[zenboy99]

A few friends and I from Wisconsin are looking for mountain bike trip ideas in West Virginia. We're mostly looking for good single track/technical riding, within riding distance of cabin or camping sites, preferably with showering facilities. The bigger the hills the better. We plan on arriving late May to early June.

Any ideas/websites would be greatly appreciated.

 

[outdoornut]

Davis / Canaan Valley WV - Lots of trails and most will require very short
road miles to get to the trails. Anywhere from smooth flowing singletrack
to rocky, rooty, muddy, very technical trails. Some notable, Plantation
Trail, Park to Park, Davis Trail, Lindy Run, Dobbin House, Moonrock, and on. Best place for trail info when you get there is Blackwater Bikes in Davis.
Stop in a talk to Roger. He maintains many of the trails througout the area.
If you are interested in this area I and I'm sure a few others from the area
would be glad to point you in the right direction for the best trails. Camping
and Cabins are available at Blackwater Falls. There is a private campground
at the entrance to Blackwater Falls which I usually go to and requires only
about a mile of roadway to get onto the trails.

Pocahontas County / Elk River Touring Center - Hundreds of miles of trails
in the area. Tea Creek, Slatyfork, Gauley Mountain, Bear Pen, Red Run, Kennison Mtn. Trail, Props Run, and the list goes on. You may need to shuttle to a few of them, however if you don't mind a few road miles you
can get to many of them from your lodge / camp. If you don't mind driving
to the trailhead, which isn't far, Watoga State Park has some great camping.
Nice facilities and many of the trails are less than 20 minutes away.

Snowshoe is also in Pocahontas County and they have miles and miles of
technical stuff there. You do have to pay a use fee / trail pass / shuttle-lift
pass but hotels / condos only. There is camping nearby.

These are just my favorite places to ride, however the state is full of
locations. I'm sure "davis" can fill you in on Pocahontas County since he
lives there. He also works at the new ski / bike shop atop Snowshoe.

Will watch for your posts as your trip grows nearer. If I can help by sending
you some photos of some of the trails I'd be glad to do so. Just PM me.

ODN

 

[mud'n'sweat]

W.Va. is awesome. One of the best outdoor states in the U.S. no question. Outdoornut hit all the suggestions I would have offered up.

 

[spa69]

two thumbs up for snowshoe

 

[cmweldon]

I've done the trip there a couple of times

I have done Slatyfork/ERTC area. ERTC has some cheap hostel type bedding with hot showers and monster breakfasts and tasty dinners. Also, they have local microbrews on tap. It has been the location of several weekends of fun for us with tons of riding (previously mentioned) all around. No shortage of technical either, one of my favorite places. They also have an ultra shady hot tub as well. Bike shop there. And a lot of like minded individuals usually staying there.

You can also camp up Mine road or Mine Mountain rd or something liket that. There is an open field where you can camp and ride from you campsite, it's pretty sweet. It is at the top of the Mtn and a few miles up.

I have also heard great things about Davis but never have ridden there. Snowshoe is nice but for my buck ERTC and Slatyfork make it worth my trip.

CMW

 

[zenboy99]

Thanks for the info.

Any suggestions on places to stay? campgrounds or cabins

 

[outdoornut]

Thanks for the info.

Any suggestions on places to stay? campgrounds or cabins

If you are looking at Pocahontas County then cmweldon mentioned one of the best places
to stay. It is the Elk River Touring Center (ERTC) at Slatyfork. They have lodging and I believe camping. There are several campgrounds in the area, however, not many have showers. Watoga State Park is about 25 to 30 minutes from the riding at Slatyfork, it is
located east of Marlinton WV. There are some other private campgrounds in the area,
however, I've never stayed at them. One of our favorite campgrounds is Tea Creek Campground which is on the other side of the mountain from ERTC. It has no showers,
however a nice cold stream (Tea Creek) runs beside it. We usually just take the bikes in,
wash them down a bit and take a "Ho Bath" as I've heard it refered to. Noting like jumping
into extremely cold water on a hot day.

You can do most of your riding from either ERTC or from Tea Creek. If there are a few
vehicles in your party, you can drive to the top of the mountain and then ride to camp.
Then just go get the vehicle after you get back to camp. Of course, if you don't mind the climb, which we have done, you can ride up the highway to the trailheads, or ride up an
old logging road (pretty much singletrack now) "Bannock Shoals Trail" and ride a loop all
the way back to camp. I've climbed Bannock Shoals and it isn't too bad. It's about 6 or
7 miles up but IMO not a boring as the highway.

I have heard that ERTC is great. I've only used their parking area to do a ride up Mine Road and back down Props Run. Lots of climbing there. I believe you can even get a
guide that knows all those trails, if he will be doing that this year. PM "davis" who
works for them and see if that is still the case. Believe me, davis knows all those trails
well. We enjoyed riding with him and several others last year at the Slatyfork Shuffle. It
is nice to have someone who can show you the best trails in the area and the best way
to ride them.

PS. When riding this area, always bring extra tubes, at least one or two derailleur
hangers and a derailleur straightener if you have one. The rocks seem to have a mind
of their own.

If interested in the Davis WV area, check my first post for camping and cabin options.

ODN

 

[davis]

Slatyfork/Pocahontas County...

Ditto all that on Slatyfork and the rest of our county. I loved it so much I moved here. Superb riding, lots of hyper-technical XC. DH/FR at Snowshoe. I assume I'll be guiding for Elk River again this summer. I manage the new "top shop" at Soaring Eagle Lodge. We're planning on doing bikes next summer out of the shop, DH/FR and All-Mountain. Possibly road as well.

Is it time to start planning the '07 shuffle?

 

[Hecklerboy]

I've got some pics and trail info of the Slatyfork trails mentioned above on my website. Just click on the link below. I also have some pics of the past Slatyfork Shuffle gatherings if you interested. Just click on the "Local Trails" link and enjoy the pics. I still have a couple of trails to document. Hopefully this summer I will be able to post 3-D models of the terrain with the trail overlayed. Along with elevation data.
Yes I'm getting a new GPS unit with 3-D terrain software. :thumbsup:

 

[apclassic]

Early June - a few MTB races - one in Canaan Valley on June 3rd (talk to Roger), 24 hours at Big Bear on June 9-10

 

[davis]

weather...

As far as Pocahontas County goes, the trails will usually be a little more "rider-friendly" in early June than in May.

 

[outdoornut]

Is it time to start planning the '07 shuffle?

Oh Yeah ! :thumbsup:

 

[RetroG]

Best Map of Slatyfork Trails?...

What is the best trail map for that area? Slatyfork, Props, Tea Creek, Po County....? I'd like it to include fire roads as well. Where can I get one?

 

[zenboy99]

I appreciate all the replies.

Does anyone have a link to the June 3rd race in Canaan valley?

ERTC looks like a nice spot, are there any places near there to grab a burger and a good beer?

 

[davis]

The Slatyfork map...

What is the best trail map for that area? Slatyfork, Props, Tea Creek, Po County....? I'd like it to include fire roads as well. Where can I get one?

Slatyfork Mountain Bike Trail Map (Third Ed.)
available through Elk River Touring Center www.ertc.com or call (304)572-3771.

 

[davis]

I appreciate all the replies.

Does anyone have a link to the June 3rd race in Canaan valley?

ERTC looks like a nice spot, are there any places near there to grab a burger and a good beer?

ERTC has a great restaraunt, but it will most likely be open for dinner only Thurs-Sat in biking season. Nice bar as well. After that the next closest places would be on top of Snowshoe Mountain, like Misty's, the Foxfire Grille, or the Junction. My nod to Foxfire there.

 

[Big Al]

Kanawha State Forest

I you happen to find yourself in the state capital this awesome trail system is only 20 min. from downtown. It has great facilities, swimming pool,hot showers and clean campgrounds. The trails are the best maintained in the state.The bike club locals are continuially building more with the help of the Park system. It will take several days to ride all of it. There is something for all skill levels and the downhill ranges from Orange to Black Diamond.If you have to take non-riders the is plenty for them to do.