This morning we enjoyed a great breakfast and then worked for a little while. Reagan finished her work first and I decided it was time to go play so I stopped working a short while later. We left the hotel just after 10:30 and headed south on I-81 to Hwy 8 which would return us to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
We stopped in Floyd, Va. for fuel and some food to eat along the way. A few miles later we reached the BRP and headed south. Traffic was very light and I joked that it wasn’t called the Blue Ridge Parkway but rather the Brian & Reagan Parkway. Travel was easy and full of twists and turns.
Around mile post 229 we reached the detour which Reagan had found out about by reading the nps.gov site. The detour took us away from our route and into warmer temps. Cars unable to go the speed limit were the biggest stress factor along the detour. But with patience we made it to the end of the detour and found ourselves once again on the BRP with an open road in front of us.
We stopped for lunch at one of the overlooks and enjoyed a light meal, V-8 juice, snack mix, beef jerky. Yum! This worked well as we were able to enjoy the wilderness while eating something light.
With lunch finished we resumed the ride south with about 80 miles left for the day. The further south we rode the higher the elevation got. We were going into the mountains. We stopped at a visitor center and purchased a few of the “decreasing radius” items they had for sale. Then it was back on the road.
We exited the BRP at mile post 331 and turned onto 226A to find the Skyline Village Inn. When we pulled up I was a little concerned but once I went in and started talking to Joe I felt really good about the place. We parked the bikes around back under a special covered area exclusively for motorcycles and then carried our stuff.
Today we road 203 miles in 5.5 hours. It was a great day of riding.
Normally that’s where the blog entry would end. But after we got into the room and changed into street clothes we headed downstairs to check out the food and drink situation. Reagan found the gem store on the first floor and acquired a beautiful emerald along with lots of other things, I bought a sticker. Then we headed into the restaurant. Again, my first impression was “what have I gotten us into?” But once we got our beers and placed our order then Mike, the owner, showed up and started telling us about the history of the place. The original owner was a moonshiner and built the hotel from his earnings as a ‘shiner’. Then we found out that Wednesday night is “Beer Club” night. Around 6:30 locals showed up and we were included in their weekly meeting. Mike has a passion for bringing craft beers to his store, he’s got so many unique beers I haven’t seen before. His selection rivals Specs liquor. We enjoyed tasting some different beers and then played a trivia game with some really odd questions. The evening was a blast!!! It was the most fun we’ve had in the evening during the whole trip.
If you want a great, warm and friendly atmosphere, show up at the Skyline Village Inn on a Wednesday and stay for the night. Get down to the first floor restaurant around 6 and enjoy the evening with fun people. And leave your apprehensions behind, the hotel has a unique character with all the wood working and masonry work. Reagan and I want to come back and stay for several days to enjoy the area.
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