Smiling Skull Saloon
The Smiling Skull Saloon at 108 West Union Street in Uptown Athens is the unofficial riders' bar for the Windy 9 system, cited consistently in Rider Magazine, Blue Ridge Motorcycling Magazine, and the Athens County Visitors Bureau as the go-to stop for motorcyclists passing through. The dive bar opened in Uptown Athens and has operated 365 days a year since. It's equal parts college bar and biker bar — cheap beer, no pretense, moto décor, and a staff accustomed to large two-wheel groups. Athens (home of Ohio University) sits at the geographic center of the Windy 9's nine routes, making the Skull a natural base camp for overnight Windy 9 weekends.
The Smiling Skull Saloon sits on West Union Street in Uptown Athens — a short walk off the main drag — and it reads immediately as a place that belongs to its regulars. The interior hasn't been prettied up: skulls and neon beer signs cover the walls, and the bar seats are upright barrels. It's a family-owned operation, and that shows in how the room feels. Bikers touring through and locals who've been coming for decades share the same space without ceremony.
The Skull is open every day of the year, doors up in the morning, and the crowd shifts with the seasons. Summer brings riders passing through or wrapping up a day on the Windy 9 routes; the off-season draws karaoke regulars and townies. Either way, a rider walking in with gear on doesn't draw a second glance — that's the point. Athens sits at the hub of all nine Windy 9 routes, so the Skull functions as a natural close to a full day's riding regardless of which loop you ran.
All nine Windy 9 routes start and end in Athens, so this is the de facto end-of-day decompression stop for a full Windy 9 run. The saloon is in Uptown (walkable from most Athens lodging), open late, and bikers are regulars — not novelties. The SR-33 / US-50 approaches into Athens from any direction are pleasant final miles.
Shot by the riders who've run it.
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