Blue Ridge Parkway / Skyline drive

[GreyGoose]

I just returned from my annual Blue Ridge Parkway / Skyline drive ride and thought i better share a couple of Lessons learned:

The plan was to spend the night in asheville, pick up a short 1 hour piece of the blue ridge, then ride "the snake" (mapped out in rider magazine june 2008 edition....Ping me if you want the routes). then continue up the blue ridge to skyline drive. If your planning on doing any blue ridge parkway rides around the asheville area (heading north), note that the blue ridge parkway is closed from Milepost 367.6 to 355.3. This is the most scenic part of the blueridge. A rockslide and roadway failure has closed the Blue Ridge Parkway to all activities including foot traffic and bicycling between the entrance to Craggy Gardens Picnic Area and the entrance to Mount Mitchell State Park. This road closure will remain in effect until late spring 2009. There is no convenient detour around it and they didnt do a good job of letting you know when your last exit point would be. There were alot of us up there doing U turns. We were coming out of asheville on RT. 694, then going north on the blue ridge. about 1/2 hour later, your outta road!!!. Had to backtrack and follow the detours. I recommend taking 40 east to 321 north. Jump on rt. 268 (great ride!!) towards wilksboro. at wilksboro, take 16 north to the parkway. Also note: 35% of Skyline drive also is under construction but can be ridden hassle free on the weekends.

GreyGoose

 

[willobandb]

I just returned from my annual Blue Ridge Parkway / Skyline drive ride and thought i better share a couple of Lessons learned:
The plan was to spend the night in asheville, pick up a short 1 hour piece of the blue ridge, then ride "the snake" (mapped out in rider magazine june 2008 edition....Ping me if you want the routes). then continue up the blue ridge to skyline drive. If your planning on doing any blue ridge parkway rides around the asheville area (heading north), note that the blue ridge parkway is closed from Milepost 367.6 to 355.3. This is the most scenic part of the blueridge. A rockslide and roadway failure has closed the Blue Ridge Parkway to all activities including foot traffic and bicycling between the entrance to Craggy Gardens Picnic Area and the entrance to Mount Mitchell State Park. This road closure will remain in effect until late spring 2009. There is no convenient detour around it and they didnt do a good job of letting you know when your last exit point would be. There were alot of us up there doing U turns. We were coming out of asheville on RT. 694, then going north on the blue ridge. about 1/2 hour later, your outta road!!!. Had to backtrack and follow the detours. I recommend taking 40 east to 321 north. Jump on rt. 268 (great ride!!) towards wilksboro. at wilksboro, take 16 north to the parkway. Also note: 35% of Skyline drive also is under construction but can be ridden hassle free on the weekends.

GreyGoose

Just to add to the comments from GreyGoose:

I did parts of the same route in mid-May from South to North. Here is a Google Maps link which supports staying on the Blue Ridge Parkway as long as possible without having to backtrack. This route section starts from Pisgah Inn south of Asheville to Tunnel Rd in Asheville. From Tunnel Rd get on I-40 East and take it to Old Fort, NC. Then take US70 East to NC80 near Marion, NC and head back up to the Blue Ridge Parkway on NC80. NC80 is a nice road in and of itself as it climbs to its junction with the Blue Ridge Parkway. Hope this helps.

https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&hl=en&....221985&z=9

Bob

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

I just returned from my annual Blue Ridge Parkway / Skyline drive ride and thought i better share a couple of Lessons learned:
The plan was to spend the night in asheville, pick up a short 1 hour piece of the blue ridge, then ride "the snake" (mapped out in rider magazine june 2008 edition....Ping me if you want the routes). then continue up the blue ridge to skyline drive. If your planning on doing any blue ridge parkway rides around the asheville area (heading north), note that the blue ridge parkway is closed from Milepost 367.6 to 355.3. This is the most scenic part of the blueridge. A rockslide and roadway failure has closed the Blue Ridge Parkway to all activities including foot traffic and bicycling between the entrance to Craggy Gardens Picnic Area and the entrance to Mount Mitchell State Park. This road closure will remain in effect until late spring 2009. There is no convenient detour around it and they didnt do a good job of letting you know when your last exit point would be. There were alot of us up there doing U turns. We were coming out of asheville on RT. 694, then going north on the blue ridge. about 1/2 hour later, your outta road!!!. Had to backtrack and follow the detours. I recommend taking 40 east to 321 north. Jump on rt. 268 (great ride!!) towards wilksboro. at wilksboro, take 16 north to the parkway. Also note: 35% of Skyline drive also is under construction but can be ridden hassle free on the weekends.

GreyGoose

Many thanks for the heads up!