Florida panhandle to eastern WV - stuff to see/do?

[Falconx84]

I'm planning a fly/ride in mid April. My gf and I are purchasing a V-Strom 1k and riding it from Panama City, Florida to Martinsburg, WV. I only have 4 days off work to sight see and do touristy things. We both work sales and don't get a lot of time together and this is the first time we'll be doing any type of 2-up touring.

Basically, I'm looking for a "must see" mix of routes, tourist traps, museums, and photo ops to help make this trip as full and memorable as possible. I'm not familiar with the roads/areas we'll be traveling, so any/all suggestions will be considered, and please mention them, no matter how obvious they may seem.

Thanks in advance for making this a trip to remember!

-Dave

[4PawsHacienda]

Up through GA, ride the dragon, pick up the Blue Ridge Pkwy into VA and enjoy some leisurely riding and sightseeing. Get off the BRP and head for home when you run low on time.

Asheville NC - good tourist spot to spend some time with the gf, good micro brewery scene, Biltmore House ($$).
Chateau Morrisette Winery - pretty spot ($$$), around milepost 171 on BRP. good area to wander around, Ground Hog Mtn, Mabry Mill, all touristy. Numerous places to spend a night in that area (Woodberry Inn is reasonable and good southern food), small mountain towns, scenic and photogenic region. Lots of wineries to visit, with sampling rooms. Every crossroads goes somewhere. Nice ride through NC and VA.
I

[Falconx84]

thanks for the suggestions, I'll have to see if my route goes near there.


Is this in the wrong section? I mean, I know its been moved, but I'm rather surprised there's no more replies.

[ride4321]

I'm doing some of that stretch in late April. I've heard Rt 16 in WV is great, maybe you can verify that for me. Obviously you need to hit the Gap area. I'm planning on riding through the Georgia mountains also.
Too bad you can't take a bit longer but 4 days should be plenty I would think.

[WAH III]

Barber Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham
Chattanooga
Ride the Dragon
hwy 28
Highlands/Cashiers area (waterfalls)
Sidewalk cafes in downtown Asheville
BRP
Lunch and walking tour at The Greenbriar in White Sulphur Springs WV
hwy 92 to 39 east to Warm Springs
Lexington VA (Civil War, Robert E. Lee history)
Skyline Drive
Congrats on the new purchase, ride safe, enjoy. Post some pics of what you saw.

[pnoman]

See if this helps any:

www.RidingWV.com

I just started this last year and it is slowly growing - some sections are still empty. Feel free to submit any photos and/or ride reports after your trip.

Have a safe and fun ride.

[Falconx84]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm going to skip breweries and wineries. I've got a lot of miles to cover and stuff I want to check out in a relatively short amount of time. I don't drink and ride, and doubt I will be able to stay overnight in that area.

I've got plans to hit the Gap later this summer. Not sure if my gf will be up to that level of road just yet.

Skyline is pretty much in my back yard. Its a day trip from where I'm at. I'll probably take the boring way through VA (I-81) rather than the more fun/scenic route through either central VA or WV. I've toured a lot of VA by car and I did a tour through WV 2 years ago.

I like the suggestion of the barber motorcycle museum, I've added that to the list. I've also had 2 other suggestions of Stone Mountain GA and Elberton GA (Georgia Guidestone). I'll also stop by Asheville, NC since I've had about 10 people recommend that between 3 different forums.

I'll try and post a route later on today if I can get google maps to cooperate.

EDIT-- Prelininary route map

Edit # 2 - New map
Thanks,
Dave

[JDowns]

Highly recommend the air and space museum at the naval air base in Pensacola. Not far west of Panama City. Home of the blue angels. Who doesn't like fast bikes and fast planes?

http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/

If you like flight museums it's a do not miss. Plus its on your way to Barber museum in Alabama.

Kindest regards,
John Downs

[kitesurfer]

AN hour west of Asheville is the nantahala gorge. the Nantahal river runs for 7 miles along the bottom. if you have no whitewater experience but love water and the outdoors, this is a must do. a 2 up ducky for $50... less than an hour off the blue ridge parkway.

[Falconx84]

Originally Posted by kitesurfer

AN hour west of Asheville is the nantahala gorge. the Nantahal river runs for 7 miles along the bottom. if you have no whitewater experience but love water and the outdoors, this is a must do. a 2 up ducky for $50... less than an hour off the blue ridge parkway.

I've got limited whitewater experience... I rafted the New River in central WV this past August. I'd love to check out some other areas. I'll probably keep this in mind for a future trip. Thanks for the suggestion

[Falconx84]

Originally Posted by JDowns

Highly recommend the air and space museum at the naval air base in Pensacola. Not far west of Panama City. Home of the blue angels. Who doesn't like fast bikes and fast planes?

http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/

If you like flight museums it's a do not miss. Plus its on your way to Barber museum in Alabama.

Kindest regards,
John Downs

Thanks for the suggestion. I'd love to check that out too, but it puts me a bit out of the way. I'm already at about 20 hours of travel time in 3.5 (maybe 4.5) days. Not sure how well the GF would like for me to add $100 miles to the trip. I've been to the AF museum, that was really cool. I'd like to see the Navy side of it too. I'm going to run the suggestion by her, but I don't think it'll "fly" since she knows I love getting lost in museums. If I could make this trip into a week or 2 it would be on my short list

New map


New New map -- Cuts out some interstate between GA/Asheville NC