Tazewell VA, Roanoke VA, Harrisonburg VA, Pikeville KY
Miles = 1,701
 

We were looking for a few days in April that fit our schedules and also looked liked decent weather, and it was becoming difficult. We planned a three day trip but by the time we found an acceptable week it was going to the last week in April and going into May, so we decided to make it a 5-day trip. I wasn't sure if this trip would still be classified as a 2 or 3 day trip but what the heck, here it is.

Day One - 406 miles
We had a pretty big day planned so we rode down to Corinth KY before jumping off the interstate. We rode on US25 south before jumping onto US460 to head due east. US25 is always a good start as there are many twists and it seems like it always in good condition. Once we reached Clay City we jumped on KY11/15 and paralleled the Bert Coombs Highway. This was pretty nice since even though we crossed over it several times while we were riding we really couldn't see it much. We stopped along the Red River but there wasn't much to see and the drop off from the road made it difficult getting back on. We should have picked a different spot. Anyway we continued on and stayed on KY15 once KY11 broke away and into the town of Jackson KY. KY1098 is a bit of a backroad but in more than decent condition. After about 60 miles from the Red River stop we pulled into the Elk View Park area. We had stopped here once before and remembered it was a nice area, and it still is for the most part. Elk View has many ATV trails and reportedly has Elk but the only thing we saw were horses running around. On this Monday morning there was not another person to be seen. Once we got south of KY80 we were really in the mountains and the riding was really good. We stopped in a big hairpin turn where there was a big pull off and continued on to Russel Fork in the Breaks Interstate Park area. We had passed by this many times but instead of going into the park we decided on something different. There were some shelters and camping areas that had access to the Russel Fork River. The area was nice and we walked around some and. Had the place to ourselves. We rode KY638 for the first time across Jewell Ridge and this was a really good road. It was 3:00 when we were leaving Russell Fork and we still had 80 miles to go on what we knew were all backroads, so we decided we would go until we reached our destination. We pulled into Back of the Dragon Brewery not much before 6:00. Many of the restaurants in Tazewell were closed either because it was Monday or in one case there were renovations going on. Therefore we decided to eat the Brewery's pizza, and have another beer. The pizza was ok, but I liked it better when they had their food truck. We rode the mile to our lodging at The Old Jail and discovered, like last time, we were the only ones there. This is a good place to stay and the accommodations were great as they were the last time we stayed there.

Day Two - 265 miles
We knew we were goin to be on some real backroads today so we made the milage a little less than normal. We ate breakfast at The Well Coffee Shop just as we did last time and also just like last time headed south on the Back of the Dragon. Its claim to fame is there are 438 curves in 32 miles rather than the 311 in 11 miles on the Tail of the Dragon. Obviously one can tell the Tail is much more aggressive than the Back but the Back lasts longer. Hard to say our preference they each have their own advantages and disadvantages. I would say for sure the Back of the Dragon is less crowded and that is an advantage but staying at the resort on the Tail I think is better. Anyway we enjoyed it, and stopped at our normal stops along the way and on Tuesday morning there was almost zero traffic. Just after passing Hungry Mother Park we headed west on Walkers Creek Road rather than going through Marion. The road followed Walkers Creek through the valley on the fairly narrow road. We rode north of I-81 before crossing over at McMullin and heading in the Mt Rogers National Rec Area. We rode those backroads stopping along the Appalachian Trail at a creek crossing with a pedestrian bridge. It was a nice quiet place and beyond one car passing there only other person we saw was hiker coming across the bridge as we were leaving. We spoke for a short time before heading on. We hit US21 heading north and into Wytheville crossing back over I-81. We jumped on I-77 for a brief time before running up to Big Walker and the old fire tower there. It was our second time there and I thought we might climb the tower this time but decided against it as we stood on the overlook deck. Big Walker Tower is on US52 and this used to be the main road until the Big Walker Tunnels were completed in 1972 allowing I-77 to go through. We rode north on US52 and then jumped on I-77 south and rode through the tunnel. We exited on the other and went west on VA601 aka Little Creek Highway. 601 was a narrow road but had a center stripe and we were goin at a pretty good clip, but then we turned on VA738. This was truly a back road and very narrow with no center stripe, but in good condition. Before long we were in Pulaski, an old railroad town and headed south on US11 and towards the Draper Overlook. This is a great stop and has some historical significance. This was our third time here. The road up and down is very good but we got stuck behind a truck as we were getting close to the summit, but it didn't ruin the ride too much. Both sides of the road have overlooks and on this Tuesday around 2:30 there many people at the summit. We walked around and took some pics before moving on. We had another 84 miles of backroads to ride and we wanted to havre some time to go out in Roanoke so we made Draper our last stop. We arrived into Roanoke and was met with a closed bridge and significant amounts of traffic. We stopped at a car wash and made a painfully slow trek to our hotel. We parked in a public garage around the corner from the Hampton and started out for the evening. We had our first beer at Olde Salem Brewing before going next-door for a very nice dinner at Table 50.

Day Three - 310 miles
Today was not going to start out well. Before we were going to walk to breakfast on the square, we suited up and went down to load our bikes. When we reached them we realized Steve's tail bag had been stolen including the straps. I looked at my bike and noticed my tail bag was still on. His was bigger but had nothing in it. Mine was as easy to remove as his but it was full of snacks and tools. They only took my snacks! Maybe someone came up on them as they were stealing. We walked to breakfast and enjoyed a good one. We had planned to ride a portion of the BRP before jumping off on VA130 but we ran into a detour string the BRO was closed but it wasn't very well marked where it the road work ended. We made several attempts at coming up with a new route but ultimately we found our way once in Bedford and got back on our route but we lost quite a bit of time trying to figure things out. When we were in an area where we needed to find a back road we had no signal so we couldn't really know exactly where to go. As we rode up VA151 we passed a number of breweries that we had previously visited but ones that we thought we would pass by before they opened, but due to our detours and routing trouble we found they were open when we passed but decided to keep riding. In Brownsville we headed due north on Whitehall Rd, Browns Gap Turnpike, and a number of other truly back road routes that eventually got us back to US33 and ultimately Skyline Drive. We hadn't been on Skyline Drive for a number of years and it was a nice 60 mile ride, but honestly by the time we neared the end I had grown a little tired of the drive. It's nice and the road conditions are near perfect but after a while it all becomes the same. Now we were well north of our destination of Harrisonburg so once through Front Royal we headed south on Fort Valley Road. This is a narrow road but has a center stripe making it much wider than some of the earlier roads we were on. Our first stop was the Elizabeth Furnace Recreation Area. The Elizabeth Furnace was a blast furnace in the Shenandoah Valley that was used to create pig iron from 1836 to 1888 using Passage Creek for water power. We didn't go in very far so we did not see the old furnace but we stopped along the creek and walked around some before continuing on. As we continued south through the valley we stopped at Camp Roosevelt which is an old CCC Camp, but it was closed for some reason, just like in 2020. A couple miles down the road we stopped at another spot from 2020 overlooking Luray VA, which was a nice view but the late in the day the bugs were too bad so we made it a quick one and continued on. Once in Luray we stopped at Hawksbill Brewing for a quick pint. The only beer that looked appealing was the Red IPA which is not our usual style but it was pretty good. It was 4:30 as we sat at the Brewery and we had another 40 miles to ride. Once we got to Harrisonburg we had a quick bike wash and we took an uber to Pale Fire Brewing. The place was packed full of JMU students. We ordered a pizza but after a few minutes of waiting with.no place to sit and trivia beginning we decided to cancel our order and eat next door at Rocktown Kitchen. The high end food was expensive but nothing much to write home about. Service was good, and it served our purpose but not worth the money.

Day Four - 384 miles
It was going to be a big day today. Lots of miles and lots to see. Since we were staying at a double tree we decided to have breakfast there and get an early start. On the way out of town we stopped at the old Owens-Brockway/Graham Packaging/ Artisan Packaging plant where I had been many times as both an employee of OB and a client. The place is abandoned now which is really sad to me. We headed west on US33 and stopped briefly after just about 30 miles at High Knob Overlook. The trees in the area were very tall which made the view less great. We didn't stay long. We rode south on US220 and made a quick detour on VA39 riding up to the Dan Ingalls Overlook. This is a nice overlook with many historical placards. Back down the Mountain we rode into Warm Springs. This is great little town with an old historic bath house that has been refurbished and looks great. The sits in Bath County and we stopped at the Courthouse there and took some pics. The courthouse was built in 1913 replacing an earlier courthouse but looks straight out of the civil war era. A little further south and we were in Hot Springs where the Old Homestead Resort sits. This place is absolutely beautiful, and I had planned to stop and take some pics but it seemed very busy as we rode through so we continued on. Another 10 miles and we were stopping at the Falling Springs Falls. This is another historic place that Thomas Jefferson raved about in his writings. It was already 11:00 and we had only ridden 116 miles. We knew there was a lot to see but we needed to get moving. Going through Covington did not help matters. This is an industrial town being home to at least one big paper mill. I guess US220 terminates in Covington so we continued south on VA18. As we rode south I was astonished at the number of times we crossed Potts Creek. While riding I was thinking surely there had to be a more direct route that didn't cross the creek so many times. Nevertheless it was a nice road. As we approached Paint Creek we had planned on stopping at the Paint Creek Store for at least a pic having been there before but I had forgotten VA18 dumps onto VA311 north of the store and we turned right following the route and missed it. Once we climbed over the mountain to the west we were in WV. We stopped at Sweet Springs Resort as we had previously done and it didn't look like nay progress had been made to slow the deterioration of the once grand gal. There was a guy moving some dirt around were we parked and we din't feel like walking around while he was there so we took some pics and continued on. You can tell once you cross into WV from VA the properties just are not as nice. However the roads were good and we were enjoying the ride. Our next stop was at the John Henry Memorial which is located at the eastern portal of the Great Bend Tunnel. Of course there are many tales of John Henry's prowess in digging and his competition with a steam shovel. For me the more interesting history is that of the Great Bend Tunnel. There is a little park there and we walked back to the entrance of the tunnel and were amazed at the difference in temperature. It was a hot day in early May and the tunnel was a nice reprieve. We rode past the Bluestone Dam and stopped at the Bluestone State Park along the New River for a couple of pics. The next hour or so was not so great. As we approached Princeton traffic picked up and getting through Princeton was a nightmare. Once through we reached the town of Bramwell which was previously known as the town of Millionaires having acquired this name in the late 1880s by having the most millionaires per capita in the entire US. This was this to the coal industry, and those days are long gone but Bramwell has fought against urban blight. I think some is due to the ATV tourism industry but there must be more than that because just down the road we stopped at Pocahontas WV and the story is very different there. I'm not sure what the difference is but it is big. While we were in Pocahontas we stopped at the exhibition mine and while we didn't take the tour we did tour the museum there which was the old union hall that was very preserved. The people there were super friendly. Leaving Pocahontas we headed west on WV644 and somehow we missed our turn and got on a very narrow road and with threatening rain we decided to take the quickest way to the hotel in Pikeville knowing there would not be any major roads to travel. When we reached Bishop we decided to stay on the short route and it was fine but I don't think we saved much if any time. We basically followed us460 to Pikeville. We got a little wet on the way in but it really wan't much. We stopped at the car wash and parked the bikes at the hotel underneath cover and headed to the brewery.

Day Five - 336 miles
It rained much harder overnight and we started the day in a foggy mist and I don't mean due to the brewery the night before. We rode south to hit the Happy Days Diner for breakfast. The owners are MC riders and we had a nice conversation with them. The food was good, the service was good, and the price was good. We rode up to the Cut-Through Overlook and were not able to see much due to the fog. The Pikeville Cut Through was a civil engineering project that redirected a four lane highway, a railroad line and the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River eliminating the frequent flooding of the town of Pikeville. This project was second only to the Panama Canal in terms of earth moved in the Western Hemisphere. We were on US119 which in this area in a large four-lane highway and I mistaken placed a waypoint right where we needed to exit and we both missed the turn. We pulled over and saw to turn around it would take us four miles out and four back so we decided to turn around and ride on the side of the road going the wrong way for the several hundred feet we needed. There was no traffic so it wasn't a huge risk. WV468 was a fairly narrow road that took us up to WV292 where we had to follow the Tug Fork River up. To Kermit WV where we could cross and connect with US52. We rode through the Dingess Tunnel for a second time and continued up WV10. In Huntington we stopped at The Peddler for lunch and a pint. We crossed the Ohio there and rode over to Ironton before heading up to OH93 and some real backroads to find the Johnson Road Covered Bridge. We had never visited this one before and there really wasn't much to see. We jumped on OH32 and rode home.