My trip up to Durhamtown and Deals Gap early summer 09

[Colemanfu]

I suck at computer and even more at RRs but I figured I would give it a shot for you Sand Fleas. It's an example of an trip you can take from FL.
I would go again. Let me know if you want to haul me and my bike.



I had to work at University of Central Florida on the 16th of June so on the 7th I packed up the junk and took off.



I wanted some dirt so booked a cabin at Durhamtown Plantation in Union Point GA. Got a late start so decided to spend the night at my old college - Georgia Southern University in Statesboro GA - know as the Boro to those that spent way too much time there.



Ms. Manfu and I met there so it has a special place in our hearts but, we have not been back in 15 years. What do you do for your 1st homecoming? Go visit the old dorm! It's an office building now and way nicer than 1989. I walked around campus, went to the field house ( we both were athletes), the wt. room, the old pitch and some class buildings. Then in proper Flea form it was off to the pubs.



I had dinner at one Dingus McGees and quized the owner about all the changes around town- he must get a lot of that? Man the place has grown but still very much the same. While wandering about I sorted out that it's more about the relationships than the physical features. After a few cold ones I went by my camping spot for the night - the old frat hous. I met some of the brothers and told them I would be sleeping in the parking lot and to NOT FUCK with me. In true college form they came home from a night on the piss at 2:30 and started throwing random stuff off the 2nd floor balcony? College kids.


Durhamtown is a short 2 hour haul from the Boro and is set up for red neck F U N! I booked a little cabin called the "Dog House". Part of the reason to split up the trip up to DTP was to get in a full day on the trail. I got up there by 10:00 and was on the KTM shortly after.

My home for the next 2 nights. It was dry and hot but the trails are with in eye sight of the cabins. It was mid week so the pace around the place was pretty slow - good decision.


It's not the Ritz but had AC and internet. It was $60 a night and slept 3. It would be a much better deal if I had any friends.


Durhamtown is a cool well organized place. All the trails are one way - no quads flying at ya. Everythhing is marked and there is a big trail the will take you back to camp in 5 min from any place on the property. Here is an example of the start of some single track - I only did 2 of them - it was tight and very hot for the big old 640.


I liked the woods quad trails - not too wide but not as slim as the single track. Very forgiving for my skill level, you could change lanes when you over shoot the corners. I am a high 2nd low 3rd gear farm type rider. Looks kind of wide but it was just the start.



The "Redlands". A play spot in the middle of nowhere. Kind of fun till I put the bike down on a vertical hill climb. Only get off of the of this part of the trip. NC is a differnt story.



A bit more moist in the valley.




They have 8 different motocross tracks spread thoughout the property. I did all but 2 - the pee wee and the super cross called the "Kicken Chicken". The Swamp trail was wide open and you could see it all from one spot - the rest were built in to the flow of the hills. It was my 1st time on a track with jumps and I wish I would have given the cam to someone to get some shots of the 280lb bike flying! No dubs but I did get good at launching in 2nd gear (the easy part) and landing pretty neutral (the hard part).



I like the woods mx stuff but the one in the above pix had a picnic table and you could hang meet the other riders. I did not see another bike with a tag so the LC4 was a bit of a hit.
They even had a drag strip? The tree was on a motion sensor. I smoked 4 quads but was dethroned by a 1986 250r smoker. In true Pinks form I red lighted on my 1st pass.



I did 100 miles of dirt over 2 days. I would go out for about 2 hour come back, shower, grab a cold one, eat and relax and go back out. I went out 3 times each day so about 6 hours each day. A morning ride at 9 when the trails opened, and after lunch ride then an evening ride around 4 - they wanted the trails cleared by 6:00pm.



Looks like I am going to cook the bike. Easy place to load it up.



In the morning I would be going north on 129. All the way from Athens GA to Deals Gap NC.



This RR stuff is taxing. Got to walk away for a bit. Come on back to check out the trails of the Smokey Mt's.

[flan8tive]

Go Fu, go!

It's about 180° here. I have the bikes under a mister.

[Colemanfu]

I had no firm plans other than camp near Robbinsville NC. I posted up my upcoming tip on a regional dirt bike site and checked it before I pulled out of Durhamtown. Cherokee Chuck to the rescue! He told me about a KLR group meeting at the Iron Horse Motorcycle Lodge in Stecoah NC - 12 miles east of Robbinsville and just west of Deals Gap. A popular place for the Dragon slayer crowd.



I was still not dead set on hanging with a bunch of KLRs at a Harley campground so poked around Cheoah Point state park. It was just nice to out of FL and the heat and dust of GA. I decided to drive over to IH just to check it out and figured I could always come back to the state park to camp.



These 2 pix are out of order. I had an 45 min raid delay before unloading.

Another great idea - the place was great!. It was around 4:00 Thursday when I pulled in, right before a huge rain storm. The place was nice - very nice but dead? Turns out everone was out riding - in the rain and even then not many visitors mid week. I made it in the office right as the skys opened up and imediatly met Dave who was hauling you guessed it - a massive KLR. With a major southern drawl he asked "You like huge rocks, logs and gettin stuck?" - I knew I was home.





The place is set up with cabins much more posh than DT and they also rented tents to bikers. I told them I sleep in the truck so they told me to park over by the tenters. Turns out I was the only 4 wheeler over there? It was a perfect site - directly on the creek and across from the lodge. I got the meeting time from Dave, set up my red neck camp and was off for a ride - still not sure about tagging along with all those fat KLRs in the morning.



Off I went on the bike to check out the Tail of the Dragon and my 1st mt. ride of the trip. The rain coold the air down to the low 70's and made for some great new smells and a wicked fog on the river and in the valley.



Just below Fontana Dam - the one the guy jumped off of in the move The Fugative.


The weather was magic! Still not sure of a full knobie on the turns I took it easy. I knew I was not in straght flat FL anymore.



I rode the Dragon - knobies and all. On my way back I stoped at the end and enjoyed the 2nd 1/2 of a Subway sub. Sat on the bench next to the tree with all the junk in it? I felt a bit out of place - not just cause the dirt bike but the bikers were different than what we have in Daytona. They were just a bit more responsible? To spice things up I jumped the bike off the loading dock on my way out. DICK!



I checked out a powerline trail on the way back. Very steep hill climbs.



Made it back to camp just before dark. Cooked on the grill and had a cold 1 or 2,3,4..... The view from my camp was stunning. I loved the low hanging clouds. The house with the tin room is very posh rental. I bet they enjoyed watching the guy camping out of this truck.



Hay girls can you see a little bubble gum? A little morning java and internet before we take off. 62' in the morning. It was so nice to sleep in the cool air with the sound of the creek. Had to close the sunroof in the middle of night because of a little rain.



Now for the Friday ride with the klrworld.com people. Shocker - only 3 KLR? Most had moved on to bikes suited to their specific needs but were still kept in touch through the site. We met in front of the lodge at 9:00 and took off 13 stong.



We did 13 miles of road before we hit some dirt. It was nice to just follow and not have to worry about gettin lost. I stuck to the front - point of the spear you know. The trail was Squalie Creek and it had neve been run all the way to the top? I love a challange. The group was all a buzz about this trail so I could tell we were gettin into some fun shit.



It started with a creek crossing. Here is fellow inmate Mell Brooks making it look easy - which she did all weekend. Earning my vote for "man (or woman) of the match".



I soon learned why it had not been run all the way. It has big rocks.



It also had a creek running down the middle from last nights rain. Knybanjo diggin in. Showing me why I should not goof on KLRs, or at least till I see chucks.



Progress was haulted by this section and from here out it was 50 yards at a time. At one point this spot ate 7 bike - the other 6 had yet to run it. Pix sucks but you can see all the different lines. Far left turned out to be pretty popular.



The far line was an easy choice for the others Kenny dug up the center, the rock line had bolders, I was stuck in the middle line. I was at maximum frustration - only time during the entire week. One guy even suggested truning around? I lifted the front tire to the sky and stalled the piece of junk in fear inches from the top.



I decided to use my super human stregth and lift the ass end up level with the front only to have the entire bike slide down. I don't get shook easy but this one spot made me want to spit! The group had great trail etiquette sp? and was quick to help those in need.



To peak that section you had to split the rear end of an old truck. Just an example of how nasty Squalie creek can be. Can you tell I was stoked to have made it. You can see Knybanjo was enjoying the brief bit of success as well.



Almost to the top - time to take a break. Three things to note:
1. The bike was still running? No lie, it sat on it's side and ran as we walked over to help.
2. He runs rental biz and had it booked the next day.
3. Street tires on this trail - only if your a pro.



Nice trail fix on Mel's bike. She went to the right to avoid a sharp rock. I bet she was glad she had her petcock to break the bikes fall when it went down - on the sharp rock.



Look out don't pull a groin. Sucks to take a dab and have nothing but air. In this case it was air then slick mud.



No man gets left behind. A group shot at the top.



A quick stop on the way back to camp. Sorry Fleas, it's a dry county. No beer? Dry county? I was due for one at this point. The guy on the napping KLR on street tires owns this nice little store. It's on a cool road 143 that links up with the Dragon 129 to make a 120 mile popular loop. It was cool to hang out there and watch all cars/bikes go by. Gas up, get a bit to eat or rent a well tested KLR.



It was 17 miles of pavement back to camp. 3rd place. If I was in the back I would have been left in the dust. These FF's have no fear of aired down knobies and curves.



It was great to be back at camp. The place has super clean hot showers and the blue cooler under the truck has super cold beer. Looks like a tenter moved in next to me. More to come.

[Dr.Z]

Nice report!

Looks like you had a lot of fun.

[jaydee1445]

Nice pics wish I was there. My riding partner today went to the hospital with heat stroke.

[mel brooks]

Nice to meet/ride with you Mike! For a sand flea you sure rode those mountain trails like a local. Let us know when you're coming back!

[Colemanfu]

Thanks for the face time Mel. You folks were great hosts.

Saturday was going to be a mellow day on Huffman Creek. Yea right! We met up at 9:00am again. I could have lived with 10 but remember I was just following along. 16 or so miles to the dirt and once there we climbed and climbed. The reward was this high lake. It was private land but we had the bike OK to explore.



I thought we were at the top but the quad trails kept climbing.



Once at the top we followed some quad trails back down. At one point we came to an open section where there were some locals. Most in the group did not realize what was going on - justed buzzed past. Not me I had to stop. I asked if I could take a picture and the reply was "Of me?" I shot and ran.



They were working on supper. They had 2 strung up but I took a pix of this one casue it sill looked like a rabit. Sorry locals I cut off one of you youngins. Notice they had a cage with a few more waiting.

We made our way down to a nice camp spot on the water.

It was gettin close to lunch so we took a trail that shot us out in Andrews. It's a lid slapper called the Hobbit trail cause it's so low. Off to the shire.



After lunch we split into 2 groups. We were now a tight goup of well expereinced riders - then me. We had one more big one to hit. After a 4 days on the back of the KTM I was feeling it. Durhamtown worked my quads with all the up and down and jumping and NC worked my upperbody. We rode a long ass trail full of rocks that was bone jaring. We took a break before the last hard section. I need it.



I was glad to stop. It was all up hill and bowling ball sized rocks. I was starting to get slopy and was hittin more than I was missin - just ask my front rim. Then it started to rain. Rain hard. And as you can see it was dark at only about 4:00. One of the hard parts with a bigger group is the start and stop becaue of stucks. If one gets stuck the trail is blocked. To be honest I was sick of it and just wanted out. See the KTM out front? Point of the spear again. Did not lead much but stayed in the front 3rd.



Last section I was the dick - again. I wanted out. IT was all up hill in the mud and rain. 1st guy went out 30 yards and got stuck. He said he stoped to tell us it was slick - yea right. I saw my chance and started off. At least I hit the horn as I went around - he he. I had the do or die mentality leading out. If you stoped you would never get going again - with out some help. It was like Forest Gump in nam when he runs so fast he runs past his company is all by himself. That was me.



I bet it was almost a mile of nasty rain soaked rocks, a creek running down the middle and slick mud till I poped out onto this gravel road. To be honest it was an emotional experience and I even welled up a bit. Last trail of the day, dumping rain, uber hard trail and survived the trip. Man I had a great week on the road. It was a moment that made the trip - Thanks Chuck! I parked the junk and waited 15 min till I could hear the sound of the next bike coming. It took so long I was thining I took a wrong turn. I took the below pix and walked down to help the others - no one made it clean.



I knew it was my last ride of the whole trip so I stoped for some pix, helped one of the group load up his bike so I was well behind the rest. 2nd best part of the trip - those guys waited. When I got to the bottom of the Mt. there was 2 of the group waiting for me! Hell yea! You guys rock. They must have been there 10 plus min. as I dicked around. I was later told that one of the leaders said they could not leave anyone on the mt. Top shelf stuff.



Back at camp I was nackered. Droped the pack, took off the jacket and went right to the cooler and did not move out of the chair till finished a beer. More campers had showed up during the day and the place was full of activity - nothing like a Key West on a Friday night after a week of work but kind of fun atmosphere. Hot shower 2 more pints then it was burger time! I was a new man and ready to party with my new klrworld buddies.



During dinner I had front row seats for the duck race. They sell ducks, send them down the river and if your # wins I guess you get something.



Too bad some shit for brains (me) was cooking and blocked the view with all the smoke.



Hell of a trip. Last stop was to meet Ms. Manfu and her brothers family for a foat down the river in Ellijay GA. I crashed in the back on the way to Atlanta after boating.



She flew up Thursday night to visit her parents and to meet her brothers 3 month old little boy. We got up Monday morning and drove back to Daytona. I'll go up to western VA in August but this early summer adv will be hard to top. Next summer it's out west!



I hope you enjoyed a week on the road with Colemanfu.

[IMG]

[MiamiMike]

Great report,awesome adventure
One of them bowlin bowl rocks hit your headlight
Way to show them northerners how to ride

[Jack Daniel]

Damn Mike

Looks Good

Especially those cotton tails

Hailey's been buggin' me about getting a rabbit

I told her yes

We could raise some

But we'd be raisin' them for dinner

We still don't have any

[GB]

Moved to RR at your request!

[Colemanfu]

GB to the rescue. Turned out longer. Headlight works fine?


Almost like a rain forest.

[Gaston Gagne]

Nice stuff! Hope to get out that way and check this steep hill.