Cloudland Canyon

I planned out an ambitious bike trip earlier this week. This was ambitious for me because it would be my longest day trip and would include riding on the interstate, which I hadn't done in the two years I'd been riding.

I had heard good things about Cloudland Canyon, GA and for one reason or another, we haven't been able to make it up there. It is a long drive and something else usually gets in the way.

Googlemaps told me that it would take me 3.5 hours to get there and that is exactly what I needed. It was a good ride, but I was pretty cold for most of the trip. I threw on a flannel thinking that it would help, but it didn't do the trick. Other than the cold, the trip up was uneventful. I did ride on I-75, but there was so little traffic that I didn't really consider it riding on the interstate.

I parked at the top of the canyon and the view above is the first that I saw.

The path down into the canyon to the waterfalls was very easy. It consisted of metal stairs, wooden walkways and flat dirt trails - such as above.

Above is the first set of water falls. As I got closer, I got nervous because I didn't hear any water. When I got there I realized that it may have been better to make this trip in the Spring rather than the fall.

Above is the river bed that signs told us to avoid because of slippery rocks and danger of falling in the water. I managed to stay dry.

The area was very peaceful. I saw two people coming down when I was leaving and that was the only time I saw anyone other than the people working at the park.

Below is the second set of water falls, which was fed from the first set.

The leaves haven't started to change in LaGrange and it was nice to see the colors as I walked around.

Below is the walk down to the overlook that gives you a good view of the entire canyon.

Most of the life I saw consisted of squirrels getting ready for winter.

My bike ended up with 9,980 miles by the time the trip was over. I knew that I was close to getting my 10,000 miles maintenance check and that I also needed a new back tire. I had planned on stopping at Great South Harley on the way back but didn't plan on getting the work done that day, which I did. I got there around 3:30 and they finished at 6:00. I didn't mind staying at the dealership for 2.5 hours, but it is a dangerous place to hang out.

Mentally, I think I spent a few thousand as I customized my bike visualizing the things on the wall on my faithful stead. I planned out all new foot controls, hand controls, replacement chrome parts and various other accessories. I didn't get any of these, but I did end up getting a new skull gas cap and a Harley addition to the back of the sissy bar.

The trip totaled 370 miles and I rode on I-75, I-285 (through Atlanta) and on I-85. The interstate riding wasn't bad at all, even Atlanta, which had me a little nervous. It was fun just leaning back and cruising along with all the folks in their cages. I left at 7:00 in the morning and got back home at 7:00 in the evening. It was a full day but I felt awesome as I parked the bike in the garage.

In the beginning of the summer, I wrote down 10 destinations. I have hit 5 of them and would like to hit a few more before the weather turns.

Sweetwater Creek

It had been a long time, possibly over a year, since Elizabeth and I had a Friday to take off on the bike and enjoy the roads, sights of Georgia and each others company.

The initial leg was about 80 miles on back roads. The GPS, also known as the sticky note on the windshield, got us there without any problems. It was a little cool on the way up but we knew it would be heating very soon.


Sweetwater Creek boasted a visitor center that is one of the greenest buildings in Georgia. They have composting toilets, recycled rain water, photovoltaic panels, a vegetated roof and other elements of conservation. The bathrooms may not smell the freshest, but it is worth the effort being put forth.


We had been here before with the family and took the trail by the mill that was burnt down during the Civil War, so we decided to take the bridge over the water to explore the other trail.


After finding the bridge out, we decided to retrace the path that we had previous visited last fall; when it was a lot colder and a lot less green.


One of the nice things about our Fridays is that most people are working or in school, so we have an opportunity to visit many of these parks with few other visitors. We saw a few joggers but that was about it.


This is the ruins of the New Manchester Manufacturing Company. It was a mill that produced cotton prior to being burnt down during the Civil War.


Beyond the mill is a walkway that takes you down to the creek where you can walk along the water.

My attempt at taking our picture on a rock in the creek.

The creek without our mugs

After out hike, we ate lunch and hit the road. The drive back was much warmer and I ended up losing my sticky note on turn, which placed Elizabeth back in the role of navigator. We broke up the ride back with a stop in Newnan for coffee at Barnes & Noble.


After our coffee, we drove down to Great South Harley and were greeted at the door by C.G. I hadn't been there in about a year so it was nice to look around again. They had a bike on display that had 16" ape bars that I was able to sit on and see how they felt. I got a silly grin on my face that let everyone know what my bike was going to look like in the not too distant future.

This shot has been edited upon request

We were about 20 miles from home when we noticed the dark foreboding sky ahead, which was accompanied by flashes of light, heavy gusts of wind and some rumbling. We drove through some sprinkled that quickly turned into a downpour. I slowed way down, stayed upright and focused on the road ahead of me. I don't believe the taxi in front of us could see very well because it kept crossing over the lines on the road - first one side and then the other. We pulled over so I could empty my pockets and then road on. The ride was cold but enlivening - I do like riding through a storm (I might feel differently if this happened in the beginning). Once home, we changed, got a mug of tea and curled up on the couch to wait for the kids to come home.

Andersonville, Georgia

I planned out 10 trips for the year based on the distance from home. I've seen a few clubs making trips to Andersonville, so I threw it on the list in complete ignorance of its place in history.


It took Dylan and I about 2.5 hours to get there. We left around 9:00 and the temperatures were nice at that point. We threw four water bottles in the saddle bags and put on a liberal coat of sun screen because I knew the temperatures were going to rise quickly in the afternoon.



We weren't sure where to go once we got into Andersonville, so we stopped at the visitor center in the Civil War Village. After eating lunch, we went back across the train tracks to the National Historic Site.



"Andersonville, or Camp Sumter, as it was officially known, was one of the largest of many Confederate military prisons established during the Civil War. It was built early in 1864. During the 14 months the prison existed, more than 45,000 Union soldiers were confined here. Some 13,000 died from disease, poor sanitation, malnutrition, overcrowding, or exposure."



This at the site of the prison, which contained many monuments from various organizations. The temperatures reached about 100F that day so we tried to go from shady spot to shady spot.



The prison extended to about as far as you can see in this picture. Dylan was running ahead to see if he could see the stream over knoll.


Our last stop was the National Prisoner of War Museum. We watched a 30 minute video on Andersonville, that gave many first hand accounts and a historical overview of the prison and its place in time. The actual museum centered on all prisoners of war and had displays covering most of the wars America has participated in, as well as American prisoners taken outside of a war environment.


We had to get back to LaGrange by 4:30, so our time was limited and we were running out by the time we hit the museum. Unfortunately, we quickly browsed through the displays and left feeling unsatisfied with the amount of time and attention that we wanted to spend there.



Prior to leaving we rode around the prison site and took a picture at the South Gate.


The ride back was uneventful. My back was sore and Dylan's butt was ready to vacate the back of bike. I decided to take the windshield on the journey because I can write down the directions on a sticky pad and stick them to the windshield. It makes the journey so much easier. I hope to get a GPS for the bike in the future, but until then it'll be sticky pads.

Day Date in Cheaha on the 4th of July

Elizabeth and I had 5-6 hours to steal away for a 140 mile road trip that would include a couple hikes and some cherished time together. Life has been busy lately and our rides have suffered because of it - it was nice to hit the road again. About midway through the trip we also realized that it was five years ago to the day that we moved to Georgia. So much has happened since then.


The day was perfect with temperatures in the 80’s and humidity low - for Georgia/Alabama. The only problem was that my left contact was bothering me and about 40 miles into the trip if left my eye and became a piece of refuge to be cooked on the hot Alabama asphalt. I was able to see with one contact but it did mess with my perception as we navigated the twisting roads and gained altitude in Northern Alabama.


Our first hike was a short, flat walk to a rocky overlook. With such a prize at the end it seemed as if you were cheating by having such an easy walk in.


The second was more difficult but one we have done many, many times. We hiked down the mountain to a lake and then back up. The trip down was difficult as it really bothered my knees. I thought of bringing my hiking poles, but I didn’t think that I’d need them because it was only a mile down and a mile back up. The beginning of the trail is very steep and rocky and my knees didn’t care how long we would traverse the trail, they let me know right away that they didn’t like it.



We took a couple breaks to enjoy some fruits, vegetables and water. The walk back was hot but we found a ledge with a nice breeze to hang out on to cool off.

This is the lake we hiked to.

This is looking up from where we started.

The time was special as it allowed us to talk about our past, present and future. There is so much to be thankful for and so much to look forward to.

Little River Canyon, Fort Payne Alabama

I slept in a bit and missed my 7:00 departure time, but was able to get the kick stand up by 7:30 and reach Alabama by 6:30. It was a little colder than I expected on the ride up – not cold enough to get a deep chill but still enough that you were looking out for that next sunny patch of road.




Early this Spring I decided to make a list of ten Summer destinations. I was tired of spending the day before a trip trying to figure out where to go and figured a little early planning might help this tiresome routine. The last trip to The Big House was on the list and this trip to the Little River Canyon in Fort Payne was also on the list. I ended up riding up 431 in Alabama past Cheaha, which I found difficult to pass without motoring through the mountainous roads or enjoying the many hikes and views. I followed 431 until I hit 9, which took me through a very large lake region as I continued North. Although beautiful, the overcast morning would have made for poor pictures – so I throttled on until I reached the falls at the beginning of route 176.




I parked the big in the open parking lot that also contained a few cars, left the leather on, and headed down the walkway to the falls. The falls area was open and you could walk out on the rocks or sit on a ledge, which I did while I enjoyed a snack and peaceful scene. Other than a couple other people wandering in and out, I had the area to myself. After a period of rest I donned the helmet and took off down 176.





Route 176 hugs the canyon and has about ten scenic stops along the way. The first gave a nice view back at the falls and the river running along the bottom of the canyon. The road was full of dips, hills and twists and turns. I wasn’t familiar with the road so I took my time and enjoyed a stretch of pavement devoid of all other vehicles. I did see a few more cars later in the day but for the most part I had the part to myself. Each stop showcased a deep canyon created by a running river and surrounded by lush trees and high cliffs. There were birds soaring over the canyon and I was able to get pretty close to a vulture perched on the railing of the overlook. After reaching the final stop, I turned around and went back to the falls. There was one stop along the way that had an unnatural gathering of rocks that looked completely alien to the rest of the setting. One of the rocks was left in the middle of the road and parted the lanes.





My longest trips have been around 250 miles round trip. I have discovered that at this point my body is tired and my riding is compromised. When I purchased my Fat Bob, I bought a removable windshield. I rode the bike home with the windshield and found the turbulence of the wind wobbled my helmet in continuous manner, much like a paint mixing machine, that was hard to ignore. So, I got home and put the windshield in the closet. I’ve been told that I could ride farther with a windshield so I decided to try it out again on this ride. I hiked it up as high as it would go hoping that this would help with the turbulence. The shake didn’t seem too bad during the trip, but it was still there, but my visibility suffered as I was looking through a slightly reflective sheet of plastic that would occasionally fog up as I drove through the high humidity of the Deep South. In the end, I did ride for almost 300 miles and the fatigue wasn’t there the way it had been in the past.



Many people ride while listening to an iPod. I have avoided this because I enjoy the peaceful sounds of the Harley tooling down the road. This time around I decided to try the iPod so I put on The Zac Brown Band and hit genius mix – the iPod will then automatically create a mixed playlist based on the original songs style. I ended up with a mix of older country type songs and couldn’t hear the songs while riding. I tried kicking up selection by throwing in a mix of harder rock songs. The effect was pretty much the same. I could barely make out what was playing while riding and it was too loud when I stopped. After about an hour of this annoyance (86 miles to be more precise), I removed the iPod and embraced the music of the big twin cruising through Alabama. The iPod has gone back into retirement while riding.




On longer runs, I find that the middle of my back gets very sore. This usually occurs a little over midway through the trip, but this time it started to hurt at beginning of the run. I think it had more to do with my posture than anything else. I’d like to get some ape bars in the future and have been told that they will ease the pressure on the back and make for a more comfortable ride. This will probably not happen until next year, if then.



When I got back to the falls, I shed the leather and grabbed the lunch my lovely wife, Elizabeth, packed for me. After calling Elizabeth and enjoying the sound of falling water, I once again hit the pavement. Instead of taking the same route home, I decided to cut over into Georgia and head down 100. After traveling down this road for a pace, it became evident that this was a road that was well utilized by the truckers. I have utmost respect for those driving the big rigs and enjoyed sharing the road with them as I made my way back toward LaGrange.




It is about a week later and I have since removed the windshield from my bike. The difference was night and day once I got back on the road. The windshield was nice in that I didn’t get as tired and I wasn’t hit in the face once with debris or by flying bugs, but I also found it confining and a visual obstruction. I will probably put it on for trips in excess of 200 miles but it will stay in the closet for anything else.

I did end up running on fumes at the end and almost ran out of gas again, but I’m not going to talk about that. The next run will be in June and, weather permitting, T (my oldest) and I will be heading to Charleston SC for the weekend.