For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. Isaiah 44:3 (ESV)
For someone who usually travels with an agenda, this week has been unexpected and lots of fun. On our last day in the mountains, we rode south on the Parkway with Cherokee as our planned destination. There wasn’t really anything we wanted to see there, but were just out to enjoy the ride. We did even though the clouds were low and we were often riding inside them. Husband always enjoys the overlook at the Highest Peak and talking to the other motorcycle riders there so we stopped again, took more pictures and looked at the many other bikes up there. Then, we kept riding south until we got to the Visitors Center eighteen miles from Cherokee. While we were taking some pictures, another couple asked us what a large beige structure was far in the distance. We didn’t know, but we all concluded it must be some kind of dam or power plant. When we went to the visitor’s center, husband asked the ranger and was told that it was not a dam but a casino in Cherokee. It was huge and almost unbelievable that something of that magnitude could have been built in such a natural wonderful place as the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was enough to change our minds about going to the end of the Parkway as we decided to avoid Cherokee, so we turned around and went back to an exit for Waynesville. I have always prided myself on being sneaky at squeezing in places that I want to go on our trips and acting like it was a coincidence, but husband pulled one over on me by orchestrating for us to drive past the motorcycle guy’s place that was closed yesterday. Surprise! He was open today. The man has more than three buildings full of old cars, motorcycles and parts. One of the buildings was bigger than a football field. They are wall to wall packed with old stuff. Piles of old bicycles, cars, motorcycles, mufflers, motors and other parts. Everywhere you looked there was something interesting to see. Unlike museums that you visit, everything was in an unrestored state with things stacked on top of other things. It was like walking into a puzzle. He remembered the story behind everything and gave us a tour of the place. He is a collector and made it clear that he was not interested in selling anything. That is why when the guys from American Pickers showed up, he refused to be on the show or sell them anything. We really liked the man and enjoyed our time with him. We thanked him profusely and made the trip back over the mountain to Brevard where we just beat the rain and loaded up the motorcycle into the truck. After dinner on Main Street, we returned to the cabin and realized we had missed a huge storm. A final surprise as the stream and waterfall are overflowing their banks. It has been a wonderful week of adventures.
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