Road Trip Archives | Wind Burned Eyes

Motorcycle Camping: Why Every Rider Should Try It At Least Once

There’s a version of a motorcycle road trip that involves booking hotels in advance, packing light, and knowing where you’re sleeping every night. That’s a perfectly good trip. A lot of people prefer it.

And then there’s motorcycle camping — where you’ve got everything you need strapped to the bike, you’re not locked into any particular destination, and your campsite is wherever you decide to stop.

It’s a different experience. It’s also, for a lot of riders, the one that sticks with them the longest.

The Best Spring Motorcycle Roads in America

Spring is the season most riders spend winter dreaming about. The temperatures are back in a reasonable range, the roads are drying out, and everything smells like it’s waking up. It’s the best time of year to ride, and it goes fast.

The other thing that goes fast in spring? The window before the tourist crowds show up. Hit some of these roads in late March or April and you’ll have a completely different experience than the person who waits until July.

Here are some of the best spring motorcycle routes and road trips in the US worth putting on your list right now.

Why Solo Motorcycle Riding Might Be the Best Therapy You’re Not Paying For

There’s something that happens when you swing a leg over the bike and head out alone to go solo motorcycle riding. No group pace to keep. No one to check on. Just you, the machine, and whatever road you pointed yourself at.

A lot of riders talk about it but struggle to explain it. That feeling after a long solo ride where your head is cleaner than it was when you left. Where whatever was eating at you an hour ago feels smaller now, or at least more manageable.

Turns out, there’s actually science behind that feeling. But honestly, most of us figured it out long before any researchers did.

10 Reasons Why Tapoco Lodge Should Be Your Tail of the Dragon HQ

The Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap boasts a reputation as the road to ride or drive for motoring enthusiasts. Recently, I had a chance to visit America’s number one motorcycling and sports car road. And I stayed at the historic Tapoco Lodge in Robbinsville, North Carolina.

This lodge is a mere few minutes from Deals Gap and the start of the Tail of the Dragon, and if I were to visit the area again (I sincerely hope I will get to sometime soon), I would stay here again.

Road Trip: The Tail of the Dragon and Then Some on My Honda Rebel 300

It’s not often that you get a chance as a married man with kids to disappear for three days. Let alone disappear and do nothing but ride your motorcycle around one of the most coveted recreational areas in the country.

I had this unique opportunity last week, and let me tell you, if you get the chance, take it. I rode from Indianapolis, Indiana, down to the historic Tapoco Lodge in Robbinsville, North Carolina—hitting the Tail of the Dragon and other beautiful roads along the way—and I loved every minute of it.

Small Bikes, Big Fun: Why the Tail of the Dragon Belongs to the Lightweights

They call it the Tail of the Dragon—eleven miles of relentless, coiled pavement twisting through the Smoky Mountains, with 318 curves so tight they could snap your concentration in half. It’s a place where dreams go to lean, scrape, and occasionally low-side into the trees. The speed limit is 30, the shoulders are nonexistent, and the margin for error is about the width of your front tire.

And I’m here to tell you: leave the big bikes at home. The Dragon belongs to the little guys.

How to Plan a Motorcycle Road Trip: A Rider’s Guide to Freedom

There are two kinds of riders who struggle when they need to plan a motorcycle road trip.

The first kind plans everything: hotels booked six weeks out, a rigid daily mileage target, a schedule that turns riding into a commute with better scenery. The second kind does the opposite, shows up with no plan and ends up sleeping in a gas station parking lot because every campground within 40 miles is full.

The sweet spot is somewhere in the middle. Enough structure to keep things comfortable, enough flexibility to let the trip be what it wants to be. Here’s how to get there.