Monday, May 7, 2012
Traveled from milepost 174.1 - 217.5
I woke up this morning with a swollen left eye. Yesterday some bug bit me on the outside corner of my left eyebrow. I didn't see the bug, nor feel the bite. But this morning my eye was all swollen. I look like an ogre now with bad hair days and a swollen eye. I have been putting ice on it and it has gone down but you can still see it since it is turning a bit red.
Otherwise the day started overcast and in the 60's again, but it started to drizzle later in the day. Luckily it was just a little bit towards the end of the ride. After the guys left Karen and I did a quick tour of the cemetery which is right next to the Inn. After that we went to the
Mabry Mill. The mill is the most photographed sight on the Parkway. This place has the mill and a museum with all kinds of farm equipment etc. After our little tour Karen and I had lunch at the attached restaurant. It was a bit slow, had to wait for a table and then wait for the food. It was all because there was a group tour that had just arrived. Wonder what it would be like during the peak season. Food was very good though.
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| Mabry Mill |
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| Mabry Mill |
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| Mabry Mill, farm equipment |
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| Mabry Mill, Blacksmith shop |
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| Mabry Mill, mill stones |
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| Mabry Mill, Appalachian house |
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| Mabry Mill, Whiskey Still |
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| Mabry Mill, Sorghum making equipment |
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| Red Neck Martini Glass. . . . |
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| Puckett Cabin |
After we left the mill we went straight to the Cumberland Gap where we were meeting the guys. Just before the Gap we crossed the state line from Virginia to North Carolina., around milepost 216.9. The parkway is closed right at the Gap due to construction along the parkway. We had to get off the road and ended up in Sparta at the
Alleghany Inn for the night. Joe and Karen went to visit Joe's mom for dinner, so only Jeff, Mark and I went to the Pines Restaurant in Sparta. Seemed to be a very popular spot and food was pretty good too. Not much going on in Sparta otherwise.
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| Virginia/North Carolina border |
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| Parkway is closed for the next 20 miles |
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| Rolling Yoohoo cans down the hill |
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| Alleghany Inn, Sparta NC, Joe crossing the parking lot |
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