Tapoco, NC is a weird little place. It exists on the border of Tennessee and North Carolina, yet as far as I could tell, there is nothing really there, beyond some Dams owned by the TVA, Deal's Gap, and of course Tapoco Lodge; Ground Zero for Miatas at the Gap. Tapoco got its name from Tallassee Power Company. You can read about this and even more history of the Tapoco area by checking this link.
It was here, in this little spot of nothing nestled bewteen Power stations, valleys, dams and twisty country roads that I found myself drawn. The trip started on Wednesday night with me packing the car with as much stuff as one could possibly cram into the confined spaces in a Miata. I packed tent and chair, mattress and blankets and pillows. I packed a small amount of food, a cooler and my clothes. I brought along my dSLR and tripod and laptop. There was little space left for me by the time I got done, yet I was ready for my journey.
I started out by missing my hookup with the group I was going to go with. There was a small caravan from the Triangle Miata Roadsters and I had planned on meeting up with them at the point where NC-87 intersects I-40. Unfortunately, I got my wires crossed and told them the wrong exit number, so by the time they had called me to confirm, they were well ahead of me. Next time, I need to know what exit I am actually sitting at.
I tried catching up with them, and ended up taking a wrong exit again and ending up on the I-85 bypass around Greensboro. At this point I gave up on the notion of having a group to hang out with and just settled back and enjoyed the ride across the state of North Carolina. I took back roads as much as I could and ended up coming through Maggie Valley and Cherokee and eventually up 28 into my destination, Fontana Village. I did not realize it at the time, but I was actually already beginning my mountain road oddyssey by traversing The Hellbender.
I made it to Fontana Village that afternoon and checked in to my camping space at the foot of Fontana Dam. As I said previously, camping is the way to go. So quiet, so peaceful, and so little distraction. Plus the Little Tennessee is slow moving there and the mist that forms over the water in the afternoons/evenings is magical. The campground itself was small and at 25 dollars a night was very nicely priced. There were even a few Miatae there as well, and by Saturday there was a guy who built his own Teardrop Trailer and pulled it over the mountains with his Miata.
After setting up camp, I stopped to rest a bit, drank some iced tea and had some of my wife's bean salsa (Yummy!) and then decided to head on to Tapoco Lodge. On the way to the lodge, passed through the intersection of US129 and 28. I was at the Tail of the Dragon. Resistance, as they say, is futile, so I detoured from my trip to Tapoco Lodge and ran the Dragon. I had a wide grin from start to stop as I made my way through the twisties for the first time.
Now dont get me wrong, driving curvy mountain roads is nothing new to me. I grew up driving the mountains of SW Virginia and southern West Virginia. This was the first time I had attempted such in a car that was built to corner like it was on rails though. The experience was nothing short of Zen for me. I felt each and every turn. I melded into the car, she became an extension of my body. No sounds, no distractions, just me, my Miata, and a serpentine stretch of roadway that beckoned me. My pulse quickened, my senses became acute, and before I knew it it was over. I was on the other side.
I repeated the trip and enjoyed the same sensations on the way back through. Once I came back into the NC side of Deal's Gap, I stopped off at the Deal's Gap motorcycle resort and bought a cold bottle of water and a sticker to show that I had tamed the dragon. I proceeded on to Tapoco Lodge from there, unaware that that would be my last unencumbered drive across the Tail of the Dragon.
Das Aggregator!