hurronnicane Posted July 28 Share Posted July 28 We left Central Texas a little over a week ago hoping to escape the heat. We are heading for North Carolina ultimately via New Orleans and Pensacola Beach. The first few nights we stayed in my sisters house followed by a couple of B&Bs. Our van only has AC when we are driving so it was critical that we get some elevation so we could sleep in the van at night and play without suffering too much during the days. We made it as far as Fort Mountain State Park in Georgia (elevation 2850) where a couple of day stay has turned into four as we sort out some van issues (worn tire, ball joint replacement, alignment). We have seen bears in the campground but yesterday evening while bombing down a trail, a bear exploded out of the thick underbrush right beside me going the opposite direction. It took a few minutes to relax after that and I found myself hollering out periodically to warn the bears that I was coming. In two fairly short rides distance-wise yesterday I climbed just under three thousand feet. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAF Posted July 28 Share Posted July 28 Doing something similar, but in a different direction. Currently in Angel Fire for a few days, then Ouray/Telluride, and eventually Salida. Taking advantage of many of the XC trails and downhill parks along the way. Hopefully no bears! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATXZJ Posted July 28 Share Posted July 28 8 hours ago, hurronnicane said: We left Central Texas a little over a week ago hoping to escape the heat. We are heading for North Carolina ultimately via New Orleans and Pensacola Beach. The first few nights we stayed in my sisters house followed by a couple of B&Bs. Our van only has AC when we are driving so it was critical that we get some elevation so we could sleep in the van at night and play without suffering too much during the days. We made it as far as Fort Mountain State Park in Georgia (elevation 2850) where a couple of day stay has turned into four as we sort out some van issues (worn tire, ball joint replacement, alignment). We have seen bears in the campground but yesterday evening while bombing down a trail, a bear exploded out of the thick underbrush right beside me going the opposite direction. It took a few minutes to relax after that and I found myself hollering out periodically to warn the bears that I was coming. In two fairly short rides distance-wise yesterday I climbed just under three thousand feet. Did some riding in NW Georgia a couple years ago. Was pretty impressed. Pensacola is a bad ass beach for the distance/money. Blows away the cancer coast that is texas. 3 hours ago, TAF said: Doing something similar, but in a different direction. Currently in Angel Fire for a few days, then Ouray/Telluride, and eventually Salida. Taking advantage of many of the XC trails and downhill parks along the way. Hopefully no bears! Dude, congrats. Telluride is so bad ass. Enjoy!!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurronnicane Posted August 5 Author Share Posted August 5 Well it is demonstrably cooler than Central Texas and it has been comfortable enough to sleep in the van at night without air conditioning, so that has been a successful move on our part. We have seen a ton of rain, and the humidity continues to amaze me. From talking to the locals, Fall is the time of the year to be here. But it is beautiful, lush and quite mountainous. Riding has taken a backseat to hiking though I hope to find more riding opportunities in the next few weeks. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurronnicane Posted August 9 Author Share Posted August 9 Finally we have found really fun purpose-built mountain bike trails! We are camping at Jackrabbit Mountain Campground near Hayesville, North Carolina and there are some really fun trails right out of our campsite. Rode with Sharell yesterday for 8 miles that included a mid ride swim. Then she peeled off and I did another four or five mile loop that had crazy steep and long climbs rewarded with great fun downs! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AustinBike Posted August 11 Share Posted August 11 Thanks for sharing, I’m living vicariously through this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurronnicane Posted Tuesday at 04:11 PM Author Share Posted Tuesday at 04:11 PM Our meandering survey of the area had us in Brevard a few days ago. I had a fun ride at DuPont riding with Sharell for awhile before she rolled down to the van, then continued on my loop. Really fun riding! Then a little live music and called it a night. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonioGG Posted Tuesday at 05:04 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 05:04 PM Bridal Veil? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hurronnicane Posted Tuesday at 06:25 PM Author Share Posted Tuesday at 06:25 PM 1 hour ago, AntonioGG said: Bridal Veil? Grassy Creek Falls. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chongo Loco Posted Tuesday at 07:32 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 07:32 PM Gorgeous area to ride. Need to get back there for some riding and paddling too. Some the best areas in the country to see by boat/raft. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonioGG Posted Tuesday at 07:57 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 07:57 PM 21 minutes ago, Chongo Loco said: Gorgeous area to ride. Need to get back there for some riding and paddling too. Some the best areas in the country to see by boat/raft. This is an interesting thing to bring-up. In the Davidson river as it goes under US-64, there is at least one rope across the river with "PRIVATE PROPERTY NO TRESPASSING" sign on it. You can definitely navigate the Davidson and plenty of people were doing that on rafts or tubes upstream. But I wondered about who dared post that up there since navigable rivers/creeks + easement are public. The map seems to indicate this ROW along the river. I'm going back to also do some fly-fishing which I've always wanted to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chongo Loco Posted Tuesday at 11:28 PM Share Posted Tuesday at 11:28 PM 3 hours ago, AntonioGG said: This is an interesting thing to bring-up. In the Davidson river as it goes under US-64, there is at least one rope across the river with "PRIVATE PROPERTY NO TRESPASSING" sign on it. You can definitely navigate the Davidson and plenty of people were doing that on rafts or tubes upstream. But I wondered about who dared post that up there since navigable rivers/creeks + easement are public. The map seems to indicate this ROW along the river. I'm going back to also do some fly-fishing which I've always wanted to try. Yeah, lots of that on some rivers in some areas. You have to stay IN the river not unlike tubing the Guadalupe. And remember they filmed Deliverance on the Chatooga just south of there! 😜 That’s actually my favorite river. It’s the only one that’s “wild and scenic” in that area. I.e. no dams and no development along the river. The French broad right there in Brevard is a bit tamer. And there’s tons of spots along the road to access the Nantahala for paddling or fishing. The NOC will shuttle you up and you float back to there. I imagine they do fishing kayaks a lot now. Back in the 90’s we used to ride Tsali and Pisgah every spring and fall then run the Nantahala and sometimes raft the Chatooga if we had time. Fall in the smokies is cool to see. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAF Posted 22 hours ago Share Posted 22 hours ago Realized I hadn’t given an update in a while. Been in Salida the last couple of weeks, some lovely rides up on the Crest. Put on a big Indian food cookout at Absolute Bikes this evening - nice to run into Hill Abell! We just booked a rental in Colorado Springs for next week - doing our damndest to stay away from the furnace …. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
