Tour de Pisgah 2013

[Gravel_Rocks]

Tour de Pisgah 2013 Pics/Report

Tour de Pisgah 2013 pics. :ebiggrin:
Thanks for the invite and the tour Carljwnc, hopefully we'll get together again soon!

Carl and his kids met me for dinner the nite before the Tour at a Mexican place frequented by them. I swear I heard one of the senoritas greet Carl as "Big C".
The service was quick, the food was very tasty and the WNC family was plenty entertaining.

DosEq and shrimp/steak fajita.

Carl had wisely set the meet up spot at 8 a.m. in the woods. A quick shot or two while waiting.

A poser gotta pose.

More to come!

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

Blue Ridge Parkway overpass. If you've ever got a ton of time to kill, check out the StreetView or the GoogleEarth fly over of the scenic road.

Mr.Norris approves.

The 1st leg led us thru Bent Creek Experimental Forest.

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

We took a short hike on trail where Carl said his kids have made plenty of laps back and forth on bicycles there.

...the woods were beautiful there.:ebiggrin:

When back on the gravel rd. we moved over at one point to let 3 riders pass by , a few miles later we pulled over again to have a chat when we saw 'em taking a break.

We were doin' the same Tour lap.:iconwink:

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

With all the rain this Summer the fungi are in rare form, some I've never seen before. Thanks for pointing this cluster out Big C.

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

 

[E.J.]

Looks like an awesome time, sorry to miss it. We actually came through Bent Creek (and under the Norris bridge) on our big trip.

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

Did y'all paint the Norris?

Good to hear that y'all went thru BC and rode thru the woods there E.J. I forgot how nice the creek was for mile after mile and is accessible at many spots. I had to keep resisting the urge to kick off the shoes and soak the dogs for awhile. Maybe later this Summer...

 

[havachat]

Great photos Gravel Rocks, what camera do you have.

 

[mr turbo]

That DosEq and shrimp/steak fajita looks just so yummy & mouth watering

Great trip report too guys :biggrin:

Sounds like you all had a fantastic time

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[carljwnc]

WhooHoo!!! I knew your pictures were going to be way better than mine, thats kinda' why I wanted you to post first.:iconwink:

It was a great day, and while the weather cooperated with us, it rained quite a bit at my house not too far away.

A few more pics;

Shrooms everywhere...

This is pretty much it for my car pics.

More fungus???

Strange stand of trees. Must have been a tree farm at some point in time, they are all lined up in nice rows.

:ebiggrin:

 

[carljwnc]

Alright, after a lunch stop Gravel peeled off and started (roughly) to head back home. Hayden and I took off back up another gravel road and headed up towards Looking Glass Rock. We had been checking it out from the far side of the park, and I've always wanted to hike up to it, but never had. Today was the day.:ebiggrin:

But first, the strangest of the strange fungus(?). I didn't get a really good pic of it, but it is a translucent sac with a red glob in the middle. Looked like an alien eye ball.

We got to the base of the rock...it wasn't nearly as impressive as it looked from the far side of the park.

...oh wait, the trail goes onward in a much more upward direction.

It is so huge, without an extreme wide angle lens there is no way that you can get even a decent chunk of it in a photo.

Anyway, we bailed out on taking the gravel all the way back and jumped on the parkway (we did the Bent Creek gravel section again though), paused at an over look and caught a glimpse of what we were headed home to...

Great day, great company, and some good adventures!!! And soon, Hayden, my father and I are going to do the three mile hike to the top of Looking Glass Rock.

 

[Gravel_Rocks]

Great photos Gravel Rocks, what camera do you have.

Thanks! Most of the pics were shot with a Sony A65, it's my 1st dslr and I'm still learning to use it. The creek pics were my 1st attempt at adjusting the shutter speed to get that fuzzy effect. I should have taken the time to set up the tripod. The fajita pic was taken with a Sony p/s DSC-W350.

WhooHoo!!! I knew your pictures were going to be way better than mine, thats kinda' why I wanted you to post first.:iconwink:

:ebiggrin: Thanks but your 'shroom pics look purty darn good too.

Alright, after a lunch stop Gravel peeled off and started (roughly) to head back home. Hayden and I took off back up another gravel road and headed up towards

Great day, great company, and some good adventures!!!

I ended up hanging at the creek for another hour playing with the camera before heading out. After sliding thru Brevard I hit backroads all the way to Charlotte, a 3 hour drive turned to 6 hours to get home.:rotfl: Nothing too major but lots of scenery.

Hopefully I'll have a vid edited down soon!

 

[mr turbo]

Thanks for the addition pics carljwnc

I really like the Shrooms pics too, fantastic :biggrin:

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[carljwnc]

:ebiggrin: Thanks but your 'shroom pics look purty darn good too.

I ended up hanging at the creek for another hour playing with the camera before heading out. After sliding thru Brevard I hit backroads all the way to Charlotte, a 3 hour drive turned to 6 hours to get home.:rotfl: Nothing too major but lots of scenery.

Hopefully I'll have a vid edited down soon!

Thanks.:ebiggrin: They did come out alright, not too bad for a phone.

Glad you found some fun on the way home. I've stretched out a trip or two before. I was taking the kids to the family reunion once, an hour and a half away, think it ended up being a six hour journey.

Need to tell you too; Hayden loves that chocolate milk you told us about.:ebiggrin: Lillian still likes her Ovaltine better though.

Thanks for the addition pics carljwnc

I really like the Shrooms pics too, fantastic :biggrin:

Regards
Mr Turbo

Thanks Mr. T. All in all, it was a great day. It has been way too long since I've gotten out in the woods at all. Must make it happen more frequently.:iconwink:

 

[mr turbo]

It has been way too long since I've gotten out in the woods at all. Must make it happen more frequently.:iconwink:

You & me both mate I know exactly what you mean :iconwink:

Regards
Mr Turbo

 

[HFDSubie]

Great pics!

 

[Ratbag]

Gidday GR & Carl

Terrific pics. Wonderful mushies ...

Looks like a great day's touring and viewing :biggrin:.

 

[carljwnc]

Thanks RB!!!:ebiggrin:

I used to get out there all the time, it's not that far away for me, certainly need to spend more time out there, in the car, on my MTB, and just hiking around.