Tail of the Dragon 2018

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
3,093
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In Da Hood
This is my 6th trip to the area in the past 2 decades, though 4 of the trips have been in the past 2 years. I have been to the area on Sport bike, SUV and Sport cars and have visited many of the roads the area has to offer. I have stayed at campgrounds for 2 wheels only and resorts that are dedicated to the motorsports industry. The following is from our latest trip to the "tail of the dragon" area and i hope to provide information and knowledge of venturing to the area.


The planning of the trip was a bit of a struggle, as it was being masterminded by someone other than myself, i found my self getting information very late and partial. Planning began in Early September, but didnt gain real traction until late September. Host booked a bunch of rooms at Fontana Village Resort, I have stayed here before and really enjoyed the atmosphere and location of the facility.

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I have still yet to explore all it has to offer, but i hear there is a lot to do here. I do now know it has multiple bars/grills, community and activity center. I am also told it has rafting, river/lake access as it is on the fontana dam/river. I plan to go back and spend a bit more time exploring all it has to offer, but if you ever go to the area in a car, this is the place to go. centrally located to everything the area has to offer.

Our driving group contained 6 vehicles, 4 couples and a couple of 14/15 year old boys. 2 of the couples left Wednesday the 17th and stayed in Lexington Kentucky before heading down on Thursday. The rest of us Left Thursday morning, though not without issues. I should start off saying the cars on the trip were a 911 Carrera , a BMW 135CI, Porsche Cayman,Porsche Boxter, Maza MX5, and my C7 Z06. Our trip was scheduled to be on the road at 4 am Thursday morning, however I did not shut off the power to the Vetter after getting fuel and I woke to a dead battery and an unaccessable car. A quick youtube search showed me how to get in, but once in I had no way of starting car. Vette is parked under lift that has daily on it, which also blocks access to attic, an attic that contains my jumper cables. So with no way to start it, i messaged my travel partner to see if he had left his house yet and had jumpers. He had left and didnt think he had any. I jumped in truck and headed to gas station to see if they had any, they did not. Remembering brother in law gets up early, i hit him up via messenger and he had a charger and cables. so quick drive to his house, picked up both and began process of starting vette. Cars are way to computer, electronic needy by the way. Its now 4:45 and I finally get it charged enough to get moving.

A quick stop for coffee at Dunkin Donuts and we are on our way. We get out of Illinois ok, but once past Crown Point, the car most likely to break down did just that as we were moving, lost all power. we pulled over while he cycled the computer, killed the driver aids and we are back on the road. Our Thursday plan included a stop in Crossville TN so the wife and I could meet with a builder that we are interviewing for construction of our home there.

http://zurichhomes.com/model.html

take a look at the house we visited if interested. after interviewing 5 builders in the area, this is the home we plan to build. simply amazing construction and attention to detail. i may start another thread just to get feed back/ ideas for it. After spending some times viewing the model and talking with the builders we stopped for lunch at what will be our local watering hole once we move down there. Spikes bar and grill. Spike is from our area, kinda anyhow, he is from Dubuque. simple family orientated bar and grill, with a large patio and weekend live music.

From there we continued on for another 2 hours to Fontana Resort, this required a night time run of the dragon. this was a first time attempt for one of the ladies, and a first time attempt at night for all. Everyone made it through just fine, ran into maybe 1 or 2 vehicles coming at us in the other direction otherwise we had it to ourselves. Not only had to run the dragon but had to run route 28 to the resort which is very entertaining in its ownrite.

Arrived at resort and checked in.

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Once checked in, we met for dinner and a cocktail before calling it a night. We ended up with cabanas, which are like apartment buildings off the pool. 2 story 10 units per floor, 2 floors. Our room was on the second level with patio access to pool and fire pit. rooms each have their own patios on the pool deck, pretty cool.

End of day 1, 860 miles.
 

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
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In Da Hood
day 2

Early start, we meet up with the remainder of the group for breakfast at 7. I forgot to add, the bmw had car issues on the way down Wednesday as well and needed to get a new chip from the dealer to get it running right again (was tuned). After breakfast we headed over to an RV park where another couple was staying, they had trailered their 74ish 911 targa to the area, but where unable to join us for the days activities. very beautiful Porsche, and I found out later just how amazing it sounds. Once back on the road we spent the day traveling the North Carolina portion of the mountains, looking for water falls and other scenic items. Near Bryson City we saw a Steam train pulling tourist cabins along the mountain route, very very cool.
The area is full of rafting, rapids and believe it or not, craft beer LOL.

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after a day of driving and brewery stops, we said good night to part of the group who decided to stay in Bryson city and we headed back to Fontana for the night. Once back at the resort, and I kick myself now, we went down to the grill for dinner. weather was great, in the 70's so we ate outside. While sitting out there some Canadian bikers (bicycle riders) drunk, decided to invite themselves and their dinner to our table for some conversation. it was quite entertaining and needless to say, their free health care doesn't make them think they have it better than us. on the contrary they think we have it made. After some fun conversation everyone called it a night and headed back to the rooms for another early start on Saturday.

Total Miles 150 ish
 

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
3,093
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In Da Hood
Day 3 was really the only day where the beginning was pre determined. we were to meet up with the group at 9 am @ Wheels through time.
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https://wheelsthroughtime.com/
Perhaps you have seen Dale on tv before? but his museum is incredible, the living American History in there is just mind boggling. every example on the floor but 1, runs. being a motorcycle enthusiast it was an amazing visit. got to learn about the rarest bike on earth the 1916 80ci Traub. Chicago built, it was hidden in a wall of an apartment building off of Paulina in Chicago shortly after World War I started. The builder believed to be a German Jew, is believed to have hidden it to build a time capsule of his name. regardless his bike was at a minimum 20 years ahead of any Harley construction of the time, and light years a head of Indian.

Did I mention the rain?? lots of it. having never driven in the rain and on Cup 2's I was a bit nervous as specially in the twisty bits. but the twisty bits were the easy part, it was the highway speeds and standing water that made it a bit sketchy. overall the car did great.

After the Museum part of the group split off to do the train ride, the rest of us headed to lunch then had the rest of the day to ourselves. We had lunch at a local sandwhich shop and after a while the rain stopped. The roads here seem to dry faster, not sure if its my imagination or if they just drain better, but they were dry on our way back. we decided to head back towards the resort via the blueridge park way, we would pass the resort and head back to the dragon to do some shopping.

The blueridge parkway, what an incredible road, such views
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I cant wait to explore more of the parkway as we got off on 441 to head back to the dragon.
 

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
3,093
1,719
In Da Hood
Day 3 continues

After the blue ridge parkway we headed back towards the dragon via 28, this road as all others in the area offers its own entertainment. its hard to explain, but just imagine all the curvy roads you have driven in your life time here, packed into one road there and there you have it LOL. I have lots of video to process and will post up a greatest hits once I have time to go through it all.

We made our way to the dragon and did our touristy things. shopped for shirts , hats, stickers, tree of shame etc etc.

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We convinced the wives that we had to run the dragon there and back, need to point out my wife is recovering from a rotator cuff and bicep surgery ( 3 months post op, limited to 2lbs lifting) so it was a tall task for her, but told her we had to do it, to get the professional photos of our visit to the dragon. so up we went. we stopped at mile 8 (of 11) (famous look out).
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After a short rest, the wife decided it was best for her just to turn around now vs going the last 3 miles. So the 3 of us headed one direction while the wife went the other. After reaching the turn around, I caught onto a sport bike and chased him all the way back. we were running at a pretty good clip but I could hear some straight piped beast coming, though I had no idea how fast until he caught me LOL. it was a straight piped 350z, dude was wicked fast, oh to be young and dumb again LOL props to him though. anyhow here are some of those professional pics.

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after that we headed back and spent more time at the gril, kicking a few beers back and talking about the trip, future living and anything else before calling it a night. for the wife, son and I would be heading back in the morning and they other couple to Atlanta area to look for areas to move too.

Day 4 left at 8 am got to Merryville around 3pm and stopped at hooters before finishing the trip home arriving at 5pm. total mileage for trip was aprox 1700 miles.

I Have to add, the c7 Z06 is an incredible grand touring car as I found it more comfortable over the trip vs my ram truck and I think that was something special. it is so smooth, even on cup tires. I ran in eco mode most of the trip and averaged 22.3 mpg at an 82 mph average. Ive always said im not a corvette guy, im a car guy but this car does everything, and it does it very well. as far as the mountain roads go, the Z06 did great in the high sweepers and showed its tire mass in the slow stuff but was still great. Ill add some video to this thread once I get time to go through it all.

so many roads driven, so many still need to be conquered.

Jim
 

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Great write up. As a car guy this should be on your bucket list. I know mook wanted you to make this thread for a reason. As we talked on the cruise this weekend we talked about the Tail. I think that sparked his interest a lot. haha

I can imagine the vette being a great car for this. Yes, it isn't a small, lightweight sports car. But it is highly capable on roads like these. It's good to hear that the car is a comfortable road trip car. It is hard to pick anything wrong with that car for the money. No doubt about that.


I have been down there several times. It is one of my favorite areas in the country. Mainly for the roads. But it is such a beautiful area with lots of things to do for day trips. Between the breweries, distilleries, Wheels Through Time, water sports, hiking, and so on. Gatlinburg isn't that far away and is like a small Wisconsin Dells. So there is something for everyone down there.

Oh, and all the BBQ! :drool: haha

I loved Wheels Through Time. You can tell the people there love what they do and the Displays are great. There is a lot of history packed in that place. I love board track racers and those early century bikes. It was cool to finally see them in person versus in pictures and videos.

We have always stayed at the Fontana Resort. The restaurant in the main building of the resort has very good food. The secondary restaurant is so-so. It is a good location and no matter what direction you head from there, you have cool roads. We upgraded for next year and are renting a 10,000 sq/ft 7 bedroom house on a lake. It wasn't that much more money than Fontan Resort and it is a killer looking place. With so many apps for house rentals, you have a lot of options.


Ugh, it is killing me as we didn't go this year. I miss being down there.



Very nice :bigthumb: How’s traffic during the day?

We always are there during the week and it isn't bad. On the weekends the Tail itself gets quite crowded. But some of the other roads around there offer a lot of enjoyment. So don't get to hung up on the Tail as your focus.

The Tail is a very tight and technical road. Except for a couple of spots, you are only going about 25-35 mph. Because you are literally transitioning from one turn into the next. It is crazy. It is actually a workout if you do it over and over again. You will wear yourself out. haha

The other roads have sweeping turns with some straights between them. So you are taking sweeping turns with not too much steering input. These are a blast too. In some ways, I actually enjoy these roads more. You have fun without the workout and fear of driving off the mountain.
 

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
3,093
1,719
In Da Hood
Very nice :bigthumb: How’s traffic during the day?

The gap on Saturday had moderate traffic really, more cars than bikes. it rained from 2 in the morning until noon, so we got lucky and it kept the heavy traffic away. that was perfect for the wives as only my wife had to pull over once to let a car by. other than that it was pretty light. Sunday mornings run through was empty as it was to cold for the bikes to gather for the moto gp races.

Leaves are still green and on the trees so that was a plus and a minus in the same breath as im sure the color change is spectacular down there.

I will say after 1700+ miles in the vette, not once did I have drivers fatigue, the updated suspension settings I picked up in the spring made the ride silky smooth, even on cup tires.
 

J-LO

TCG Elite Member
Jul 9, 2013
3,093
1,719
In Da Hood
Great write up. As a car guy this should be on your bucket list. I know mook wanted you to make this thread for a reason. As we talked on the cruise this weekend we talked about the Tail. I think that sparked his interest a lot. haha

I can imagine the vette being a great car for this. Yes, it isn't a small, lightweight sports car. But it is highly capable on roads like these. It's good to hear that the car is a comfortable road trip car. It is hard to pick anything wrong with that car for the money. No doubt about that.


I have been down there several times. It is one of my favorite areas in the country. Mainly for the roads. But it is such a beautiful area with lots of things to do for day trips. Between the breweries, distilleries, Wheels Through Time, water sports, hiking, and so on. Gatlinburg isn't that far away and is like a small Wisconsin Dells. So there is something for everyone down there.

Oh, and all the BBQ! :drool: haha

I loved Wheels Through Time. You can tell the people there love what they do and the Displays are great. There is a lot of history packed in that place. I love board track racers and those early century bikes. It was cool to finally see them in person versus in pictures and videos.

We have always stayed at the Fontana Resort. The restaurant in the main building of the resort has very good food. The secondary restaurant is so-so. It is a good location and no matter what direction you head from there, you have cool roads. We upgraded for next year and are renting a 10,000 sq/ft 7 bedroom house on a lake. It wasn't that much more money than Fontan Resort and it is a killer looking place. With so many apps for house rentals, you have a lot of options.


Ugh, it is killing me as we didn't go this year. I miss being down there.





We always are there during the week and it isn't bad. On the weekends the Tail itself gets quite crowded. But some of the other roads around there offer a lot of enjoyment. So don't get to hung up on the Tail as your focus.

The Tail is a very tight and technical road. Except for a couple of spots, you are only going about 25-35 mph. Because you are literally transitioning from one turn into the next. It is crazy. It is actually a workout if you do it over and over again. You will wear yourself out. haha

The other roads have sweeping turns with some straights between them. So you are taking sweeping turns with not too much steering input. These are a blast too. In some ways, I actually enjoy these roads more. You have fun without the workout and fear of driving off the mountain.

yeah Gatlinburg is like an adult Wisconsin Dells, Pidgeon Forge is the Dells for kids, lots of go kart tracks though, as a group we could have a blast there Lol. this is also a great couples trip as there is just so much to do down there.
 

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Very nice :bigthumb: How’s traffic during the day?

yeah Gatlinburg is like an adult Wisconsin Dells, Pidgeon Forge is the Dells for kids, lots of go kart tracks though, as a group we could have a blast there Lol. this is also a great couples trip as there is just so much to do down there.

There really is something for everyone down there. And since you have to drive a distance to everything, you get to enjoy the roads. I told Mook I am in for a trip for sure. I would go a couple times a year if I could. Or live down there. :rofl:



The trip can be done inexpensively. Fuel is the wild card obviously. But if you stay in the Fontana Resort cabins, cook your own food, and limit expensive activities it isn't that bad. And you still have a lot of options and fun. Then from there get hotel rooms or look into home rentals. This is the place a group of friends and I are staying at next year that sleeps 16 people.

https://elitedestinationhomes.com/vacations/forge-lake-lodge/


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PANDA

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I have been going down to that area in the spring the past two years with some Ohio friends and [MENTION=61]The Broken Regal[/MENTION] . We have been flying into Atlanta and renting a "fun" car. This really makes a 3 day weekend doable since you arnt blowing 2 days just driving. You can spend a weekend down here or a week. Plenty of stuff to see and do. Atlanta is about 3 hour scenic drive to Robinsville (Tail of the dragon). You can fly closer into Knoxville or Ashville and have half the drive but the tickets are more and they do not have a good selection of rental cars. The first year we flew into Atlanta rented a Camaro SS and stayed in a Hotel in knoxville. Not only was the drive from Atlanta alot further but the drive down to all the "action" was boring. So we were basically driving 1.5 hours each way to get to the "good" roads. This year we flew into Atlanta again. I rented a manual 5.0 mustang. We split a cabin with a few dudes that was 15 minutes from Tail of the Dragon. This was the best option and I spent under $1000 for a long weekend. Flight, car, gas, cabin, food included.

People around here talk about Sheridan road in Glencoe and Starved Rock being SICK driving roads. I can just laugh. No roads in the Chicago area or Midwest can compare to this area. Tail of the Dragon is the center of attraction for driving but really ALL the roads down there are good. I make no exaggeration. Anywhere inside or around Smoky Mountain National Park are good. I myself don't really like Tail of the Dragon. I can make one "run" down and back and be good for the weekend. Some guys im with can drive it all day long. I think the biggest turnoff for me at least is the traffic and the fact that most people driving on that stretch are really pushing it to the limit. Its not a track. Its not a closed road. You really need to watch your shit. Our group would always make a run or two on the dragon first thing in the morning and then go explore other areas. I can't imagine how bad it gets during the summer on a nice day. I personally like the Skyway. The Dragon seemed a big much for the Camaro and Mustang I had. They are just big cars. Id like to try something smaller even if it has way less power.

Highly recommend anyone that loves driving or nature to head down. I am surprised TCG hasn't got anything together over the years.
 
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