Singletracks Mountain Bike News, Product Reviews, MTB Trails and Community › Protected: Forums › Mountain Bike Forum › Road Trip Recommendations – Kansas City and Roanoke
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October 12, 2019 at 12:50 #277848
I am about to head out on a 2 week trip from Boulder, CO to Asheville, NC and would like ride recommendations for a couple of my stops. For reference, I ride most everything within 2 hours of Boulder and usually ride Bent Creek and Dupont when I am in Asheville. A mix of intermediate (75%) and advanced (25%) trails would be ideal while traveling by myself.
I will be in Kansas City on Monday night and have time for 2 rides in Missouri. 1.) Swope Park looks like an obvious choice. Which direction do most people ride? Should I be concerned about parking – unload my car at the hotel before riding? 2.) I have time for a longer ride on Tuesday. Blue River Parkway, Landahl Park Reserve or Berryman Trail?
I will be in Blacksburg, VA next Saturday for a football game and will spend the rest of the weekend in Roanoke. 1.) Carvins Cove seems like a good choice for Sunday. Do any of you have a favorite 15 to 20 mile loop? 2.) I may have time for another ride on Monday. Mill Mountain, back to Carvins or stop at Kerr Scott in Wilkesboro, NC on my way to Asheville?
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October 13, 2019 at 18:42 #277873
I will also be spending a couple of days in Louisville, KY but will not have much time to ride there. Are there any must ride trails in the area?
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October 14, 2019 at 10:43 #277911
Jealous. Some thoughts for CC: something for everyone there. Where to start/go depends entirely on fitness level and harsh climbing/descending comfort. If you’re into 10+ % avg grades (up to 30+% at times), start on the Southwest “side” and probably at Timberview parking lot.
The following route is 15miles with a total of 3k vert give or take but gives a full view of most everything at CC except the jump lines (OG and Trough) or worst/best rock crawling tech (rattlin run) but it’s hard core up and down to start.
– Lot to Gauntlet on Horsepen.
– Gauntlet up/Hi-Dee-Ho down (1,000 ft up over 2miles) and high consequence descent if at speed. Classic “upper” trails at CC.
– 4 gorge and extension to Kerncliff (Northside flow trails – some punchy ups but nothing like the “upper” trails)
– Kerncliff to Araminta (fire road but steep and loose)
– Araminta to Hemlock Tunnel (fast single track) to Lakeside
– Lakeside (southside fast flow) to Horsepen to Lot. Let it rip and prepare for plenty of drifting corners.
Tons of options for adding/dropping a bit of length or elevation (super clear maps on any of the websites and maybe best trail markings I have seen). E.g. Make the start a bit easier by using Trough up and Buck down or get a little air by coming down OG and onto Gauntlet for remainder down. I would suggest not leaving a Gauntlet or Hi-Dee-Ho climb for late in ride unless you’re really fit.
Can park at bennet springs lot and save upper trails for after 4 gorge warmups or skip entirely.
Cannot go wrong at CC. Enjoy!
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October 14, 2019 at 17:00 #279784
Kansas City is pretty close to northwest Arkansas, so if you have time, you should really come check out the trails here.
Some recommendations:
– Coler Mountain Bike Preserve (Hardcore)
– The Back 40 (Endless possibilities, great variety)
– Lake Leatherwood (Downhill trails, was one of the Enduro World Series stops this year)
– Fitzgerald Mountain (Best Trail Ever is a great one)
– Slaughter Pen (Bentonville trail system that kicked the recent MTB explosion into gear)
All of these and more can be found on the OZ Trails site: https://oztrailsnwa.com/trail-locations/
Have an awesome trip! Sounds like a blast!
– David
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November 5, 2019 at 17:21 #290189
DG – thanks for the recommendations on Carvins Cove. I ended up getting rained out in Roanoke but did get to enjoy an awesome 6 overtime football game at Virginia Tech. I can’t wait to get back and give the riding a try.
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