The weather forecast was for heavy fog when I left the cabin at 6:50 for an early morning appointment at the VA CBOC in Franklin, North Carolina. The route from Murphy takes you through a section of the Nantahala National Forest where it straddles Clay and Macon counties, and across some of the highest mountains … Read more
The Ides of March marked misfortune and doom for the ancient Romans, but in 2026, the month didn’t start out that way in the North Carolina mountains. March 1 marked sunny, beautiful motorcycle weather in the western mountains. You take what you can get. The thermometer eventually reached 73 at mid-afternoon. Today I rode over … Read more
Snow started falling over the Maryland peninsula on Sunday, and it didn’t stop until Monday afternoon by which time the sky gods had dumped as much as 15 inches of the stuff on anything that stood or lay in its path. To be correct, of course — and why not? — this is the Delaware, … Read more
New Year’s Day, 2026, started out as cold as an Alabama step-momma, but by 11:30 the sun had warmed things up enough to let Sweet Marie out of the stables and saddle her up for a ride. I think the highest the thermometer climbed was 53, and a moderate breeze tempered even that. But they … Read more
I’d already replaced the rear sights on my other Colt revolvers, and the other day I finally got around to the baby of the bunch — my .22 caliber King Cobra. Look carefully at the photo of the pistol on a pillow in my truck bed and focus downrange. You’ll see a tiny target between … Read more
Like much of the rest of the country we’ve had unseasonable weather over the winter holidays, and that good fortune remains with us through today when the temperature is expected to reach 70- or more degrees. As you know, that’s nearly perfect motorcycle weather. So the bike has gotten out of the stable a bit … Read more
December 20, 2025 — Five days before Christmas and I was far from the only motorcyclist enjoying the sunshine on a December day that saw temperatures climb into the mid 50s. Panther Top Mountain, a slight peak of some 2,000 feet, often draws a few folks on nice days, and today was no different. The … Read more
A dozen or more autos gathered in the Ocean City inlet parking lot on Dec. 4, 2025, ferrying occupants to the beach to watch the final full moonrise of the year, a supermoon at that, and one also known as the Cold Moon. And cold it was, made even colder by a stiff wind out … Read more
Thunderstorms had departed our region of the East Coast leaving clear skies for Wednesday’s sunrise. But only a handful of cars were in the lot for the celestial show at the Ocean City, Maryland, inlet. More’s the pity for them. Of course, truth be told, even Hazel was more interested in the sea birds … Read more
