When my buddy Whit mentioned a trail he knew of in Southwest Virginia that was open to motorcycles from October through April 1st, we quickly began looking at our calendars for a possible weekend trip to the area before it was off-limits.
Although the trails are open to our motorized vehicles before April 1st, most campsites are closed at that time of year. Luckily, though, I found that the New River Trail State Park opened a few days earlier than most.
The site was beautiful, with easy access to the river for help in cleaning cookware and an occasional dip in the chilly water after a day out exploring.
Whit and I arrived on Thursday to setup camp and gather firewood, and were met by Art & Nick later that night.
On Friday we chose to hike The Channels since waiting until Saturday to explore the popular route would likely result in overcrowding.
Whit and I dropped off the other two members of our group at the main parking lot, which was full, then headed to an alternate pull-off which required 4WD to access. Once out of the vehicle, Whit and I trudged up a fairly overgrown route to meet the other two at the summit. We then explored one of the two "channels" between rocks before heading back to the truck.
Saturday was the main event - a roughly 100-mile loop on the VA Highlands Horse Trail and Iron Mountain Trail!
A 45-minute section of twisty roads led us to the entrance of the trail. It was a relatively calm double-track trail with stream crossings every once-in-a-while. Nick, our least experienced rider, had never experienced such challenges. He was also a bit handicapped by his motorcycle, a Triumph Scrambler with smaller wheels, less supple suspension, and shorter ground clearance. He was a good sport, though, and gave the trail his best shot.
Eventually, the slippery rocks got the best of him and toppled rider and bike in one of the water crossings. Our group jumped into action to lift his moto and get him out of the water - once again in motion after a minute or so.
At some point we decided that our pace was not quick enough, so we split into two groups - one on gravel roads and another on the double-track trail for a section of the loop. We reconnected at Hurricane Campground and high-tailed it to Damascus for a late lunch.
After lunch, Art & I decided to tackle the Iron Mountain Trail while Whit & Nick rode gravel and asphalt back to our campsite.
I was nursing a slow leak in my front tire, adding air every few minutes or so. Eventually Art and I decided to get off the trail since this method of adding air was eventually going to bite us in the asses.
Back on the road, I made a few turns on the twisty asphalt before again feeling the tire sink. We pulled over and installed a new tube. Although the swap went relatively quickly, I didn't feel like a return to the trail was a wise decision, since even asphalt roads all the way back wouldn't get us back to camp before 8pm or so.
Art and I straightened the curves and tore ass back toward the New River Trail State Park, only to catch Whit & Nick at a T-intersection. Reunited, we decided to grab dinner on the road before finishing the ride back as a group.
Just before we pulled into the campsite, the sun was creating an orange-glow beneath a beautiful crescent moon (not pictured, unfortunately).
Once back at camp, we lit one last fire to warm us as we downed a couple beers and reminisced about the day's adventure.
On Sunday, Whit and I trailered back three of the motos, Nick decided to ride home via the Blue Ridge Parkway, and Art visited his folks in Harrisonburg. We were all back in Richmond by nightfall and eager to try to "conquer" the route next year with a bit more planning and experience under our belts.
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