Moving from MI to Knoxville, TN. Where do I find good rides to the north of the city?
 

The wife won. She found work before me and now we are moving from this Godforsaken state. Are there any good places (Parks, Rail trails etc) north of Knoxville to ride. I understand that I am going to have to get used to the hills, but hopefully there are a few flat places. Won't be there until late August, so...:)

Congrats ziggy! Knoxville is one of my favorite areas in one of my favorite states. MI is beautiful in its own way but Tennessee is God's Country. I do not know too much about Knoxville as it was just a "halfway" stop between here and Toledo during my days of driving that route 20 to 30 times a year.

I became familiar with Knoxville as a kid when we would vacation up north in summers from Florida. It was a three day trip back then as most of Tennessee did not have a complete Interstate system. It was a lot of two laners for just about the entire state. We would always stay at this little mom and pop motel in Knoxville called the Knox Motel. The best part it had a pool and the rooms had AC. We did not even have AC in our house in Florida at the time so it was a treat. This was back in the early 1960's. Dad drove the Corvair while mom dished out the chicken from Colonel Sanders from an old styrofoam cooler that fit in the back seat between my brother and I. Those were the good ol times and I am sorry to have bored you silly with my ancient stories. Sometimes we would stop at Norris dam cause dad thought it was neat to drive over the dam while mom was petrified of the height. The drive from Jellico going south is some of the best Appalachian views you will ever see on an interstate. Breathtaking.

Oh yes, we always made fun of Big Bone Lick State park somewhere around the Kentucky / Tennessee border.

I am not sure how many flat areas you will find in the area, they are on the other end of the state. But there should be plenty of good country roads to ride. You aren't far some some ski resorts that have summer biking as well.

Hello Ziggy- Donald here. Shoot me a msg when you get here next month, I've got a whole book you can look @ full of rides all around Knoxville, + I'll tell you about some good weekly rides and get you hooked up with a couple of great local bike shops. Good choice on the TriCross- me and the Mrs have a stable of 4 Specialized rigs.

Thanks for the responses. Donald I will absolutely be dropping you an email when we finish with the move. Who could pass up an invite like that?

We are going to apartment it for a while until (and quite possibly if ever) the house in MI sells. It took me 2 years to sell my Moms condo (bought in 2000 for 135k, sold 2008 for 49k) yes, I have learned to hate MI. Im looking forward to riding some roads that are anything but flat and straight. Plus a year round riding season appeals to me as well. Looking forward to meeting some new riding buddys.

Dan

BTW, I love my TriCross.

A few Knoxville resources:

Local discussion group

TPO bike blog

TPO web page includes maps and stuff

How far north? There are some nice back roads outside of town and mostly horrible congested main roads in the north part of town. Rail trails are nonexistent and parks are rare, though there are some greenways in town and in Maryville (south of Knoxville). My stomping grounds are mostly south and east of town where there are scenic roads with little traffic, but most are narrow. You have to get used to that.

I actually wish we had a few of those. ;)

Happy moving. September is a nice time to be cycling around here.

Someone posted a video of clips from a group ride in Fountain City. It gives you a sense of what the roads are like.