Originally Posted by
merlinextraligh
Pisgah Inn is nice.
But if you pushed on to Asheville (about 20 miles IIRC, and almost all downhill) you get some great options.
Inn on Biltmore at the Biltmore Estate is excellent, and a short ride off the Parkway through Biltmore Forest, and lots of options in Downtown Asheville.
It also shortens the next day which will be hard enough with Mt. Mitchell
And I get the point about leaving the Parkway, but Asheville is one place worth leaving it for, and the climb back through Biltmore Forest is a gentle grade, and only about 400 feet vertical
Good points, and in hindsight if I were to change anything, I would've ridden to Asheville on day one as you suggest, and spent two nights and one full day there, then ridden the remaining five days straight through.