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FALL 2016 ISSUE 02 / VOL. 01
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Right: This is the view from Clinch Mountain, looking east toward the Appalachian foothills. Far right: The Thomas Hughes Library in the colonial village of Rugby. town of Fork Mountain and the New River. This was the beginning of the Devil’ s Triangle, and Satan could not have designed a more devious byway.
One good thing was having very little traffic on Tennessee Route 116 for the next 45 miles. Most of the little coal mines along the way closed long ago, and the pavement was pretty free of dirt from the few side roads. Some roughly patched sections could bring a little nervousness, with some bouncing over the bumpy bits, and a few truly gnarly switchbacks were evident, uphill and down. In the first section, I was leading on a new Harley Ultra Limited and kept hearing scraping sounds— but it wasn’ t me, just the T-bird behind. This is the kind of ride that a curvy-road enthusiast will delight in, and can be ridden with abandon or conservatism. But should be ridden. And here is some advice: the bottom third of the triangle, from Laurel Grove to Petros, is not very exciting, so I would just turn around at Laurel Grove and go back those 45 miles.
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