Sunday, July 17, 2016

Sherando Lake / Stokesville Campground



In my opinion, the biggest discovery of this summer has been the Stokesville campground and the trails their crew has been busily improving. In April, we scratched the surface and I've been eager to return to explore the rest of the trail network running throughout and around the campground.

Another of our favorite XC destinations is Sherando Lake. We primarily enjoy this spot due to its proximity to Richmond, the ability to shuttle from our campsite, and the beautiful lake at its base. This time around we leap-frogged down the mountain from our campsite. First, Rebecca and I (and the dogs) rode the slacks trail. We met Joey at the slacks parking lot on the Blue Ridge Parkway and then let him enjoy the rest of the descent while we grabbed our vehicle from the top. After that we relaxed by the lake before bidding Rebecca farewell and heading to Stokesville.



Joey and I arrived at the Stokesville campground with enough time to squeeze in a short ride on their campsite trails. In the morning I snuck in another before breakfast.

For the day's ride, we decided to try a variation of the Narrowback Mountain Loop. An extended ride on road and fireroad helped warm our legs for the singletrack cliumb ahead. Once on singletrack, the climbing was cut short when I spotted a bear cub and decided to turn around before meeting momma bear. The descent was great! The guys at the Shenandoah Valley Bicycle Coalition have been hard at work adding water drainage and a fast, flowing trail that absolutely screams down the mountain! An easy pedal down the road and we were back at camp, ready to pack and head home. Another excellent weekend in the mountains.



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