Fall Riding in Appalachia | GTAMotorcycle.com

Fall Riding in Appalachia

ZOMGdonuts

ZOMGdonuts

Well-known member
Hi guys, I'm trying to plan a fall trip and because of life things lining up, I'm worried it's getting pushed later than I'd usually like. I found the last week of September to be a great time for a trip last year to New Hampshire. It wasn't quite peak foliage, but the weather was well balanced.

I'm wondering if any of you guys have experience with the mountains around West Virginia, Kentucky, and Virginia in Fall. Whenabouts is the foliage worth seeing? Does it get super chilly and wet around the 2nd week of October? I'm currently thinking from October 9th to the 18th. I don't mind a bit of rain and cold, but a whole trip's worth might be a bit much. I also worry about deer more than anything else that time of year.

Thanks for any thoughts!
 
I think the latest I've been riding down to the Smoky's is up to the 2nd week of November. For October the riding can be glorious for fall colours and riding temperatures. For concerns about cold and rain, all you can really do is watch the weather in the weeks leading up to your departure time and see what the tropical storm season is doing. I've done trips in October and had not a drop of rain and amazing temps there and back. My first trip down to Barber Musuem for the vintage bike fest (Oct 6-16) had me riding in temps of +35 and pure sunshine in Alabama and Mississippi and on my way home a few days later it was cold and wet in PA. I've also done trips down there of 7 days of straight rain and plenty of cold (which were still amazing trips!) and other trips of not one drop of rain or temps below 15deg.

Having good rain gear and heated gear really helps.

Monongahela National Forest is really stunning and all the main park areas and Appalachia is amazing - can't go wrong with any of it for fall colours. Loads of nice fall colours throughout the Virginia's and portions of Kentucky. Pic below is the road leading up to Spruce Knob in WV in mid October.
i-DgwGZrZ.jpg



I say go for it and if you want any roads and routes, here's a few ride reports with options.

Ride Report - 2022 Smoky The Dragon
Ride Report - Another rip into the Smoky's
Ride Report - Fall Colours and Twisties - Eastern States
Ride Report - Smoky Mountains
Ride Report - Toronto to Alabama (Barber Museum) - old report, so some broken route links

Have a great trip!
 
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ZOMGdonuts said:
I also worry about deer more than anything else that time of year.
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Maybe it was a coincidence, but I did find the deer like to come out during the milder temperatures...even during day times
mimico_polak said:
I wonder how big of a ring I need to buy to get some time off to travel extended periods of time...that door ain't gonna cut it.
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let me know bro, we'll do another long trip
 
bigpoppa said:
Maybe it was a coincidence, but I did find the deer like to come out during the milder temperatures...even during day times

let me know bro, we'll do another long trip
Click to expand...
We should do a run up to Barry's Bay again soon. I'll see what I can do in terms of schedule and a day off in the coming weeks.

I'm def going to see the Algonquin Park leaf colour change this year (annual trip for me).

Sorry OP, back to your thread. Apologies for the derail.
 
I’ve hit a good sized deer in West Virginia, but that was riding at around 10pm at night while on the freeway. I’ve had a few close calls in Ohio and PA even in the middle of the day. Just try not to out ride your guardian angel and you’ll be ok:)
 
shanekingsley said:
I think the latest I've been riding down to the Smoky's is up to the 2nd week of November. For October the riding can be glorious for fall colours and riding temperatures. For concerns about cold and rain, all you can really do is watch the weather in the weeks leading up to your departure time and see what the tropical storm season is doing. I've done trips in October and had not a drop of rain and amazing temps there and back. My first trip down to Barber Musuem for the vintage bike fest (Oct 6-16) had me riding in temps of +35 and pure sunshine in Alabama and Mississippi and on my way home a few days later it was cold and wet in PA. I've also done trips down there of 7 days of straight rain and plenty of cold (which were still amazing trips!) and other trips of not one drop of rain or temps below 15deg.

Having good rain gear and heated gear really helps.

Monongahela National Forest is really stunning and all the main park areas and Appalachia is amazing - can't go wrong with any of it for fall colours. Loads of nice fall collurs throughout the Virginia's and portions of Kentucky. Pic below is the road leading up to Spruce Knob in WV in mid October.
i-DgwGZrZ.jpg



I say go for it and if you want any roads and routes, here's a few ride reports with options.

Ride Report - 2022 Smoky The Dragon
Ride Report - Another rip into the Smoky's
Ride Report - Fall Colours and Twisties - Eastern States
Ride Report - Smoky Mountains
Ride Report - Toronto to Alabama (Barber Museum) - old report, so some broken route links

Have a great trip!
Click to expand...

Thanks Shane! I will likely cross my fingers and give it a shot! Exciting times :)
 
shanekingsley said:
I’ve hit a good sized deer in West Virginia, but that was riding at around 10pm at night while on the freeway. I’ve had a few close calls in Ohio and PA even in the middle of the day. Just try not to out ride your guardian angel and you’ll be ok:)
Click to expand...

Shane, one more question. I've heard speed limits are strictly enforced in Virginia and I was kind of avoiding the state for that reason. Have you had any bad experiences or heard much about that?

I wanted to check out Skyline Drive at some point, but it does seem like it may be a bore to be restricted to 35mph the whole time
 
In all my riding down south, I've only had one ticket and it was in Marion NC, because I failed to slow down after riding a super fun twisty road (NC226A - the Diamondback) and was entering a smaller town.

Skyline Drive at 35mph is way to slow of a speed limit and I went much faster. Didn't see and LEO's there and had an amazing ride on it. Haven't been back on it in over 10 years, so I don't know if they have increased enforcement on it. I say go check it out and just pick and choose you spots to have fun where it's less likely to attract attention.

Overall I have only had good experiences riding in VA. Forgot to mention earlier - this thread below has most of the better roads mapped out by state to help you plan.
www.gtamotorcycle.com

Stateside Roads - the twistier the better!

Given how many of us so frequently head south to ride good roads, I'm putting this thread together to help you plan your routes. The roads below are the ones I have been on and they are sorted by state (especially once I add more states). If you know of some amazing road that I have missed in a...
www.gtamotorcycle.com www.gtamotorcycle.com

I'm off for a week's trip to Kegaska, Quebec in an hour:)
 
ZOMGdonuts said:
Shane, one more question. I've heard speed limits are strictly enforced in Virginia and I was kind of avoiding the state for that reason. Have you had any bad experiences or heard much about that?

I wanted to check out Skyline Drive at some point, but it does seem like it may be a bore to be restricted to 35mph the whole time
Click to expand...
Getting caught going 105mph in a 35mph zone down there was a $775 ticket fifteen yrs ago.
The badge wearing folk mentioned jail, but none of us wound up in one.
Keep it under 70mph and it's probably just a ticket.
 
shanekingsley said:
vintage bike fest (Oct 6-16)
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Havn't had a real bike trip this summer and still have a few camping trips (RV) planned for the remainder maybe this is a good prospect for a fall trip. Anyone keen?? Off to google this event.
 
Barber Vintage bike fest:
40$ USD for a 3 day pass and an easy 2 day ride down. Whose in??
 
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