BMW Bikers of Metropolitan Washington

    In the discussion of the forthcoming Square Route Rally, a link was posted for several rides starting from Thurmont. This past Saturday, I decided to try the Piedmont Loop--or at least the lower 7/8th's of it.

As Loopmaster Ted cautioned, "there are a lot of turns on this route." He wasn't kidding, but with his excellent directions (and a virtual tour the night before on Google Maps), it was quite easy to follow. Ted's route instructions are available at http://www.bmwbmw.org/rally/rallyrides/bmwbmw_rally_piedmontloop.shtml.

I'd been through Lovettsville, VA once before--and this time, I missed the same turn again and had to backtrack a little. (The sign of intelligence, BTW, is not making the same mistake twice...) From L'ville, Ted's tour took me to just shy of Point of Rocks, MD. Before continuing on Furnace Mountain Road, I stopped by the river--and found a parking lot full of major mud. However, that's just the sort of thing that the GS is made for, right?

Speaking of mud, I'd been on Furnace Mountain Road before, and I knew it was dirt. This time, it used to be dirt but now it was dirt with a layer of melted snow on it. The sharp drop-off's, no guard rails, and switchback turns were the same! Overall, no problem--but I stuck to an average speed of 15 mph or so. Minus the melted snow, Mr. Enloe would easily have averaged 40 or more...

After Taylorstown came the beautiful little village of Waterford, recommended highly by Ted. If it weren't for the occasional BMW, Audi, or Mercedes, it could easily have passed for an untouched 1800s town!

Here's a picture of the mill:

This log house is just like what I've always wanted:

Another home just like I've always wanted!

From Waterford, the route meanders toward Purcellville, where there was this interesting house--but not one that I've always wanted:

On the way out of P'ville were these two houses--the first in need of some TLC but a fascinating place nonetheless, and the second with what appeared to be either a major skylight dome or a small planetarium...

Just past the turn for the World Famous Snickersville Turnpike (okay, I admit it--despite Ted's very carefull warnings, I missed the turn on the first try!), I ran across this intersection of Raven Rocks Road, Route 7, and (on the far side) Blueridge Mountain Road. What goes down, must go up!

Backtracking to the Snickersville Turnpike, I was pleased to find that it actually existed. I'd read references to it on this board several times but had suspected it might just be another BMWBMW club inside joke. But, in fact, it was most enjoyable and quite scenic, including this abandoned house (and many others):

I stopped for lunch at the Bluemont General Store (okay sandwich, really good blueberry pie):

The General Store's friendly hostess:

The General Store's friendly pet ladybug. Can Spring be far away??

The Turnpike (which, incidentally, is never more than a narrow two-lane road) ends at Route 50. Hauling west along 50, you eventually come to the Blueridge Mountain Road, which leads up and over Mt. Weather. Before you get there, however, there was an overlook on the other side of 50 that just cried out for a picture:

Climbing Mt. Weather, the elevation and shade contributed to a lot of leftover snow--fortunately, not on the roads! I'm not sure what this place is or used to be, but someone had recently been using it for target practice. (RTS, anyone?)

The faithful GS parked in what appears to be a big pile of snow (but looks are deceiving in this case, as the road was clear):

At the end of Blueridge Mountain Road, you reach the intersection shown earlier and head off west on Route 7 (again). At Wickliffe Road, there was this stately mansion, now part of Grafton College(?)

Somewhere along the way, I ran across this statue in front of a burned-out house. I don't think it's Don Qixote--but I couldn't figure out who it was. I was chased off the property (well, away from the road in front of the property) by a zealous young Girl Scout who told me that she was keeping an eye on the house, and I wasn't supposed to be there. (I tell you, motorcyclists just don't get the respect we used to!)

Actually, the whole neighborhood seemed to have fallen on hard times. This former something--church? house? Girl Scout meeting lodge?--was just up the road a little ways:

Eventually, I ended up climbing the mountains again, this time on Route 9. As Ted promised, there were some great overlooks. Here's a not-so-hot picture of a beautiful spot overlooking the Shenondoah River:

Here's one more "house" picture--this time, what appears to be an original log home that was built onto, ending up as an eclectic place in a gorgeous setting. If you look carefully, it appears that only the log home portion reflects in the pond--what in the world does that mean??!

From there, it was back to Route 340 and on home to Catonsville. My version of Ted's Piedmont Loop was 240 miles roundtrip and was terrific fun. Many thanks, Ted, for laying out this trip and providing the detailed directions.