[rbart4506]

Well I made this original post in the old passion and didn't get much response so I will try again...

This summer my fiance and I will be heading out on a mountain biking honeymoon. The original plan was to fly out west and ride in BC, but for a variety of reasons it looks like we might need to stay closer to home. We are now thinking about heading to Tennessee, the Chattanooga area, to ride the Chillhowee mountain trails. My fiance has an aunt and uncle down there that we will pay a visit while we are in the neightbourhood. We're also thinking of heading into North Carolina and riding Tsali and the Pisgah trails. I'm looking for any information on these areas, preferred rides, places to stay, bike shops to look up.

We'll be travelling by car from Ontario and will probably stop along the way for a day or so of riding...Of course that depends on ho much stuff there is to amuse ourselves with in North Carolina...

Thanks guys,
Rich

 

[ThoughtfulPirate]

NC is awesome. I vote you skip tsali and go straight to asheville to ride pisgah and dupont. You could ride for a month in pisgah and not ride even close to everything. The trails are tight, steep, and technical.

 

[alphajaguars]

Check mtbikewnc.com for info on Wetern NC. I've made it out there twice and can say Pisgah is well worth the trip. Ifd you have the time, Brevard is about an hour from Pisgah, and has some of the only slickrock available in the East. I haven't made it there yet, but hope to this summer.

HTH, alpha

 

[greyhound]

Tsali is pretty only once. Pisgah and Dupont is the kind of pretty that stays with you the rest of your life. T-Pirate is right........Dupont all the way!!

 

[2melow]

Pisgah

Pisgah area is really sweet for sure. Cool Shop - Bio Wheels - call Matt 828-232-0300...he can give you the Beta on the good spots.

If you feel like you want to go south a bit, N. GA has some really nice stuff and is les than 2 hours away. But like the others above mention - Pisgah Nat'l Forest has soooo many trails and can easily take up a few weeks.

 

[ThaFurnace]

My GF and I went to both, and Tsali was much much easier for her than Pisgah. They aren't too far from one another but depending on where you start you could just head from east to west or vice versa. Tsali's trails are very well maintained, and there are no surprises. In pisgah things got technical and she fell three times, once in a hole, once in some bushes, and once on her head in a creek.. needless to say, our mountain biking adventure in Pisgah was over. But i do have to give her props for being a good sport.

 

[M-U-M]

We have a Vancoverite lurking around here who pulled the old "just coming for a visit" scam, so we locals are wise to your tricks!

To save a lot of repeated area info - try using the search function and type in the areas your courious about: Tsali, Bent Creek, DuPont, Pisgah, etc. I'm sure you will see why the masses like WNC.

Asheville is generally considered the metro "hub". Have fun planning your trip. There's riding of all types to discover.

 

[rbart4506]

Ok Then....

It sounds like we'll just dry like hell to Asheville and play there for 3-4 days and then move into Tennessee with a stop at Tsali....I have to stop there just to see it and ride it...

Now the hunt will begin for info...

Thanks guys...

 

[AlloyNipples]

If you're gonna end up in...

Chattanooga then give me a shout, my wife and I would be happy to show you around Chilhowie, Tanasi and all of N.GA. Our honeymoon was a mtb trip as well, stayed at the Nantahala Village Inn by Tsali. Send me an e-mail with the dates ya'll be here and skill levels.... though if I had to guess since you're taking a mtb honeymoon, this ain't your first rodeo.

 

[rbart4506]

Still searching...

Thanks for the offer alloynipple...

We're both XC riders that like technical singletrack, but not really into the free-ride stuff. We've both been riding seriously for about 4-5 years and I'd consider us really good intermediate riders.

We're familiar with the trails around Chilhowie. We we're there about 3 years ago for four days and had a great time....

For the WNC folks here, would it make more sense to stay in Asheville and ride Pisgah and Dupont State forest from there or is staying in Brevard a good idea to get us closer to Dupont??

I'm just trying to figure out drive distances and times...

Thanks,
Rich

 

[~martini~]

Kinda late the discussion, but this is excatly what my wife and i did 5 years ago. We're from MN, and drove to Ashville and stayed in a sweet b&b for two nights, then went out to Tsali and rode the whole system over two days. Yeah Tsali is pretty non techy, but its still a fun ride, and perfect for my wife who, at the time wasn't totally comfortable on her bike yet, so Pisgah wouldv'e been ou(having her grumpy would not have made for a good honey moon). I'd seriously take that into cosideration. I'd LOVE to head back to the area to hit up Pisgah, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. Unless I find a job in the area. Ashville itself is pretty cool town. I liked it for the time I was there.

 

[logs]

Rbart - Check your PMs

I sent you some info to help clear up what has been said here. Plus the new format would let me reply at the time.

Logs

 

[litespeedchick]

this is my first post on the new board, so God knows where it will end up in the thread, but in answer to the question of whether to stay in Asheville or Brevard, by all means stay in Asheville. Asheville is a great town with lots to do , great restaurants and bars, cool deco architecture, shops , galleries, and indie film house, etc. Brevard is a quaint little town...that's about it.

You actually will drive almost to Brevard to do many of the Pisgah rides, but it's only 20 minutes or so, no biggie. Dupont would be worth going to for one ride, just to see the waterfalls, but it can't hold a candle to Pisgah.

From the travel planning aspect, you could check out Fodors.com discussion forums and do a search on Asheville.

 

[hfly]

Love Western North Carolina

Seems like lots of good advice above. Tsali seems to be the most frequently dissed trail in the US, but my GOD it's fun on an XC bike at very fast speeds! Perhaps the most well-graded trail in existence. Do it at least once.

Pisgah is just an experience to immerse yourself in, period. Days on days of long dirt road climbs followed by singletrack descents. I haven't done Dupont, but its good reputation speaks for itself.

My favorite veggie restaurant in the country is the Laughing Seed Cafe' in Asheville -- if it's still there.

Enjoy!

hfly <-- loves Pisgah & is jealous of all who ride there

 

[rbart4506]

A XC bike at very fast speeds sounds like my cup of tea....I think the Sugar is going to like Tsali....

Pisgah does sound like an experience...

I can't wait...

Rich

 

[vuduvgn]

I grew up outside of Brevard and learned to Mtn. Bike in Pisgah and Dupont. If you enter Pisgah from Brevard there are a slew of great trails from there. The folks at Backcountry (if they are still there, been a few years for me) can help you out. They've always been great folks. Also, if you are heading South through VA, I suggest you stop in Harrisonburg. Shennandoah Bicycle Company (I think that is the name) can hook you up with riding info. Great bunch of guys there too and the riding is pretty damn great. Bring your fatty tires, they've got some great rocky descents.
In terms of Brevard vs. Asheville... there is that one bar in Brevard...
Enjoy.

 

[litespeedchick]

Yep, Laughing Seed is still there! I like it too, Rosetta's Kitchen is another funky (less mainstream) veggie place. Salsa's rules for an after ride lunch. Fantastic Carribbean food, fresh fruit (and other goodies) salsas, can be veggie if you need it, good beer on tap.....oh, man....I've made myself hungry.

 

[ThoughtfulPirate]

Stay in brevard if you want to be closer to the rides, Asheville if you want to have a place with more restaraunts and stuff. Dupont is about 15 mins from downtown brevard, and davidson river area is about 5 mins from brevard. N. Mills area in pisgah is about 20 minutes from brevard, maybe less. You should do Tsali once at least. I dont like it much, but I am much more of a downhiller that can handle climbs than an xc rider. If you are on a sugar, you will love Tsali. In pisgah, my favorite rides are: sycamore cove in davidson, Bennet Gap in davidson (might not be as fun on a short travel bike, but I ride it with 5 inches both ends. Its VERY rocky at the top.), Twin falls ride, and horse cove gap. Horse Cove Gap is confusing, so you may want to skip it. Dupont is great, but you will probably only get to ride the very well traveled routes, and there are some killer routes that nobody really rides that much, but they are harder to find. Remember these trail names for Dupont: Big Rock, Cedar Rock, Corn Mill Shoals rd (there is a killer singletrack section even though its called a rd), Burnt mountain, and if you are in other areas of Dupont: Jim Branch, and rifle range are fun going down. heres a picture from Dupont.

 

[wooglin]

Gotta hit the Eastern Slickrock trail in Dupont, if only for the traction.

The view's not bad either.

 

[ThoughtfulPirate]

If you are hardcore like wooglin, you can do it on an SS too.