Big Mountain Riding

Mountain biking is FUN! Even in 90-degree heat ...

With summer’s heat, I head higher into the mountains to escape the swelter. The third Big Mountain Riding Adventure Ride found me far out in the hollers of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, at Cave Mountain Lake National Recreation Area for some sweet backcountry singletrack with the promise of a cool-off swim afterward. This ride is only 4-miles if done one way, but it features many big mountain elements that make it worthwhile.

Big Mountain Ride #1 – Whetstone Ridge Trail

Big Mountain Ride #2 – Pedlar Ranger District bushwhack

Get directions to Cave Mountain Lake Recreation Area. The Recreation Area is pretty far out there and I decided to add to the middle-of-nowhere feel by getting there via a gravel, one-lane road descending 10-miles  from the Blue Ridge Parkway. I use that road for a training ride to prepare for epic events. It turned out to be a bit too much as an access road. About 7-miles in, my bike jarred loose from the Rocky Mounts fork mount and came through the rear passenger side window of my car. That added a new element to the adventure, as I had to detour out to civilization, thus defeating the purpose of my “shortcut”.

We put the 'K' in Kwality

I drove out to the nearest “country store,” but they had no duct tape. Huh. Not much of a country store. Had to go into Glasgow, Virginia to find a decent role of duct tape. In the Dollar General store parking lot I braced the remainder of my window, adding some class to the already rather rent-a-wreck look.

Back in the hollers, I paid my $5 day-use fee and rolled into the park. I picnicked in a beautifully rustic group pavilion built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930’s. Those guys knew how to build to last, and with style.

I pushed off from lunch, pulled down the bike and scouted out the trailhead for what looked like the only good-sized trail in the park, a loop called the Wildcat Mountain Trail. The CCC guys must have had a few feline encounters, because the other trail I saw was labeled “Panther Knob Trail.”

The CCC built to last

A helpful park volunteer steered me to the path and wished me well on what I correctly predicted would be an arduous ride. I rode the loop from the west trailhead, which featured a deadfall within the first 100-yards (an omen of things to come).

If that's not enough, ride it both ways

However, I rode over it and over many of the obstacles and soft trail conditions during the during the first 1/3 of the ride up to a fire road. On the other side of the fire road the climb got serious. In the sweltering heat, I climbed up a soft trail bed with plenty of hoof prints from its primary traffic – deer. The trail featured steeply inclined sections ramping up to progressively tighter switchbacks. Also, the higher it went the narrower the trail grew. In my overheated brain, I hoped for a super sweet downhill to match, and hoped that I had not unwittingly come up the harder side of the trail.

After plenty of hike-a-biking and granny-gear climbing with my heart smashing into my ribs twice for every pedal turn, I rolled onto what seemed like a downward incline. After sucking down water fiercely from my CamelBack and then moderating my breathing, I rolled on and soon encountered the first blazes I had noticed so far – Orange. Additionally, I came across a helpful sign marking the half-way point. Not sure if it was supposed to offer hope or inspire one to turn back if they thought they had gone further than they had. No summit marker that I saw, just a half-way marker. Niftily, that marked the beginning of a rewarding downhill run on classic CCC singletrack like that found in other Virginia big mountain riding sweet spots like Douthat and Sherando Lake state parks.

"You're almost there!" Let the games begin

The downhill made up for the sweat-hog climb. I would definitely recommend riding Wildcat Mountain Trail in the same direction I did. Yes, I did have to push the bike, but in cooler weather I would have pushed the heart rate higher and ridden more of it. And, the downhill toward the eastern side of the campground features a rock garden and some obstacles that require gravity assistance. In fact, only one tight squeeze is a definite dismount on this descent.

The backcountry element crops up in dozens of deadfalls and at least one flooded ford of a creek. However, at the end one rides out into a well-maintained campground and then at the end of the road a cool swimming hole awaits. I rode back to my car, grabbed my trunks, hit the CCC-built bath house for a shower and caught a  quick dunk as the rain began to fall and thunder rumbled in the distance. Another great day of Virginia big mountain riding. Those looking for a longer, more challenging experience could ride this trail in both directions in one ride.

©bigmountainriding.com

Cool off after a hot ride

More info:

Name: Cave Mountain Lake

Fees: Day-use $5 per vehicle, Camping: $15-per site.

Administered by National Forest / Park/ State: Jefferson

Specific Agency: National Forest Service

Camping Season: Apr 1 to Oct 31 (As the season may vary from year-to-year and based on conditions please check before visiting)

Number and Type of Campsites: Available: 42 Gravel: 42 Back-ins(12 x 22)

Other Features and Amenities: Restrooms and Showers Public Phone Handicap Access Table at Site BBQ at Site Nature Trails

Internet and Wireless Access: no

Contact Information and Reservations:
Telephone: 540-291-2188
If no email is available additional information can be found at the National Forest Service Website

Additional Information:
Fishing, Boating, Swimming and Hiking: Cave Mtn Lake Swimming