It’s not just because both Jim Klein and JP Cavanaugh have recently rid themselves of fun vehicles, but I have made a deal to purchase my own fun car.
Sorry, this is the only (tiny) photo I have of it. 2007 Mustang convertible, V6-5speed. It’s a Pony Package car, which according to Retro-Stang Rick means that in addition to the foglights it also has GT suspension, so it’s more or less a GT without the V8. This was an important consideration, because I have two teenage drivers and the V8 set off too many alarm bells at the insurance company.
Now you may ask, “Doesn’t DougD already have the famous Detroit travelling 1963 Volkswagen Bug, isn’t that fun enough?” Well, yes that is true, but I’ve decided to try and be a bit more like Peter Egan and buy a specific car for a specific road trip. My father JackD finally got his knees replaced a year ago, and now finds himself in better health than he’s been in years. Sadly he also finds himself without a travel partner, because Mom passed away in the spring.
Mom and Dad always enjoyed a trip to Myrtle Beach in the fall, so I thought this year Dad and I could go together. Now, I’m 52 years old (which is bad enough) and Dad’s 81. I don’t have three or four weeks of vacation available to lounge about seaside, so I thought if we’re going to do this we should make the trip itself more interesting. So we need an interesting car, and a side trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
I prepped Dad by giving him my copy of Peter Egan’s At Large and having him read the story about doing the Blue Ridge Parkway in a Black Austin Healey. Then I suggested that a ten year old Mustang convertible might be more reliable and have better weather protection.
So here’s my Plan A for the route. We leave from Dad’s place in Grimsby, Ontario and:
- Take 2 days to get down to Virginia, joining the Blue Ridge Parkway near Fancy Gap
- Travel down the BRP the following day to Asheville
- Day 4 visit the highest point on the Parkway, then head downhill to Myrtle Beach
- Spend 3 days in MB
- 2 days of highway droning to get home
The plan isn’t 100% for sure, I have the 2nd week of October booked off work but I don’t have the car yet. Hopefully our health and the weather will be good at that time, I’ve tried to limit driving to about 5 hours per day since we don’t want to make it a gruelling ordeal.
So here’s the part where I need some suggestions, some of my goals for the trip are to:
- Tour a distillery
- Hear some Bluegrass music
- Play 9 holes of par 3 golf
So if you have suggestions for routes, hotels, restaurants, museums, distilleries, bourbons, golf courses, walking trails, lookouts, whatever. I’m really hoping this all pans out, and maybe we can get a couple of CC articles out of it. Thanks in advance!
Congratulations on a new to you car. A convertible is always treat and I am sure the V6 will give plenty of power. A road trip is a fantastic way to bond with a new car.
Looks like a great trip with your Dad. I have not done that one so I can’t offer specifics but be sure to pop into the occasional small town along the way as they often offer the best off beat finds.
Thanks for the shout out, Doug. Hopefully the Pony won’t disappoint.
I was going to suggest my favorite section of that parkway, Skyline Drive, which technically isn’t part of the Blue Ridge Parkway, but kind of a northern extension of it. Because it’s closer to me driving from Baltimore, I usually get on at Front Royal, VA (the northern terminus) and drive as far south as I can and still get home in a reasonable time.
I think I’ve only made it down to the actual Blue Ridge Parkway once.
The last time I did that road was years ago in my ’97 Grand Prix GTP, which was a delight on curvy roads like that, even though it was FWD. Sadly, I’ve never ventured down that way in my own 2007 Mustang. Now that she’s a little geriatric with over 178K (miles!), I find roads closer to home to enjoy.
Enjoy your trip! Sounds Awesome!
P.S. MORE PICTURES when you get your car!
~ Rick
FWD can be a hoot in the twistys. My modified (ported head, cold air induction, degreed cams and a header & exhaust) ’96 Saturn SL2 was a blast. It was an automatic, and I modified the shifter gate to paddle between 4th and 3rd without pressing the button, or fear of paddling myself into reverse. Engine may have sounded like a coffee grinder at 7000 rpms, but the beans feared it.
I agree that FWD can be fun. Steering with the throttle is kinda off the table though. Actually, my 2016 Civic EXT Coupe is a blast on a twisty road. It’s just different is all.
I’m no fan of FWD but I know it has it’s advantages, especially in snow where my Mustang struggles. However, I have been really surprised at how well my wife’s Toyota Solara handles on some of our hilly, curvy roads here in Southern Indiana. Of course the independent rear suspension really helps.
Having spent time in the Front Royal, VA area, I heartily second this.
Great trip! I had the same idea and did the Skyline and Blue Ridge with my dad a few years ago. We did it in his 1935 Chevrolet (street rod)–what an adventure.
I highly recommend adding the Skyline to it if you have time. We started in Front Royal at the Shenandoah Nat Park and went south from there. We ended in Asheville.
One recommendation is the Wheels Through Time motorcycle museum just west of Asheville–it is run by the guy from the ‘What’s in the Barn’ TV show. Sounds cheesy but is actually one of the best museums I have been to. He was there, walking around talking to people and answering questions, the collection is unbelievable, and then he fired up a few of the bikes and one race car right there at the displays. Their shtick is that they all run. Well worth a stop.
I recommend the towns of Brevard, Waynesville to get a meal, stay the night or just walk around. I am more of a beer guy than bourbon, and there is plenty of breweries, so I am sure that you will get many recommendations on the harder stuff.
We stayed in a couple of places that may and may not appeal to you, but were memorable and fun for us. First one was at the very top of the Skyline in Front Royal–called the Twi-Lite Motel–a 1950s Motel that has not changed much at all–clean, basic and cheap. It was like stepping back in time. The second was in Brevard NC called the Sunset Motel. This one is also 1950s era, but has been carefully updated in a retro way–I am going back to this one with my wife someday.
Most of all, we just let the days come to us. We were at the mercy of an 80-year old hand-made car and so we had to take it as it came to us! This made the trip so enjoyable, with no schedules or reservations to chase. Truly the trip of a lifetime. I think of that trip often and how much my dad and I enjoyed it.
Enjoy your new car, the adventure and time with your father!
The Blue Ridge Parkway I’ve only done once (back during the second Bush administration) on my way from Raleigh, NC, to the Highlands-Cashiers area in Jackson County (my 83 yo dad has his summer place there) so used it as a cut-through around Asheville from I-40 and eventually to US 64. While beautiful for scenery (worthy of David Saunder’s photography), I’m told that the US Park Service Rangers saturate the parkway with radar (or maybe laser) and litter the road with speeding tickets because the speed limit was 55 mph, and looking it up now it’s 45. For the part I was on, the roads are two lane, no passing (always a double yellow line), no shoulders to speak of for bicyclists, and not a lot of pull-offs if you’re trapped behind an RV (no commercial traffic is allowed). The roads I remember were in outstanding condition, and in an open sports car you’ll be fighting temptation to go a little faster.
If you’re trying to make time from point A to point B (as I was back then) I would not recommend the parkway. But if you’re leisurely with your time, and light of foot, the scenery is to behold.
My dad is 83 and had his bad knee done after my step-mom died last year after a long illness. He subsequently lost 30 lbs, got himself a red 1994 Mercury Capri convertible, and obsessing with his golf game again. He isn’t waiting for the clock to run out on him. Sounds like your dad isn’t either. Bon voyage.
I live about 30 mins. away from the BRP near the Linn Cove Viaduct/Grandfather Mountain area. Highly recommend the BRP in general, but yes watch your speed because a speeding ticket is a trip to Federal Court (Asheville, for my part of the BRP).
Lots of motorcyles too, so watch for them. But especially over towards Asheville and Cashiers, there’s lots of stuff to see and do in close proximity to the BRP.
I’m partial to my area, so Boone, Blowing Rock (the town as well as the rock itself), the Viaduct, the “mile high swinging bridge” at the top of Grandfather Mountain are all worthwhile stops. Chimney Rock State Park is cool too if you are OK with lots of steps and hiking.
Leaf season is beautiful on the BRP but lots of traffic, not enough parking at the overlooks, etc., so it can get a little tense. Just consider yourself warned.
Near the BRP in Burke County, NC is the Linville Gorge, Hawksbill, Table Rock, lots of great hiking and views if that’s your bag.
I live in Boone and grew up loving the BRP and agree with everything you said. Beautiful drive, wonderful twisty road, but not the quick way to get anywhere.
The Linn Cove Viaduct is one of the most amazingly beautiful places I’ve ever seen, especially if you get lucky and are there when the fog is laying in the valleys and it’s like looking our across an ocean of fog with mountaintops rising above the fog like islands in the sea.
It’s also an easy walk from the BRP to Linnville Falls, and then there’s Moses Cone Manor and so many other beautiful places.
Growing up here, I don’t think I ever truly appreciated how beautiful this area is until I left it for a few years and came back.
I’m still hoping to visit BRP & MB, so no advice to offer about those.
I hope there’ll be something touristy in those last two days of slogging back north to break things up. Fallingwater in PA is a bit out of the way, but you get the idea.
Sounds like a great fall adventure, and I look forward to the retelling!
Fallingwater is worth it and more extensive than you think. Just do the basic tour. Not far away is the FLW Kentuck Knob house, the opposite kind of FLW house. Includes a walk back through the woods with some woods specific art along the way if you want to do that instead of going back in a van. You can do both easily in a day, and you should.
Stay in Little Switzerland- tiny resort/town near Asheville- right near the parkway – beautiful views and walking sites.
Forgot to add: Did it in a Genesis Coupe, really fun trip. Allow yourself an extra hour or two of travel time for all of the stops you will make at scenic overlooks.
We recently traded the Genesis for a Mustang convertible. Looking forward to that return trip.
Haven’t spent enough time on the east coast to give any advice, as I’m always stuck with relatives when I’m back there, but have a great trip! You gonna do a dash cam?
Doug,
Regarding the BRP, I also advise caution regarding driving speed because of speed limit enforcement from Rangers who are as thick as flies on road-kill on a hot summer’s day.Think of the Rangers as overly enthusiastic Ontario Provincials eager and happy to enforce the speed limits.
The BRP has great scenic curves and vistas worth experiencing, but remember to observe the double yellows—no passing on double yellows.
Also keep your tank well filled, a lesson I learned the hard way driving the BRP about 20 years ago while almost running out of gas at night.
I haven’t run the BRP since, since I’m always in a rush to get somewhere South now, but I have fond memories of our years ago drive on it. You and your Dad will enjoy it well, especially if you have the mind frame of doing a leisurely punt through a region of much natural beauty.
Then, because it is likely too late for this year, next year, for late September, with your Dad sharing co-navigation and co-driving, consider doing the very reasonable cost, definitely not dear, Maple Mille Rally staring this year, in a week’s time in Orillia, on the shores of Lake Simcoe, then typically it will wind its way through some of fabulous roads in your delightful Province of Ontario. Each year the routes have been very different, even surprising, and a true delight. During last year’s rally, along the way,we went to Sudbury, saw the “Big Nickle”, and toured Manatoulin before taking the ferry back to the mainland. We, the participants, won’t know the route until we receive our rally route books at the rally’s start next Friday. Your VW Bug would be perfect for this event, and perfect to share with you Dad. Look it up, the Maple Mille, and you and your Dad will be tantalized.
Cheers.
Hi Vic, yes I looked that up after we discussed it in Detroit. Looks like good fun and my wife was actually interested in doing it. I’m hoping to get the front beam on the VW rebuilt over the winter, and with a bit more directional stability we may sign up next year.
Not far southwest of Roanoke on I-81 is the town of Christiansburg.
I suggest a side trip to Duncan Imports – the Mecca for JDM cars in USA. Buy a Figaro, S-Cargo or Crown or just visit it as a museum.
Does Duncan Imports, in fact, encourage folks to visit their facility as a museum? I’ve often wondered about that — their website lists an impressive inventory as part of a “private collection,” and of course they have a massive JDM inventory, but I’m unclear whether they take kindly to people who would just like to browse.
If so, that’ll definitely be a stop for me next time I’m on that stretch of I-81.
Hi Doug, I have done the Myrtle Beach drive from Mississauga a number of times. Used to get the maps from CAA and also carry a TomTom GPS. My wife and I would always make sure to have a couple of pig outs at the K&W cafeterias. Nothing like it in Ontario.
https://www.google.ca/search?client=safari&channel=iphone_bm&ei=S_17Xa6iFoLz-gTE6Jf4Dw&q=k+%26+w+cafeteria+myrtle+beach&oq=k+%26+w+cafeteria+m&gs_l=mobile-gws-wiz-serp.1.0.0l8.24607.29536..30783…0.0..0.234.2266.0j14j1……0….1………41j33i160j0i22i30.vsY7yh_UeYQ#trex=m_t:lcl_akp,rc_f:nav,rc_ludocids:9551787348935330375,rc_q:K%2526W%2520Cafeterias,ru_q:K%2526W%2520Cafeterias
Sorry to hear you lost your Mom. I’m certain your Dad will appreciate the time together with you. Enjoy the trip, it is sure to be beautiful that time of year.
Thanks Lee. The last year really sucked. Dad’s in better health also because he is no longer a 24/7 personal support worker.
I brought the Mustang over to his place this afternoon and he approves. Next step is book some accommodation…
Congratulations on the Mustang and the upcoming trip. That Pony Package seems like the ideal Mustang… the GT suspension is great, and the V-6 has plenty power as far as I’m concerned.
The only time I’d taken a long trip with my father was when I was 16 and we drove cross-country (Pennsylvania to California & back). Even after several decades, I still look back on that trip fondly. I remember after we got back home, after 3 weeks or so, mom asked “So what do you two talk about?” Dad and I looked at each other and shrugged. “Not much,” was my reply. And we really didn’t… we just enjoyed driving and being with each other.
My wife and I drove the BRP on our honeymoon in her new ’86 Z28 with a 5 speed manual. It was a great drive and I would like to do it again sometime.
As others have said, the Pony package is a great setup. Mine is also a manual and is a ball to drive. The handling is great and the fuel mileage is also pretty good. When I drive like I have some sense I can get mpg in the upper 20’s. On a flat four lane using cruise control I can get 31-32 at 60 mph. The only problem I have in the mileage area is in town driving. I enjoy going through the gears so much that it can bring it down to 12 or so, the same that my ’66 Mustang gets. Our town has a population of 11,000, so heavy traffic isn’t a problem.
In spite of what most people think, Southern Indiana is not all flat cornfields. We have many hilly, curvy two lane state highways. I have had lots of fun driving the Mustang on these roads. In fact, before I retired I used the car in my job and actually got paid to have fun. I am what you might call a driving enthusiast . Give me an open road and a car that is fun to drive and I am a happy man. My wife has finally gotten used to my “apexing” when we travel. Don’t get the wrong idea, I don’t take stupid chances.
We have a lot of nice curvy & hilly roads here in northern Baltimore County (northern Maryland in general) as Paul has mentioned here many times.
As a long time driving enthusiast here, I take great pleasure in driving any car, fast or slow… I just like to drive. Even my wife’s Lancer, the slowest of the fleet is fun… What is it they say about it being more fun to drive a slow car fast, than to drive a fast car slow?… but I digress.
While I enjoy “apexing” as you put it, that’s reserved for me alone (or when I’m with my Cairn Terrier Molly… she actually knows how to lean into the turns on familiar roads). My wife on the other hand, who finds driving a chore, LOVES to go for a scenic ride as the passenger, but is not a fan of my “enthusiasm”. I try to behave with her in the car, at her request.
I used to reserve the apexing for when I was alone and still do with anyone except my wife. She is used to it and whether she will admit it or not, I know what I am doing. I do tone it down a bit when she is with me. I guess I should also say that we have run in some road rallies with her as navigator.
I did surprise one of my grandsons a couple of years ago when I told him to hang on and we half drifted through half of a roundabout. The look on his face was priceless.
I am actually a very responsible person. And generally a careful driver. I am not someone who takes dangerous chances. I’m a real coward when I ride my motorcycle. I just love to drive. When I would have a crappy day at work, just getting behind the wheel would relax and rejuvenate me. I guess I am just weird that way.
Wow, congrats on the new to you car! I look forward to hearing more about it. Haven’t made it to that little chunk of the country yet but at least when I do end up going I will know who to ask for info. Have a great time!
I did the Skyline Drive and BRP in October of 1972 in my ’63 Corvair Monza 4 speed. It was practically deserted, especially once I left Skyline Drive. This was before it was discovered by everyone else. It was a driving paradise. Campgrounds and parking lots almost totally empty, as was the road. Sheep bliss. I would never go back, because it’s obviously changed so much.
Just returned from a two week 3,000 mile trip to the Canadian Rockies. Epic views and hikes! The Ice Fields Parkway had plenty of other folks between Banff and Jasper, but not quite problematic. But it’s more about the views than the driving.
Met up with David Saunders for dinner one night.
But there are some absolutely stellar back highways getting there and back in Idaho. Unspoiled valleys and little villages, and no traffic.
Obviously the Promaster is not exactly a canyon carver, but there’s more to a good road than ripping through it.
I hate to say it but I’m not likely to be found driving east of the Rockies anymore. I’m just too spoiled by the Western scenery and open range and its roads.
But have a great trip!
This is a great idea for a trip. I did the Parkway and Skyline Drive back in the late 1970s as part of a cross country motorcycle trip. The speed limits are low on the Parkway and the road was congested with traffic during my visit, This actually makes it very frustrating on a motorcycle, as you are forced to drive at a speed that makes it hard to develop a “rhythm” of negotiating the curves. The book by Bill Bryson, “A walk in the woods” chronicles the author’s adventure in hiking the Appalachian trail. This trail actually parallels the Parkway in a few locations. It also gives a lot of history and description of the Appalachian trail and the area around it.
A word about the Mustang. I’ve got an ’07 Mustang Pony coupe that I’ve done a lot of travelling in, well over 100,000 miles mostly with family. The Mustang has plenty of power and when driven sensibly, (70 mph) can return 27-28 mpg. This generation Mustang was quite a bit bigger inside and handles better and is more stable than the prior SN95 generation. (As you know, I’ve got one of those also). Enjoy the trip!
Congratulations on your new Mustang Doug! It should make a good road trip car. I can’t comment on driving BRP, but I can on road trips with your dad. Last year Dad and I drove to Carlisle in his Corvette convertible and it was an awesome trip. The drive was half the fun with the ample power and awesome handling. I am sure you and your dad will have a similar experience.
Our next road trip I am planning will be to the US Airforce museum in Dayton, OH. Apparently it’s one of the biggest and best aircraft museums around and dad and I are big aircraft buffs. I’d also like to do a side trip to the Corvette museum while we are down that way. We can bring his Vette back home. I’d also like to do the factory tour.
Last but definitely not least, I am sorry for the loss of your mom. That is not easy not matter the age. My condolences to you and your family.
I can confirm the USAF museum in Dayton is outstanding. I think you could easily spend a full day there. If time allows, there is a great Packard museum in Dayton. Less than an hour from Dayton, a bit north of Urbana, OH, is the Champaign Aviation Museum, which is restoring a B-17. Well, “building from scratch” might be more accurate than “restoring”, it is another great spot to visit. You could spend a couple hours at each.
http://www.americaspackardmuseum.com/
https://www.champaignaviationmuseum.org/
Well, do we have your vacation stretched out to three weeks yet?
My only experience as a tourist in the area is at the Biltmore Estate & Winery in Asheville. The castle-like mansion built by one of the Vanderbilts in the middle of nowhere is kind of the ultimate house tour. They have a pretty extensive website so you can see if that sort of thing interests you. There also seem to be a handful of distilleries in the Asheville area, though I have not been to any of them.
A Mustang convertible remains on my short list, though without the teenage driver situation a V8 would be a must-have. I have owned V8s, I have owned stick shifts, but never in the same car. This must be rectified. But it looks like you found a nice one!
Sounds like a great fall road trip. Why am I not surprised that JackD, and son DougD, want to visit a distillery? Lynchburg is calling! 🙂
Late to the party, but please accept my congratulations.
Six years ago, I bought a black V6 with the Pony package. 20,000 miles later, it’s the best automotive purchase I ever made.
You are aware of the Blue Ridge Parkway’s speed limit, yes? No more than 45, with stretches marked at 35 mph. Top Gear had an amusing segment where the lads brought supercars to the parkway for a boring day, before they rerouted to tour NASCAR landmarks nearby.
My day in the Blue Ridge Parkway, about five years ago, was great fun. It was the perfect match of car and driver (my Mother-in-law’s PT Cruiser and my 16-year-old daughter, with her learner’s permit) and road. The BRP has much tighter turns and steeper hills than would be done today. Most of the time, and all of the time for my uncertain student – the speed limits felt appropriate, even somewhat brisk. For an experienced driver in a hot car, though, I’d just say… I hope you like looking at the scenery.
Asheville is quite a center of craft brewing, if that holds any interest for you.
You might be able to get your bluegrass fix at the Blue Ridge Music Center (http://www.blueridgemusiccenter.org/) near Galax, VA. It’s not far from where you’re picking up the BRP.