Day 5

April 22-23, 2007. Drive. Drive. Fuel up. Switch drivers. Drive. Drive.

We arrived at Eric's house about 12 hours from the North Carolina campground. We unloaded the trailer and collected our bikes, sleeping bags, and personal items. Go home and catch up on sleep. Don't forget to clean up that bike for the next ride.

One question remains: What is Brian doing in the picture? Submit your best guess.

North Carolina 2007, Day 4

April 22, 2007. During preparation and eating of French toast, sausage, & OJ, it was determined by reviewing earlier printed internet threads that Brian, JP, & Bob's quest to reach the top of Black Mountain yesterday was very close. And despite the hiking sections they endured, it was decided that the goal must be met today. So about 10am we started the bike ride down the street from the campground, turned in to the entrance road to the horse stables, and a few miles later started the approximately 90 minute grind up the steep gravel road called Clawhammer. Harv noticed his speed hovering around 4 mph. Yes, most others were faster but not by a huge amount.

We regathered at the start of Black Mountain trail, took a breather, and, as previously warned by the 3-man group who ventured here the day before, carried our bikes more than rode them. Our efforts were rewarded as we took in the awesome views (see photo above and more to the left side of this screen), rhodedendren tunnels, and a rock ledge that made a sort of cave underneath. Someone had previously made a small campfire in the cave. We weren't sure we would want to camp out in this cave. It probably was not practical for even a raccoon to live in such a cave but we could imagine being visited by snake similar to the one Marc, Eric, & Harv saw yesterday. We took some photos and moved on.

The peak of 4200-foot high Black Mountain was not particularly obvious but we knew we made it as the trail turned downward. We took a rest in an open grassy area. A lone mountain biker soon came up the trail we planned to go down. He said his girlfriend was not far behind him. After we got to know each other, he told of some great places to ride in Virginia, his home state, especially near his girlfriend's house. He said if we visited, his girlfriend would put us up for the day or two. But she still hadn't arrived. He finally decided to ride back to find her. They both returned a few minutes later. In my opinion, she didn't look like she was in the hosting mood. She and her bike seemed OK, just kinda beat up from the trail.

We headed down for some bone jarring riding; more bone jarring for the two hardtail riders, Harv & Bob. It was a blast, especially the last mile or two which was faster, smoother, and offered up some mounds to launch from. It was time to try out our efforts at "Big Air".

After sandwiches for lunch back at the campground, we decided to take the same downhill but take a different way up with less hiking and more biking. It required about the same amount of granny gear pedalling but, again, the downhill was a blast. We put in an estimated 23 miles of hard riding.

After the rides, we cooked brats for dinner, cleaned up ourselves and the dishes, and packed up camp. We headed out of camp around 8:30 pm for the all night ride home. We switched drivers often to stay alert and safe.

Mountain Climbing on Day 3

April 21, 2007. It was suggested by Eric & Marc last year that we should try mountain climbing in this area. That is, mountain climbing without the bikes. Since Eric & Marc have some experience and equipment, we agreed to give it a try. Climbing with ropes and carabiners was unfamiliar to most of us.
We started the day with pancakes and bacon. After breakfast cleanup, we drove the two vehicles to the same mountain of yesterday's Caney Bottom / Fish Hatchery trail but parked about halfway up to the trailhead of Looking Glass Rock, South Wall. The 45-minute hike to the rock wall would have been a little quicker if not for the many trees down over the trail. Downed trees were quite common because, as we learned from our campground host, the area had extreme winds just days before we arrived. We talked about the explosive noise the larger trees must have made, snapping and crashing to the forest floor.
Some climbers were already on the South Wall; others arrived throughout the day. Marc & Eric carefully climbed to small tree outcropping to secure a rope. After we made a few climbs, 5 ladies from Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, showed up to watch the climbing. Marc invited them to join the climbing and most of them accepted. They seemed to have fun and thanked us often for the opportunity.
Even though we were miles from most conveniences, we enjoyed a hot meal right at the climbing wall thanks to JP's Ready-to-Eat (MRE?) meals, Cheese Tortellini. The boxed meals included a packet of salt water that, when added to a flat package of a magnesium-filled substance, boiled the meal piping hot depending on how long it was left on the tray. In my (HP) opinion, a very good meal.
Brian, JP, Tim, & Bob headed back to the camp. Brian, JP, & Bob headed to Black Mountain to tackle the area's highest peak. To say it was accessable by mountain bike was stretching it a little. After the almost 90-minute grind up a gravel road, the Clawhammer trail turned very rugged requiring more bike carrying than bike riding. The sun was already out of view when they turned around before finding the peak. They learned later they were very, very close. When they reached the downward gravel road, their speed approached insanity even as they met a lady with 2 dogs on the trail. Test those brake pads! They arrived back at camp in the dark.
Meanwhile, Tim searched for someone with parts and skills for fixing his hydraulic brake system. He ended up having to drive the pickup to Asheville where the problem was fixed but for a crazy price. Tim was not a happy camper.
Eric, Marc, & Harv continued climbing on Looking Glass Rock after lunch. Near the top of the rock Marc almost stepped on a 4-foot black snake. It remained motionless until we nudged it off the trail. It climbed onto tree branches, allowing us to pass. There was some "careful" discussions on how to get to various points (mainly, the bottom!) of the rock. The challenge was met with good plans and safe procedures and we had a Rocky Mountain high! See the photos!
Foil dinners! They included spicey sausage, potatos, corn, carrots, peas, & onions. We did a good job of making sure our exercise did reduce our weight!

North Carolina 2007 Day 2

April 20. Cold morning! Harv had 4 layers of clothes in his sleeping bag! Was it really that cold (no snow) or is Harv a wuss? After a breakfast of scrambled eggs, sausage, & OJ, the dishes were washed. If you wives don't believe that, check out the photos on the link to the left. Then off to DuPont State Forest for almost 100 miles of available trails. Here's the trails we tackled on this beautiful day:

Big Rock Trail

Cedar Rock Trail

Little River Trail

Corn Mill Shoals Trail

Bridal Overlook Trail

Bridal Veil Falls Road (Bike the waterfall!)

Conservation Road

Reasonover Creek Trail

Lake Julia Road

Camp Summit Road

Airstrip Trail (Yee-Ha!)

Shelter Rock Trail

We suffered 2 broken spokes, 1 chain broken twice, complete elimination of some brake pads and pressure loss on hydraulic brakes. We had a lot of fun destroying our bikes! It sure seemed like a lot more than 14 miles! We made sandwiches in the parking lot of the trailhead. We stopped at the 2 bike shops in Pisgah Forest for parts and checking out some awesome new bikes. We cooked up hamburgers for dinner.

Check out the photos of day 2, DuPont is very scenic.

North Carolina, Day 1

On the evening of April 18, 2007, JP, Harv, Marc, Brian, Eric, Tim, & Bob drove two trucks out of Michigan and headed for the Pisgah National Forest for the 4th annual Mountain Bike North Carolina. The original plan of taking Marc's motor home for the trip fell through that same morning when he learned a head gasket was failing and would not likely last the trip. Harv's small SUV and Harv & JP's dad's diesel pickup were used instead. The pickup had the required power to pull the borrowed (Thank-you, Ade!) trailer for bikes, tents, food, etc.

We drove through the night for about 12 hours and after breakfast at the Cold Mountain (yes, the area based on the movie) Cafe, we arrived at the Davidson River Campground. After setting up site #117, we biked across the street to the Sycamore Cove trail. It ended back on the road US276 and we biked the trail in the opposite direction for a total trip length of nine miles. We made sandwiches for lunch and prepared for an afternoon ride to a familiar trail of the past two years, the Caney Bottom trail at the Pisgah Fish Hatchery. A light drizzle kept starting and ending. We rode along the road for several miles, then started up the 45-minute climb up the gravel road. The rough downhill ride took less than half that time including the fast rolling gravel trail on the bottom along the creek. Total biking miles for the day: 30 miles. We hit the showers and headed for El Chapala in the town of Pisgah Forest for a good Mexican meal. We hit the sleeping bags exhausted.

Click on the PHOTOS link on the left and look for the album name "North Carolina 2007 Day 1". All of Harv's photos are available for viewing but they're not all labeled and tagged yet. More postings coming soon.