The Ride

While most of the rest of America was getting rained, iced or snowed on, I enjoyed a fun long ride with temps close to 60 degrees.

As I was getting ready to go for an epic mtn bike ride today, my friend Jeremy Arnold called. He was wondering if I wanted to go for a 4-5 hr ride. Why yes, as a matter of fact I do. So, 1 hr later we met at Bent Creek and took off up Bent Creek Gap Rd. We rode up to the ridge and the Blue Ridge Parkway. We got on the pavement for a long slog up hill. Through a couple of tunnels, gaining altitude gradually but slowly. Slow enough to enjoy the views. The valley stretching out below with little houses on little farms. We pedaled, talked and pedaled some more.

Our first goal was the Big Creek Trail head. After we had passed through several tunnels, we took a left off of the Parkway( East) and followed a trail that pretty much drops straight down into the valley. All the way to the Mills River area, several thousand feet below. With the freshly fallen leaves covering the trail, there was quite a bit of sliding going on. Along with a couple of spills. My forearms burning and my break pads wearing out, we finally arrived to the bottom of the valley. We continued to follow the trail as it meandered along Big Creek. When we arrived at the reservoir, we headed up Spence Branch Trail. We came upon some folks on horseback, passed them and continued on. After a little while, we came to where the beavers had been busy, building dams. The trail is flooded. We looked up to the left where there is a field. There was a deer, or so we thought. It turned out to be a stump. Ooops.
We crossed " The Road that Never Ends", ( this is a dirt road, I have never heard of anyone going all the way to the end), and continued up Spencer Gap Trail. Spencer Gap, past the top of Trace Ridge, then to Wash Creek Rd. We took Wash Creek Rd up to Bent Creek Gap and the took Bent Creek Gap Rd, to Upper Sidehill, Little Hickory Top, down Ingles Field, to Wolf Branch the a couple of other single track trails I have never been on.

I had called Rhonda and asked her to pick me up at Bent Creek at 5 pm, as it was going to get dark, and I didn't feel like riding the pavement for another 9 miles. She came right on time, thus ending a fun ling ride.