We all met at Shoneys for breakfast Friday morning in Dover Ohio. Randy and Brenda beat me there, followed behind me closely by Steve and Laurie, then comes Alan and Kim. Normally you don't beat Alan to a meet up. It was nice to have a reason to pick on him, not that we need a reason.
We gear up and saddle up and head down I77 south. On the ride south I see a couple birds up on the power poles wings stretched out wide to get a little warmth in them. We stop for gas at the river and a much needed pit stop. Once into West Virginia we go East on 7 to pick up 16 South.
Here is a picture of a power plant on the West Virginia side of the Ohio River.
Here are some pictures of the bridge we are going to cross over into West Virginia.
If you have never ridden 16 then it is well worth it! Besides beautiful scenery it has some great twists to it! It is one of the best ways to travel West Virginia in my opinion!
We are riding 16 down to Gauley Bridge West Virginia where the really scenic part of the journey begins. 16 has some spot where the road needs repair and it has some spots that are new pavement. Overall its a great ride!
Some sites along the path of 16.
Here we all are taking a break and peeling off some layers because it is getting hot, but yet beautiful.
While here we found out we had 2 accidents sort of. One Brenda dropped her camera and Steve lost his gas cap off his Slingshot, but we didn't realize it yet. Not until the next gas stop did we realize it. Well that is 2 things hope there isn't a third like normal!
After an uneventful ride we find ourselves in Gauley Bridge at the Kanahwa Falls. This used to be a power generation site, but is no more. We saw a few people on their kayaks getting into the water having fun. A bit too cold in my opinion, but lots say that about me on the bike.
Here are some shots of the power station and falls.
After the falls now its onto Cathedral Falls, another must stop when you're in the area. Not much water coming off of it this time of year. Still a beautiful stop!
Now onto the fun stuff. We take off on 60 east to Hawks Nest State Park. I love this stretch of road. The twist and turns going up the mountain is a ton of fun!!
After this stop we head to Summersville Dam. We are starting to cut the remaining day light close. We head to the bottom of the dam, a place I have never stopped before. Read the sign there telling a little history of the Dam.
I guess it is custom to name a Dam for the nearest town. Summersville is not the nearest town. The town of Gad is the nearest. I guess they decided the Gad Dam just didn't sound right. So they named it after Summersville. Too bad I think. lol Here are some shots from the Summersville Dam and surrounding lake.
After this we headed back to check in to our hotels and do dinner. Where I might add someone, names are confidential, but not me, had Alan surprised for his birthday while at Applebee's.
Day 2 starts out sunny but cold! The temperature on the bike said 34 degrees when I turned it on. Brr! Then when I started the bike you could really tell! The engine turned over slower than I have ever heard it and the voltage go down to almost 10 before she fired up. I let her sit and idle a good 10 minutes before I headed across the street to the gas station and our meet up spot. Once the oil was good and hot she started like normal the rest of the day.
We headed out 39 east to 150 north for some great scenic roads and sites! I love this stretch of road!! You'll see why below. Its called the Highland Scenic Highway.
Once we get to the highest spot on 150 its is down right cold and very windy which makes it seem worse. Here see!
More shots along 150.
Once we came down off the mountain it warmed up into the 40's fast and that seemed like a heat wave!
We come off 150 and onto 219 to head towards Marlinton and lunch. A great place I have been to before! Greenbrier Grill and Lodge. If you're ever in the area stop by you won't regret it!!
As we turn onto 219 there is a great stretch of road with some great twists to it! We are going through the corners and having a great time! I am a little rusty and can see it. My braking and throttle isn't what is normally is, but I am still having a blast!
Then coming out of one turn the back tire feels almost flat. I get a bit confused as to why and then go into the next corner. Coming out of that corner I try to accelerate some and feel the bike out and it will hardly accelerate! That is when I realize the back brake is hung! I quickly pull off the road and start checking the bike out.
Long story short I got it to free up after taking a pad out. Kudos to the Victory engineers for being able to do that with only an 8mm wrench! I am guess a small rock or something got up in there and wouldn't allow the caliper to release. Once I got it to break free and reassembled I was good the rest of the weekend.
While at lunch I was saying well this is the third thing that happened now lets hope its the last!
After lunch we back tracked a little bit to an outfitters so Steve could buy some better gloves. Well this just happens to be next to Dairy Queen. Yep you guessed it! While they were shopping I went to DQ for a mini Blizzard! Might be cold out, but never too cold for ice cream!!
Now onto the Bluestone Dam a place that I haven't been to. Below are some pictures of the Dam and surrounding area including some fans!
Our Fans. lol
After this we are heading out to Grandview State Park another first for me! The trip was pretty uneventful other than Alan thought he made a wrong turn, but no our fearless leader was spot on with his directions. It was just the road labeling that was confusing.
Some shots from the park! As with Hawks Nest there are train tracks at the bottom and we saw a freight and passenger train coming through while we were there.
After here we start our trek back towards the hotels because daylight is fading. We do, however, have time to stop by Babcock State Park. This is another favorite stop of mine.
Here is a quick shot of the Grist Mill.
Day 3 is here and it's even colder! I come out to the bike to start loading it up and there is a thick layer of frost on the windshield, seat, and back arm rests! I scrape the first layer of frost off and go back into the hotel. I come out an hour later to get her fired up and there is another layer to scrape!
When I turn the bike on its temperature gage reads 28 degrees! She starts though!! I must admit I was a bit worried. A battery that is almost 4 years old and 49K miles on it.
After our morning meet up we head down to the bottom of the New River Gorge. This is a place that never gets old! I love coming down here! Here's why...
Then on our way out is this fall that I hadn't noticed before.
Now on to the not so fun part. The trek home. We take 60 back to I77 and buzz home. We stop in Marietta for lunch and an final good bye. We split up here and head our separate ways to home.
This was a great trip with great people!!! Can't wait to do this again!!
Great ride report! We will have to do that one again in the summer. Great pics as usual! Alan
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