General Cycling Discussion - Virginia Creeper Trail

This is a definite reccomendation! I rode the Virginia Creeper Trail last week and it was neat!

It is located between Abington Va. and Witetop Station. About 34.5 miles with Witetop Station at the highest elevation of any railrode station east of the rockies at 3600+ feet. The town of Damascus is about halfway inbetween. If you are like me and on a time schedule riding each way from damascus is the way to do it. I arrived Thursday PM and so could not do it all before dark so rode Damascus to Whitetop Station and back. 5 hours including picture stops.

Friday morning I did Damascus to Abington and back and could continue on to a meeting I had Friday evening.

Seenery is great varies from small town to farms to forrest. Lots of old train trestrls - great ride.

This is a rails to trails trail and the write up can be found on line by looking under rails to trails. The URL is a mile long and doesn't copy well. There is a lot of soot left on the trail, but I does was off - I used water collected from my home airconditioner to wash the bike.

Joe
:beer:

I live very close to the creeper trail and I've thought about going up there to check it out. It's basically uphill one way and down the other right? What's the grade like?

It gets steeper at the end but trains with steel wheels on steel tracks pulling loaded train cars made it up so a rubber tired bycycle has little trouble even with me as the power source. On the way back down I didn't peddle for at least the first five miles.

Joe
:beer:

If you need a riding partner tell me when you're going again :beer:

I will post it here if/when I go again. I live over in Northern Neck between the patomic and Rappahannoc Rivers ~630 miles away so it may be a while. Also I would like to do the New River Trail. Have you ever done that one?

Joe
:beer:

no, but I like going up to the new river gourge to rock climb. i had planned on going up to that area to to gauley festival.... but decided i'd rather stay here and ride in a mtb race

OOPS! My fat finger 320 miles not 620 - I use the number pad and hit 6 by mistake. But it is a 6 hour drive.

If you're a racer you should have no trouble with the Creeper Trail.

What's a gauley festival?

Joe
:beer:

it's a big kayaking get together, i've never been but it's supposed to be fun

Joe! Shhh! Don't tell anyone about The Creeper trail. It's already too busy! Ritalin, where do you live in East Tennesee? I used to live fairly close to Damascus (Boone, NC), and still go through several times a year visiting family (and doing bike rides) back there. I agree, the creeper trail is awesome. I've only ridden the part from Damascus to White Top Station. I guess it gets kind of busy during the day (I rode it very early in the morning). Damascus has some other neat stuff. A couple miles south of town on 133 is Backbone Rock State Park. It's a cool place to hang out, have a picnic, and feed the mosquitos. I like to swim in the river there, but it's probably pretty low this year with the drought. If you're a roadie-type, there's a really cool ~45 mile ride that I posted for a rider in another forum except it started in Mountain City and turned around in Damascus. Here's the start-in-Damascus version:

Take 133 south out of Damascus for about 13 miles to Shady Valley (intersection with 421). Hang a left and go about 10 miles up over Grindstone knob and back down to Mountain City. Then turn around and ride back. There're stores on the way at Shady Valley and Mountain City. There's some climbing, but I think it's really pretty, and not much traffic. It'd be a great ride to do when leaves are changing.

Originally posted by Ritalin
It's basically uphill one way and down the other right? What's the grade like?
Yes, from Damascus to White Top Station. Haven't ridden the part between Abingdon and Damascus, but I'm guessing it's pretty flat. This web-site has a description. (http://www.vacreepertrail.org/)

Johnson City, TN... home of ETSU

so I'm guessing you went to App?

Originally posted by Ritalin
I'm guessing you went to App?
Yep. I am (was, actually) a Mountaineer. Arghhh. Ye be a Buc, matey?