Mountain Biking Virginia: An Atlas of Virginia's Greatest Off-Road Bicycle Rides (Where to Bike) by Fernandez Martin & Fernandez Martin

Author:Fernandez, Martin & Fernandez, Martin [Fernandez, Martin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781493025503
Publisher: Falcon Guides
Published: 2017-04-30T04:00:00+00:00

Virginia Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley

T wo of Virginia’s most distinct features, and perhaps its most celebrated, are its mountains and the fertile valley between them. The Blue Ridge Mountains, part of the greater Appalachian Range, and the Shenandoah Valley, part of the Great Appalachian Valley, mark the western borders of the Old Dominion. Considered Virginia’s frontier by early settlers, the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Valley became the home for generations of families because of the ample resources they provided. Today, the region is home to not only one of our nation’s most visited National Parks, the Shenandoah Valley National Park, but also two National Forests, The George Washington National Forest (GWNF) and Jefferson National Forest (JNF).

Occupying over 1.6 million acres in Virginia alone, the forests are one of the largest preserved natural areas in the eastern United States. An additional 125,000 acres in West Virginia and 961 in Kentucky account for the balance. It is within the confines of Virginia’s 1.6 million acres that the rides I’ve selected for this section of this guide will take place.

Most people don’t equate remote backcountry with Virginia, but that is precisely what you’ll find within Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley, as well as in the vast expanses of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. Hundreds of miles of backcountry trails traverse the Blue Ridge Mountains and span the long linear ridges that make up the Blue Ridge. Built by Roosevelt’s Army of the unemployed (the Civilian Conservation Corps—CCC) in the 1930s, the backcountry trails would eventually ignite an interest in backcountry travel and cycling.

In 1933, approximately 100—300 out-of-work young men based out of Camp Edith (now camp Roosevelt, see Kennedy Peak ride) set out to implement Roosevelt’s New Deal. Roosevelt’s plan, enacted into law as the Emergency Work Act, provided eligible out-of-work young men between the ages of 17 and 25 a steady monthly paycheck in an otherwise dismal economy for “building infrastructure” in inaccessible lands. Managed by the multiple Federal Agencies, The Emergency Work Act proved to be a success that garnered strong public support. By 1942, when the program ended, nearly 3 million men in more than 2,600 camps modeled after Camp Edith would find employment and build not only trails but also be responsible for reforestation efforts, building wildlife shelters, restoring historic battlefields, and clearing campgrounds for the nation’s enjoyment. In the Corp’s near decade of existence, its workers built nearly 1,000 parks and planted billions of trees, in the process, fulfilling Roosevelt’s vision of a “tree army” that promoted conservation and universal youth service.

Documenting everything that’s available for mountain biking in this region would require the writing of its own book. The rides selected here will give you a sampling of what is available and hopefully inspire you to craft some loops of your own. I’ve divided the region into four “ride centers”: Front Royal/Strasburg, Harrisonburg, Clifton Forge/Lexington, and Roanoke.

The epicenter for riding in the region is Stokesville, home of the Stokesville Lodge and

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