Where did we go?

Ryan was the map maker for this late October 2021 trip. We welcomed a new driver to the CLR crew, Ben Bridges (94 Red NA).
Ryan and Ben drove in from Charleston, SC while Tom, Tristan, Jonathon and Sara J drove in from Indy and we met in Olive Springs, TN.

Schedule

Day One - Indy or Charleston to Clinton, TN. Devils Triangle.
The Indy group left in rain and ran into problems on I-75, first an accident and then construction, losing time, but we met Ryan and Ben in Olive Springs only a little behind schedule. We proceeded to the Brushy Mountain Grill (thumbs up!) for a late lunch before tackling the Devil's Triangle. Onto Waldon Ridge Road, freshly paved... ok, it's gravel after a while, but that's ok as we did power slides through the curves (and got the gravel portion of the trip out of the way). We ended up at the Super 8 in Clinton, TN. Can't recommend it... poor internet, beds that felt like plywood and...a rat was spotted outside.

Day Two - Clinton, TN to Norton, VA. Dragon Slayer and Slingshot
After breakfast at the Waffle House (it's a tradition), we headed to the mountains, foggy but tops down! We lost Tom for a bit as he headed back to get his iPad he left at the not so Super 8. What we thought was the Slingshot was actually a new road for us (the Two Headed Dragon) and we found a rally road. Next up was the Dragon Slayer, freshly paved on the Kentucky side. Whee! Photos and stickers at the bottom in Lynch. We stopped at a food truck in Benham and had GREAT BBQ, then it was off to the Slingshot. A Buick diminished the experience a bit, but another fun run. Back through the Dragon Slayer where we saw a Mustang freshly stuffed into the mountain side and Ben was dealing with no brakes on the downhill side with a Nissan on his rear bumper. Off to Norton where we drove to the High Knob Lookout Tower after attempting a shortcut that turned out to be a driveway. (Oops.) The road to and from the Lookout was fun!
Thumbs down on our dining experience at the Woodbooger Grill, poor service with mostly average food.

Day Three - Norton, VA to Marion, VA. The Snake and Back of the Dragon (twice!)
Huddle House for breakfast (a new tradition!) and then off for a day of exploring. We stopped at Dogtown Used Auto Parts (according to their sign you can get Cadillac converters there!) to make sure Roger's boat was still there (it was) and then off to SR80 (Hayter's Gap Road). This section of SR80 has no name like many of the "Dragon" named roads, so for us, it will be SR80 Cool Little Road. Lunch in Bristol at Southern Craft BBQ (thumbs up!), then it was off to explore a cave! This was a "Stop and smell the roses" stop, we took a tour of the Bristol Cavern which was cool! Next up was the Snake (SR6). After driving the first section (and being passed by a biker with more bravery than brains), we made a quick stop at the Shady Valley store for stickers and shirts, then ran the 2nd portion of the Snake. Saw a couple of Miatas among the motorcycles and buicks on the Snake, but it was a warm, sunny Sunday afternoon and it was just too busy. As we continued east, traffic got heavier and Tom and Tristan and Alexis got separated from the other four cars. (We eventually all got back together....) We checked in at the Econolodge, then most of us tackled the Back of the Dragon. The northbound run was good, but we had two inept motorcyclists in front of us on the way back. It was dark and they really shouldn't have been on the road, but we eventually got by them.

Day Four - Homeward Bound. Ryan and Ben head back to Charleston and the rest north to Indy.
Breakfast at Atkins Tank and then goodbyes were said. Ryan and Ben headed off to Charleston while the Indy group went north. We decided to change our route. The Indy group ran into rain in Kentucky, but eventually the sky cleared and the roads dried. Sara peeled off towards Lexington while the Indiana cars continued north on I75 and home.

Another great CLR in the books. Kudos to Ryan and his great route planning!