Dragon, Hellbender, wet curvy roads, and friendly people ... what a weekend!

"Wow!, let's do it again." Shawn couldn't get enough of fast curves but I wasn't nearly as comfortable. There is nothing like looking backward over your left shoulder while plunging into a 180 degree turn with nothing but trees or a cliff ahead of you. It is very difficult to remember to, "Keep your eyes on where you want to go, not on what you want to avoid." Remember Magnum P.I., "Don't look at the dogs, don't look at the dogs..."

The trip to Deal's Gap was green, curvy, and layed back. The way back was wet and fast.

We sat in a fast food restraunt to get out of the rain and called anyone we could think of to check the radar of the area. After sitting for an hour and being told by two friends that rain went all the way across the top of Georgia to Chattanooga it was decided to suit up and punch through to clear weather. We rode in the rain until crossing the Tennessee state line and then peeled off the raingear. There was a downpour on the bridge over Nickajack Lake and then clear skys.

I-75 and finally I-24 were great. The traffic was fast, smooth, and sparse. There was some concern about the downhill at Monteagle but it was probably the best stretch on the trip. We arrive on the outskirts of Nashville with plenty of daylight, Shawn headed for the barn and I followed J through some backroad twisties that he wanted to compare with the Dragon while it was still a fresh memory. They seemed very tame but were a perfect way to end the trip.