Monday 7 April
A beautiful crisp and sunny morning means we all have to get the layers out again and we are on the road early to set off for today's ultimate destination of Deal's Gap in the Smoky Mountains. But again there is lots to see on the way.

The first stop is at the Tallulah Point Overlook to see the Tallulah Gorge and falls - some parts of which were used in the film "Deliverance". It is also famous for being traversed by tightrope by the "Great Wallenda" on 18 July 1970 and there are still parts of the tower he used to support the tightrope at either end of the gorge. He must have been mad!!

Another port of call along the way, and one that has been planned for a long time, is to stop at a tiny place called Tiger. Originally, the idea was to take the (Triumph) Tiger to Tiger to have it's photograph taken but hey at least we made it and we can say we have been to Tiger - Georgia. The lady who stops to chat and take our photographs tells us that the, one and only, store in town makes the best burgers in the States so, as it is lunchtime, we decide we should only do the right thing and try them out.

Whilst we are outside eating our burgers a guy stops to talk to us and we have a pretty long conversation with him.. well Ralph and Katrina do as the guy has such a strong Southern drawl that is difficult for Neil and I to understand the majority of what he is saying. I do catch words like "Hilary" and "Obama" and "kids of today" but not much more. But it turns out he is called Beaver Carpenter and he is a carpenter, on the grand scale. He has a little album of his work and it is fantastic, anything from a dining table or bed right up to a whole house to put them in, and he starts with a tree trunk straight out of the forest. No going down to the Home Depot or B&Q for a plank of wood here! Another character who is really happy to talk to us. Oh, and the burgers? They were pretty good!

Then we are leaving Georgia and into our next state of North Carolina and it won't be long before we get to Deal's Gap in the Smoky Mountains. The roads start to curve and edge lakes - good to be going round bends again, we had forgotten what it was like after the straight and long roads of Florida. The weather is good and the scenery beautiful, perfect biking conditions.

So, we arrive at Deal's Gap which is a motorcycle resort - motel, gas, restaurant, bike related merchandise - situated at the bottom of the "Dragon's Tail". The Dragon is 11 miles of scenic and twisty road which starts one mile from the Tennessee state line but is famous in the area for its 318 turns. There is a tree of shame at Deal's Gap on which hangs parts of bikes that didn't make it but this doesn't put Neil and Ralph off in any way and they are looking forward to tackling the bends tomorrow.

Amazingly, once all the day bikers have gone home and the sun starts to set, the resort is very peaceful and it looks like, apart from three other guys from Canada, we are the only people staying here tonight. We look forward to a good night's sleep before the excitement of experiencing The Dragon tomorrow.

Tuesday 8 April
Another perfect day in the Smoky Mountains dawns and the noise of visiting bikes starts to grow. Good idea to have breakfast and see how the traffic goes at the start of the Tail. At a time when the number of bikes out on the road doesn't seem so bad, Neil and Ralph prepare to set off and Katrina and I take the opportunity to take some time off the bike and chill-out in the sun.

The guys set off together but will be taking the bends at their own speeds - Neil a little quicker than Ralph as our bike is younger and more adaptable to the twists where Ralph's "old lady" needs a little more coaxing round the bends. But they both get back safe and sound and are pretty excited about what they have just experienced. Ralph was able to mount his camera on his bike and video part of the journey and the result was pretty successful. So, we McGiver a mount for the camera on the Beemer and Neil is ready to set off again, this time filming nearly the whole of the 318 turns out and 318 turns back. He is very pleased with the result and both he and Ralph can say they have conquered the Dragon.

That was the morning's activities over and the afternoon was an opportunity for Katrina and I to experience the Dragon for a trip down to civilisation (well a visit to Wal-Mart in Maryville 36 miles away) but at a more sedate pace for the guys than earlier in the day. This meant that, by the end of the day, Neil had done three round trips of the Dragon's Tail - a total of 1,908 turns and 66 miles! A great day was had by all.