Singletrack Mind: The glades of West Virginia provide primo fat-tire obstacles (courtesy, West Virginia Tourism)
When John Denver sang about country roads and mountain mamas, what he really meant was "country singletrack." West Virginia's Snowshoe Mountain is where he belonged. That's also where all big, bad riders who live out West should go. We think we're all tough ridin' our slickrock and hypoxic Rocky Mountain passes. But West Virginia riders know it's us out-of-towners who'll end up crying for mama when we hit the slick roots, slicker rocks, and mud of the Mountain State's trails.
Snowshoe Mountain (877-441-4386, www.snowshoemtn.com), about 230 miles west of Washington, D.C., is home to 24-hour races like those in Moab and Tahoe. Why? Try 120 miles of cross-country mountain-bike trails spread over the resort's 11,000 acres of deciduous-forest backcountry. A $35 daily pass lets you ride the chairlifts for downhill mayhem off 4,848-foot Snowshoe Mountain, ride the shuttle buses at the end of 1,500-vertical-foot runs down into the valley, and try your balance on ladders, drops, and jumps in the just-opened terrain park. Snowshoe also added another 20 miles of mountain-bike trails last summer. In nearby Pocahontas County, you'll find even more trails in the one-million-acre Monongahela National Forest.
For starters you might want to warm up on the gentle Greenbrier River Trail—a rails-to-trails route, sometimes overgrown with lush greenery, that runs for 75 miles along (you guessed it) the river. After you've got your legs back, spin up 800 vertical feet on the Airport Road, a gravel doubletrack that leads to what locals call the "Airport," a logged strip of open space on the top of the Allegheny Mountains where the fun begins.
Drop in on Upper Beaver Dam to Lower Beaver Dam, part of the 24 Hours of Snowshoe course, tackling extremely rocky, rooty, technical terrain. Even green runs here are technical, so play it safe, and don't ogle the spectacular views of the entire valley below. Then go up Black Run Road, an old logging road, to hit Enchanted Forest—singletrack—over to Point of No Return, more singletrack, to Poleaxe, more singletrack, come around on McDonald Way, then Spruce Road on gravel, and start climbing back. Yeah, you'll need a map for this 12-mile loop that will take you to the base of Silver Creek Ski Area via numerous stream crossings. Pick one up at Snowshoe Mountain's Adventure Center (see contact above).
And that's just one option. You could head out on Cheat Mountain Ridge Trail along the ridge of Snowshoe Mountain, where you can see across the waves of purple mountains rolling into Virginia. Go out to the fire tower, built in the '40s, where you can climb 80 feet up. Some say you can even see into North Carolina on a clear day. Get back on the bike and backtrack 2.5 miles to 6000 Steps Trail that comes down to the bottom of Ballhooter Lift. From there you can climb along NORBA cross-country courses, or get on the lift to go back to Snowshoe Village.
Assuming you don't need a run to the hospital, head for a soak in the hot tubs of Split Rock Pools. You'll need it. Only 175 miles of trails left to explore.
If you want to escape the boundaries of resort riding, the nearby Elk River Touring Center (304-572-37714, www.ertc.com) is a great place to kickoff exploration of the Mon and its many, many miles of singletrack. Near the MTB mecca of Slatyfork, Elk River boasts perfect trail access, mechanical and local expertise, and inexpensive lodging. Try the Elk Mountain Trail, a 14-mile run with a 900-foot elevation gain, or the epic, 20.5-mile Props Run, long regarded as one of the country's finest downhill tracks.
