scrubbedexpat097

We are off to explore some of the states to the east of us, we are leaving on Saturday.
It will be in the truck, old bones and other issues probably not ideal for that long of a journey on the bike

So the plan is to head to North Carolina to visit a motorcycle museum via a stop off in Georgia to see a lovely friend. Then after NC we will head over to Tennessee and Arkansas and back to Tx.

As I have to spend time looking at bikes in NC I get to choose other stop off points so any suggestions?

Yorkieabroad

That time of year again eh

We did sort of the reverse a couple of years ago, but got "stuck" in the Smokey Mountains so never actually made it as far as the Carolina's (or Washington DC which had been the original destination), so can't help you there, but:-

Arkansas is good for old bones......Hot Springs is always a favorite overnight for us, but that's partly because it's about a days drive when we're towing the trailer.
Mt Magazine State Park has some great cabins overlooking the valley, and I want to say they have hot tubs on their balconies, but check that as I might be thinking of somewhere else.....
We had a few great days in Memphis and Nashville, though the Grand Ole Oprey ticket prices were so eye watering that we made do with the Oaklawn Oprey in Texarkana instead($4 per person, kids half price)
If you're on the interstate between Memphis and Nashville around lunchtime (can't remember where exactly) and you see the sign to Casey Jones museum, head off and go to the buffet in the square opposite the museum....it's sort of like The Walton's meets Cracker Barrel...we had a great fill of real home style southern cooking. he museum was worth an hour or so, too.
East end of the state, avoid pigeon forge and Gatlinburg...latter wasn't quite as bad as the former, but both pretty grim tourist traps. Shame, because the Parks are beautiful, and full of stuff to do which was why we got hung up there.

Jumping over to the other part of the trip, if you're heading up to Georgia thru Alabama on i85, you go right past a small but quite nice museum for the Tuskegee Airmen. Day we stopped we were the only ones there, and got chatting with the lady on the desk. Turned out she had worked in the canteen on the airbase when they were there at the very end of the war. Nice stop if you're passing, but wouldn't go too far out of the way to hit it. Although it wasn't too far from a roadside shack advertising hand grenades for sale, in case you need to top up your armoury

Am sure there must be lots more en route, but minds gone blank for now....have a good trip!

Macca67

Sounds like it'll be a blast. Have fun and give my love to Auntie when you see her.

scrubbedexpat097

Yep..it's that let's get in the truck and go thing again

Good suggestions, thanks. I was looking at The Hermitage Plantation in Tennessee. It was the home of Andrew Jackson and looks interesting. I would like to also take a peak at Graceland but it will probably be way too busy and crowded.

Of course there is also a great possibility that the whole itinerary will change..

scrubbedexpat097

I will

scrubbedexpat091

I love road trips, been 10 years since my last though...Awesome way to see the country.

Have fun.

scrubbedexpat097

Thanks. Ours tend to be spur of the moment without defined routes but we try to go somewhere different each time.

Just have to get through this week of work first though

Yorkieabroad

I would do Graceland if you get chance... I went years back with mates, then again last year with the kids, and enjoyed it both times. Yes, it gets busy, but they "schedule" the trips across to the house/grounds by bus from the visitor center over the road, so they can control how many people are there at any time, and it seems to work pretty well. The other thing I enjoyed in Memphis was the Gibson guitar factory (if you're into that sort of thing).

Yorkieabroad

Ps....not sure where you stay, but if you really want to take the "tacky to the extreme" route, there is an Elvis themed hotel across the road, at the end of Lonely St, called ....... Well, I guess you can guess...

We stayed there on my first trip and it was hilarious, although I suspect we were viewed as irreverent by some of the guests who seemed to treat it more as a shrine!

scrubbedexpat097

Oh great..now guess what song is in my head for the rest of the day

Pulaski

It looks like you'll be coming through my back yard! .... Aside from your ultimate destination, there aren't many "must do" sites round here, though Cival War sites are everywhere, but few were famous or pivotal. There is a pretty big CW cemetery in Salisbury, with memorials from a number of states who sent men to fight from as far away as Maine, who ended up in a pretty ugly POW camp in Salisbury.

There's a lot of wineries opened up in this area too, with the biggest and one of the best just outside Lexington, NC, called Childress Winery, which is located a remarkable pastiche of an Italian country villa. Lexington has a bunch of barbeque restaurants, several of which claim to be the original one in town.

There ain't much in downtown Charlotte, just about every pre 1920 has been demolished, and most buildings are less than 50 years old. I wouldn't bother with, and in deed I haven't bothered with, the NASCAR Hall of Fame. There is a new AAA ball park downtown if you want to take in a baseball game, it is reported to be a nice facility, but I haven't been there yet either.

If you have any interest in NASCAR take a tour of Charlotte Motor Speedway, it is pretty cheap (it used to be $10/head, I think it may have gone up to $15), and is an impressive facility with a lot more than just the 1½mile oval track.

On the way over to TN you'll pass close to Asheville and the Biltmore, which is OK if you like touring stately homes, but is dämned expensive for what it is (which is a knock-off of Chatsworth House in the UK, IMHO).

scrubbedexpat097

NASCAR not really our thing but thanks anyway.

I think M has found where every M/Cycle Museum in every state we will go through but as interested as I am we will not be visiting them all.

I'll wave as we go by

cxx

Do you mean the Barber museum? I'm not a bike fan, but it's definitely worth a visit. They're really welcoming, and if they don't offer ask for the AAA rate.

scrubbedexpat097

It's called Wheels through Time, so I think it is a different one, but someone else recommended the Barber so we may go to that as well.

scrubbedexpat097

Made it to Mississippi. Will keep going for s few more hours