04-07-2010 Wandering Western Virginia

Momaru · April 8th, 2010, 04:46 PM

Due to the need for 36-48hrs of continuous good weather for my experiments at work and practically guaranteed thunder/rainstorm on 4/8, I had the 7th off and decided to ride the day away in central-western VA.

Turned out to be a phenomenal day out. Saw a lot of neat houses, wish I'd broken out the camera a little earlier than I did.

This guy's neighbor probably lost a third the property value when that red/brown place went up....

Started on some familiar back roads, one of which took me by Dragon's Tooth, an excellent local hike (2.3mi one way, ~1,500ft elevation change) I took my Dad to when he visited last month. Realized I could see the summit from the road and snapped a pic. Zoom's not great on my little Sony DSC-T100 but it's there, I even circled it.

Further on just SW of New Castle, VA is a section of SR42 that I hit everytime I'm nearby. It's short, but intense. No pics because I was too busy enjoying the curves.

Keep reminding myself to set up a camera/video mount and not getting around to it.

Discovered a little later that same road, SR311 as one of my new favorite roads: twisty, quick, scenic and not terribly busy. Had to remind myself a couple times I don't have knee pucks, so putting a knee down would be a bad idea.

Had a bit of a morbid laugh at the historic marker when 311 crossed into WV. Ah lazy hunters, what would this nation be like without you?

Just before hopping on I-64 for a short stretch to the next fun spot, I saw this bridge off to the side of SR159 and had to stop

Post I-64 I stopped in Clifton Forge, a good friend's hometown for a Brownie Earthquake from the local Dairy Queen. Several hundred calories and 15min of very very confusing in-town navigation later (no GPS yet, on the 'to get' list) I found the next road I was looking for, SR606. Wished I'd packed my fishing gear for the Nth time when I noticed this little stream.

The road itself turned out to be a poorly-maintained gravelly mess, but was offset by another great view and a neat pagoda-style home at the top, neither of which afforded me an opportunity for a good shot. On the way back down past the switchback series (every turn was gouged from carswith not enough clearance for the slope) I found this

Wrapped up the day with a run through the Blue Ridge Parkway around Roanoke.

Noticed Purgatory mountain (far left) had a fire going, never did figure out what was going on.

Made the dubious decision to do some more in-motion shots too. Results weren't great, of which this was the best (pardon the looming finger)

At the top of the Roanoke scenic loop off the BRP I snagged a shot of my goofy self in my new gear. What you don't see is the other, mirrored face shield for the helmet that was coated in bugs so thick I switched it out for the clear.

Here's the smarter two of the turkey trio that might've ended my day if I'd been going a bit faster.

A solid sunset finished the day on a high note

Just after sunset a trucker blinked his lights at me. Thought he was telling me 'cops ahead, slow down' which was weird as I was toeing the speed limit behind a pickup at the time. Realized a few minutes later my low beam had burned out sometime during the day and I was without a headlight. Highbeamed the Tacoma I was behind for the last 15miles of the trip. [If you're out there, sorry dude. I chose to use the 'wrong light' instead of 'no light' (or pulling over and trying to switch them in the dark)].

Didn't have any real near-misses all day (asphalt, people, cars, animals or cops), found some roads I will definitely be going back to, spent less than $20 on an all-day ride (food and gas) and had one helluva Hump-day. Missed riding with ya'll Kim & Nick.

Snake · April 8th, 2010, 04:58 PM

Great pics. That is some great scenery!

noche_caliente · April 8th, 2010, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Momaru

Missed riding with ya'll Kim & Nick.

Looks like a great day - but it's not very nice to rub it in to the pregnant woman who has to work 1-7 now

Momaru · April 8th, 2010, 05:35 PM

*cough* yeah, sorry 'bout that... I know the riding bug's got you bad by now. At least you won't miss the whole riding season due to your young'n in the oven.
And it's not my fault the roof fell in at your workplace

CC Cowboy · April 8th, 2010, 05:36 PM

Dude, you are not allowed to show other motorcycle roads other than the Blue Ridge, Deal's and that smoggy Cali stuff. West Virginia is closed to everyone who doesn't know about it. It is our own little secret!

Momaru · April 8th, 2010, 05:41 PM

Then consider the secret kept... other than you letting it out of the bag just now

Every pic was taken in VA, save the historical marker which I don't think will inspire people to visit for fear of a stray skeletal rib-bone puncturing their tires.
If that's not enough to discourage a visitor to WV, maybe the fact that the small part of the route that was in WV was so coated in gravel (paved road) that I was taking every turn at less than the 'recommended' speed (15-20mph for most) will. Made me actually miss VDOT for the first time in 5 years.

Alex · April 8th, 2010, 09:21 PM

gogoKawi · April 8th, 2010, 10:22 PM

I LOVE West Virginia. I got my ZX6 there, and I was absolutely astonished by the scenery, roads, and nice people. The twisties are fantastic, as long as there isn't any gravel on the roads (which seems to be the case right now for some reason). In the next couple of weeks, I plan on taking a similar excursion in the northern section of WV. I hope to make my way to central WV before summer gets in full swing.

GREAT PICS! Glad the trip turned out to be safe and fun.

ninja250 · April 9th, 2010, 02:34 AM

Awesome pics and ride report.
Have not had the pleasure of exploring that part of the country yet. Once drove a CRX home from Kentucky though. lol
Thanks for the 3am adventure.

I could definitely see hitting up that creek for a feesh. Great little area for a shorty 3wt.

pedaltothemetal · April 12th, 2010, 03:39 PM

How beautiful!
Definitely a great route to just sit up and pretend you are on
a 50cc scooter!

Momaru · April 12th, 2010, 04:22 PM

Yeah, I usually made 4-5 passes through the twisty sections. First couple slow & steady learning the route and enjoying the scenery. Successive ones enjoying the curves @ speed. Not sure I'd want to ride a scooter for a consecutive 235mi+ though.

adri99an · April 12th, 2010, 07:53 PM

Excellent ride report......nice pics and you definately need a camera mount on your ride...

LazinCajun · April 12th, 2010, 10:45 PM

This looks great, thanks for sharing!

BlueTyke · April 13th, 2010, 04:21 PM

Your so lucky!!!!! I want to go!

cnichols79us · April 14th, 2010, 05:05 PM

Awesome.... NO ONE here is Jealous....

CZroe · April 21st, 2010, 08:58 PM

First place I ever rode my '08 250 before riding it home the next day. Beautiful roads but pretty scarry when you've never ridden the streets on amotorcycle before! The MSF prepared me well enough though.

April 8th, 2010, 04:46 PM	#1
Momaru ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Paul Location: Roanoke, VA Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Candy Plasma Blue 250R Posts: A lot.	04-07-2010 Wandering Western Virginia Due to the need for 36-48hrs of continuous good weather for my experiments at work and practically guaranteed thunder/rainstorm on 4/8, I had the 7th off and decided to ride the day away in central-western VA. Turned out to be a phenomenal day out. Saw a lot of neat houses, wish I'd broken out the camera a little earlier than I did. This guy's neighbor probably lost a third the property value when that red/brown place went up.... Started on some familiar back roads, one of which took me by Dragon's Tooth, an excellent local hike (2.3mi one way, ~1,500ft elevation change) I took my Dad to when he visited last month. Realized I could see the summit from the road and snapped a pic. Zoom's not great on my little Sony DSC-T100 but it's there, I even circled it. Further on just SW of New Castle, VA is a section of SR42 that I hit everytime I'm nearby. It's short, but intense. No pics because I was too busy enjoying the curves. Keep reminding myself to set up a camera/video mount and not getting around to it. Discovered a little later that same road, SR311 as one of my new favorite roads: twisty, quick, scenic and not terribly busy. Had to remind myself a couple times I don't have knee pucks, so putting a knee down would be a bad idea. Had a bit of a morbid laugh at the historic marker when 311 crossed into WV. Ah lazy hunters, what would this nation be like without you? Just before hopping on I-64 for a short stretch to the next fun spot, I saw this bridge off to the side of SR159 and had to stop Post I-64 I stopped in Clifton Forge, a good friend's hometown for a Brownie Earthquake from the local Dairy Queen. Several hundred calories and 15min of very very confusing in-town navigation later (no GPS yet, on the 'to get' list) I found the next road I was looking for, SR606. Wished I'd packed my fishing gear for the Nth time when I noticed this little stream. The road itself turned out to be a poorly-maintained gravelly mess, but was offset by another great view and a neat pagoda-style home at the top, neither of which afforded me an opportunity for a good shot. On the way back down past the switchback series (every turn was gouged from carswith not enough clearance for the slope) I found this Wrapped up the day with a run through the Blue Ridge Parkway around Roanoke. Noticed Purgatory mountain (far left) had a fire going, never did figure out what was going on. Made the dubious decision to do some more in-motion shots too. Results weren't great, of which this was the best (pardon the looming finger) At the top of the Roanoke scenic loop off the BRP I snagged a shot of my goofy self in my new gear. What you don't see is the other, mirrored face shield for the helmet that was coated in bugs so thick I switched it out for the clear. Here's the smarter two of the turkey trio that might've ended my day if I'd been going a bit faster. A solid sunset finished the day on a high note Just after sunset a trucker blinked his lights at me. Thought he was telling me 'cops ahead, slow down' which was weird as I was toeing the speed limit behind a pickup at the time. Realized a few minutes later my low beam had burned out sometime during the day and I was without a headlight. Highbeamed the Tacoma I was behind for the last 15miles of the trip. [If you're out there, sorry dude. I chose to use the 'wrong light' instead of 'no light' (or pulling over and trying to switch them in the dark)]. Didn't have any real near-misses all day (asphalt, people, cars, animals or cops), found some roads I will definitely be going back to, spent less than $20 on an all-day ride (food and gas) and had one helluva Hump-day. Missed riding with ya'll Kim & Nick. __________________________________________________ Proud member of the Blue Army

April 8th, 2010, 05:35 PM	#4
Momaru ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Paul Location: Roanoke, VA Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Candy Plasma Blue 250R Posts: A lot.	cough yeah, sorry 'bout that... I know the riding bug's got you bad by now. At least you won't miss the whole riding season due to your young'n in the oven. And it's not my fault the roof fell in at your workplace __________________________________________________ Proud member of the Blue Army

April 8th, 2010, 05:36 PM	#5
CC Cowboy ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Whodat Location: Ware Is.,MA Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): I pass the wind! Posts: A lot. MOTM - Mar '13, Jun '14	Dude, you are not allowed to show other motorcycle roads other than the Blue Ridge, Deal's and that smoggy Cali stuff. West Virginia is closed to everyone who doesn't know about it. It is our own little secret! __________________________________________________ If everything seems under control; you're just not going fast enough!

April 8th, 2010, 05:41 PM	#6
Momaru ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Paul Location: Roanoke, VA Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Candy Plasma Blue 250R Posts: A lot.	Then consider the secret kept... other than you letting it out of the bag just now Every pic was taken in VA, save the historical marker which I don't think will inspire people to visit for fear of a stray skeletal rib-bone puncturing their tires. If that's not enough to discourage a visitor to WV, maybe the fact that the small part of the route that was in WV was so coated in gravel (paved road) that I was taking every turn at less than the 'recommended' speed (15-20mph for most) will. Made me actually miss VDOT for the first time in 5 years. __________________________________________________ Proud member of the Blue Army

April 8th, 2010, 09:21 PM	#7
Alex ninjette.org dude Name: 1 guess :-) Location: SF Bay Area Join Date: Jun 2008 Motorcycle(s): '13 Ninja 300 (white, the fastest color!), '13 R1200RT, '14 CRF250L, '12 TT-R125LE Posts: Too much. Blog Entries: 7	__________________________________________________ Montgomery Street Motorcycle Club / cal24.com / crf250l.org / ninjette.org ninjette.org Terms of Service Shopping for motorcycle parts or equipment? Come here first. The friendliest Ninja 250R/300/400 forum on the internet! (especially Unregistered)

April 8th, 2010, 04:58 PM	#2
Snake ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Rick Location: Alexandria, Louisiana Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 05 Blue Ninja 250 Posts: Too much. MOTY - 2017, MOTM - Jan '19, Oct '16, May '14	Great pics. That is some great scenery!

April 8th, 2010, 10:22 PM	#8
gogoKawi ninjette.org sage Name: Dre Location: DMV Join Date: Aug 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2014 Ninja 300, 2008 ZX6, 2011 Ninja 1000 Posts: 622	I LOVE West Virginia. I got my ZX6 there, and I was absolutely astonished by the scenery, roads, and nice people. The twisties are fantastic, as long as there isn't any gravel on the roads (which seems to be the case right now for some reason). In the next couple of weeks, I plan on taking a similar excursion in the northern section of WV. I hope to make my way to central WV before summer gets in full swing. GREAT PICS! Glad the trip turned out to be safe and fun.

April 9th, 2010, 02:34 AM	#9
ninja250 You are sleeping Name: Casey Location: LMFAO!!! Join Date: Nov 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2 Posts: A lot.	Awesome pics and ride report. Have not had the pleasure of exploring that part of the country yet. Once drove a CRX home from Kentucky though. lol Thanks for the 3am adventure. I could definitely see hitting up that creek for a feesh. Great little area for a shorty 3wt. __________________________________________________ <Yeah, it's a 250. LMFAO! Weaksauce

April 12th, 2010, 03:39 PM	#10
pedaltothemetal ninjette.org member Name: Leo Location: Monterey Park, CA in SoCal/SGV Join Date: Dec 2009 Motorcycle(s): Plasma Blue 2008 Ninja 250R, 2006 Honda Ruckus 180cc swap, 1967 BMW R60US, 2008 Ninja ZX-14se Posts: 240	How beautiful! Definitely a great route to just sit up and pretend you are on a 50cc scooter! __________________________________________________ SCAR ARC SCSB

April 12th, 2010, 04:22 PM	#11
Momaru ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Paul Location: Roanoke, VA Join Date: Jun 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Candy Plasma Blue 250R Posts: A lot.	Yeah, I usually made 4-5 passes through the twisty sections. First couple slow & steady learning the route and enjoying the scenery. Successive ones enjoying the curves @ speed. Not sure I'd want to ride a scooter for a consecutive 235mi+ though. __________________________________________________ Proud member of the Blue Army

April 12th, 2010, 07:53 PM	#12
adri99an ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Donger Location: So CAL Join Date: Dec 2009 Motorcycle(s): "Is that a Ninjer 1000?" Posts: A lot.	Excellent ride report......nice pics and you definately need a camera mount on your ride...

April 12th, 2010, 10:45 PM	#13
LazinCajun ninjette.org guru Name: Anon Location: Atlanta, GA Join Date: Aug 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250 (Blue!) Posts: 488	This looks great, thanks for sharing!

April 13th, 2010, 04:21 PM	#14
BlueTyke So slow I'm first! Name: Sunny Location: San Jose, CA Join Date: Oct 2008 Motorcycle(s): 06 Kawasaki Ninja EX250 Posts: A lot. Blog Entries: 10	Your so lucky!!!!! I want to go! __________________________________________________ Learn from the mistakes of others, you cannot make them all yourself. Save yourself the trouble and Learn.

April 14th, 2010, 05:05 PM	#15
cnichols79us Fastly Slow!!! Name: Jeff Location: Kent, WA Join Date: Feb 2010 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Kawasaki Ninja EX250, 1980 Honda XL125 Posts: 467	Awesome.... NO ONE here is Jealous....

April 21st, 2010, 08:58 PM	#16
CZroe CPT Falcon Name: J.Emmett Turner Location: Newnan, GA Join Date: Apr 2009 Motorcycle(s): '08 CP Blue EX250J, '97 unpainted EX250F, 2nd '97 unpainted EX250F (no engine), '07 black EX250F Posts: A lot.	First place I ever rode my '08 250 before riding it home the next day. Beautiful roads but pretty scarry when you've never ridden the streets on amotorcycle before! The MSF prepared me well enough though.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Western NC	sns951	New Members	10	October 10th, 2013 07:50 PM
Western PA rider	bsigmund90	New Members	10	October 9th, 2013 05:24 AM
Wandering / tram-lining	Xorro	2013 - 2017 Ninja 300 General Discussion	27	September 5th, 2013 01:01 PM
Hello from Western NY	Rinzler83	New Members	14	January 8th, 2013 09:33 AM
went riding in west Virginia and Virginia	crazymater91	Ride Reports	5	June 6th, 2011 04:27 PM