limbs at the campground too. Thankfully we had remembered to put our awning up. We lost one out in the Nevada desert when a small dirt devil took aim at us. We surely would have lost one again in the winds that brought down the large tree limbs.
We popped a few brewskies, got a camp fire going and grilled some BubbaBurgers before heading across the street to our 9:00 pm hot tub mineral soak. Evening rates are $30-50 and hour depending on the number of guests and the particular tub. Tubs 5 and 6 are deluxe units and have the most privacy ($40 for two of us). The spring fed spas kept at 104 degrees are located in a wooded area abutting Spring Creek.
The Hot Springs Resort offers a wide range of accommodations from camping to suites with heart shaped tubs filled with hot mineral water ($145-200 a night). The natural springs have been a tourist attraction since the early 1800s. http://www.nchotsprings.com
TOTAL MILES: 48
ROADS: Paved and well maintained gravel
REMOTENESS: 9 on a scale of 10
COMMENTS: Only for dualsports. Gravel roads were well maintained but did have some steep sections with switchbacks. Average or better riders should have no problem.
HIGHLIGHTS: Remote back roads, weather testing our riding skills.
DAY TWO
DAY THREE
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