I just got back from a 2 day trip to Tellico Plains.  My neighbor has been anxious to go for a ride down in NC/TN, and we have been watching the weather for a weekend with dry/warm weather.  The forecast for the weekend was about as good as we could have expected this time of year.  There was a forecast for an overnight rain on Friday evening into Saturday morning - but dry most of Friday and Saturday/Sunday.

We called and were able to get a cabin at the Cherohala Mountain Trails Campground.  The cost was $60 a night for the cabin.  The place was pretty nice - the 4 bathroom/showers were not spectacular...but they were clean.  The floor isn't sloped very well to control the drainage from the shower....there was no heat inside that could take off the chill in the 50/60 degree weather.  They did have breakfast and meals available on the weekends, and the food was good.  The campground is about 4 miles from downtown Tellico Plains.  The owners Wayne and Kelli were very friendly and easy going.
https://cmtrails.com/

We left KY at 3AM on Friday morning and drove to Tellico Plains.  We arrived around 9AM, and we got unpacked into the cabin and unloaded the bikes from the trailer....and we hit the road at 10AM.   There was some kind of a Dual Sport event that weekend - and the Dual Sport/Adventure bikes dominated the area.  Traffic was very light as the tourist season has not kicked in - the entire 40 miles of the Skyway we only saw a few cars and motorcycles.  The sky was cloudy and the temperature was in the middle 50's when we left - it dropped to 47 at the top of the Cherohala, and it was a bit windy.

We rode to Robbinsville on the Skyway, then up 28 to the Dragon.  The area was not busy with only about 20 bikes parked at Deals Gap store/hotel.  Temperatures were up in the 60's around noon when we arrived at the Tail of the Dragon.  We rode the Dragon and did not get a single bike or car in front of us the entire length of the Dragon.  When get got to the north end of the Dragon a light misty rain started and was not hard enough to get us wet - but the roads got damp.  We rode to 72 and then got on 360 to ride back to Tellico Plains on very wet roads (165 miles total).

The overnight weather included a hard thunderstorm, and we had strong winds all day long.  We rode the Skyway, then up 129 to Deals Gap, then south on 28 to Franklin.  We got on Wayah Road and had a very nice ride - then went to the Nantahala Outdoor Center and ate lunch.  From there we rode to the Cherohala Skyway and rode back to Tellico Plains (270 miles total).  The wind was very strong until about 5 miles from Tellico Plains...then the wind just decided to stop.

There was almost one casualty on Saturday when we were riding on 28 and had just left the Fontana Dam area.  We were going about 50mph and there was a car parked on the right side of the road, and the three young men inside all had their cell phones pointed at us.  As we passed them an overhead electric line that crossed the road suddenly dropped down and hit the pavement about 20 feet in front of me.  I got no warning and didn't have time to apply the brakes or stop - I didn't notice the cable until I picked up the motion of a falling cable.  The cable stayed flat on the road as I passed over it.  I looked in my left mirror and I saw a basketball sized flame/spark in the trees on the left side of the road.....that evidently was the "hot" side of the cable and it was arcing in the tree branches.

We chose to go to stay in Tellico Plains as the weather forecast for that area was better than Robbinsville or Suches, and we didn't have to drive the truck/trailer on the Tail of the Dragon to get to the campground.

Tellico Plains requires that you ride the Cherohala Skyway to get to our favorite riding places - and although that is an enjoyable ride - I am not sure you want to spend 2 hours each day riding the Skyway to get to Robbinsville so you can get to the fun roads around Robbinsville/Franklin/Cherokee/etc.  (It is also just a bit too far away from Suches/Hiawasee to make that area accessible).

The next trip for Deb and I is to Texas the last week of this month.  When we get back my neighbor and I will likely be taking a trip to Suches.....I will let you all know when we are planning to go is you want to join us.