8/27 Ride to the Blue Ridge

[Todd]

Good ride up to the Blue Ridge today. Anyone ever put your trip on google maps then looks at the 3D...it retraces through 3d animation. Pretty cool. I tried to put the link on here somehow but never got it to work.

[waterman]

Glad you had a good time Todd. Wish I could have made it down there last year. You will have to compare that with some of the rides next year.

[glwilson]

Ha! Yeah... Once I map a route I always double-check via the 3D replay to see if it is as good as I hoped.

It is a great tool... Although it can really heat-up your laptop when using it.

[Crab]

im considering riding the Blue Ridge with the girlfriend, from Cherokee to the end..think its 470ish.and to cherokee is prob 260 ish from house. so with a 45mph speed and stops and all how long should i give it to do it..Is the mile high bridge worth going to see? any good places to stay that dont require a bank loan,,,
thx guys...
Crab

[Todd]

Originally Posted by Crab

im considering riding the Blue Ridge with the girlfriend, from Cherokee to the end..think its 470ish.and to cherokee is prob 260 ish from house. so with a 45mph speed and stops and all how long should i give it to do it..Is the mile high bridge worth going to see? any good places to stay that dont require a bank loan,,,
thx guys...
Crab

I would plan on 3-4 days just because there are places to stop and look and a few places, like Mabry Mill, that you can spend an hour or so looking around. You could do quicker if you just rode straight through.

Lotss of places to stay in the small towns along the way. For the most part you will need to ride a few miles off the Parkway. Plenty of affordable places near Cherokee..then Maggie Valley...then Asheville...a couple places on the way just off the parkway around Little Switzerland and Mt. Mitchell...then Boone would be a real nice spot (make sure to eat breakfast at the Daniel Boone Inn..only cash but great food)...several hotels at I74/Fancy Gap....Roanoke...Peaks of Otter Lodge is nice but a little more pricey...

So the short answer is yes..there are plenty of places to stay that wont kill you on cost. 3-4 days on the Parkway and then a day or two back on Highways.

Let me know if you have any specific questions. I've done the whole thing as well as most of Skyway Drive.

[Blueraven]

Originally Posted by glwilson

Ha! Yeah... Once I map a route I always double-check via the 3D replay to see if it is as good as I hoped.

It is a great tool... Although it can really heat-up your laptop when using it.

Ok, what are u guys talking about. Google, mapping, review????? I use garmin to do my maping... Can I upload it to google and check it out? Is this what you are talking about.

[glwilson]

Originally Posted by Blueraven

Ok, what are u guys talking about. Google, mapping, review????? I use garmin to do my maping... Can I upload it to google and check it out? Is this what you are talking about.

If you have upgraded your Google (which I'll assume you have, as it asks you to do so when it needs it), you should be able to use the 3-D mode.

First map a route on google, or from you Garmin software. (I have to use Basecamp for Apple. One of the Garmin options is to view your route on Google. So, check that so it loads it to Google.)

Once the route shows on Google maps, hit "Directions". Once that loads-up on the left side where it shows the various waypoints, turns and etc; there is an option to view it in 3-D mode. It is a small icon that is easy to miss. Keep looking for it. It should be near the top portion of the "directions" panel on the left.

You do need to have a reasonable computer to handle the graphic-load.

Hopefully you'll find it...