Hi to everyone! I wanted to let everyone know about a meet and drive planned, based in Abingdon, VA for August 16-17. Already there will be about 7 MINIs coming, but the more the merrier! For anyone not familiar with the area, Abingdon is a historic town located along I-81 about 15 miles north of the TN border. It is surrounded by the Appalachian mountains and there are some great roads in the area that twist up through the hills.

The plan is to have a day’s drive on Saturday 8/16. We’ll meet in the parking lot of the Alpine Motel at 8:30 and plan to leave by 9:00 AM. We’ll stop for lunch in Damascus, VA along the way and probably finish up the day around 3 or 4:00. Dinner plans will be forthcoming.

On Sunday AM I will arrange a bike trip for anyone interested. There is a converted rail-trail called the Virginia Creeper that starts at the top of White Top mountain. A shuttle service will rent a bike to you and provide transportation to the top of the trail. The ride is essentially a 17 mile coast down the mountain, over some beautiful old trestles. There is very little effort involved (my favorite kind of exercise!). I’ll need a fairly accurate head count for this so that I can make the reservations. The shuttle would leave at 8:30 AM, and you’d be down the mountain by 11:00. You could easily have eaten lunch and be on your way back home by noon if needed.

You can read more about the Creeper Trail here or here.

A block of rooms has been reserved at the Alpine Motel (a classic sort of motor inn here in Abingdon). The phone # there is 276-628-3178. Address is 882 E Main St. The price there is $49 + tax and includes a modest continental breakfast. Other breakfast places are nearby. I’m also planning a dinner for those who are in town on Friday evening, and will give details out a little closer to the date.

I think this will be a really fun weekend… hopefully looking forward to seeing some of you there! Please respond here or to my email vamini@earthlink.net

 

:smile:

Just a suggestion, you might want to also post this in the MidAtlantic Region..
donna@dcmetrominis.org

 

Great! It would be awesome to have you all. You are definitely welcome to bring your own bikes. I didn't mention the shuttle and bike rental fees are $10 each, so you'd cut your cost in half!

And thanks for the suggestion about posting in Mid-Atlantic...

 

That sounds like a fun trip you have planned, VAMini.

For those not familiar with the area, it's scenic. The VA Creeper trail is a blast, and for anyone that enjoys fly fishing, the S. Holston is very close by, and Beaverdam Creek is just outside of Damascus. Both are excellent fisheries. In fact, I do believe that's the Holston behind VAMini's car in her sig.

My wife and I enjoy the restaurants in Abingdon, as well.

See ya,
JS

 

Thought I'd give this a bump and let you know that I'd love to go, but you're just a bit outside my driving range as I can only get away for one day.

Hope you guys have a blast!!

 

Thanks for the bump Moorlockx! I'm sorry you won't be able to come, maybe next time! I think we'll have a great drive!

 

In the hopes of sparking a bit more interest...

Here are a couple other links that talk about some of the roads we'll be driving:
From MiataDrives.com click on Virginia on the map and check out the first, third, and fourth routes listed.

From MotorcyclePlayground.com check out the links to US 421 and Hwy 91.

I'm telling y'all, we've got great roads in SWVA! As a point of reference, Abingdon is 2 hours south of Roanoke, VA; 2 hours north of Knoxville, TN; 2 hours north of Asheville, NC.