Tour of Black Mountain (Original Routes)

Bicycle Tour of Black Mountain

Come ride the beautiful hills and mountains of Western North Carolina. The agenda is pretty simple.  Each day we'll ride a little, eat a little, and have a few cold ones.  We may throw in a few runs and hikes to see some additional views.

Date: June 17th to June 21st.

Agenda:
Tuesday June 16th - Arrival and Tour Check-in.  
Upon arrival you will be provided route maps and information necessary for the week.  We'll be spending the evening at my house grilling some food and getting bikes ready for this epic adventure.  You can hit the grocery for your breakfast and snacking needs as well.


Wednesday June 17th - Let's get right to the Top!
Overview: Today, we'll spend the day on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The Parkway gets a lot of bicycle traffic and the auto speed limit is controlled.  Be sure to bring a tail light as there are a few long dark tunnels.  We'll want to use caution going through them to ensure we are traveling safely. We'll take a short 20 minute drive to get to our route start at the Folk Art Center and then get to the highest point east of the Mississippi!

Departure Time: 10am

Route: Folk Art Center to Mt Mitchell (https://ridewithgps.com/routes/28218252)
Distance: 63 Miles
Elevation Gain: 7,126 

Dinner: Ole Guacamole!  That's right, we are having Mexican

Thursday June 18th - Recover and Relax
Overview: Today we'll hit some of my more familiar roads.  It is a good day to recover a bit, maybe throw in some running or hiking.  If the weather is good, we can take a dip in a cold mountain spring.

Departure Time: 11am

Route: Hickory Nut and Lake Lure (https://ridewithgps.com/routes/21155057) 
Distance 56 Miles
Elevation Gain: 5,504

Dinner: Foothills Local Meats, my favorite place in downtown Black Mountain.

Friday June 19th - Back to the Top, the Long Way

Overview: Today we'll have an opportunity to go back to the top of Mt Mitchell but this time we will take the adventurous route.  We'll roll right from the house heading east where we will pass through Old Fort and onto a gravel road climb up past Curtis Creek Campground (my favorite) to the Blue Ridge Parkway.  There is about 10 miles of gravel climbing on this route so sure to be fun.  Once we get up to the Parkway, we'll head back west to make the Mt Mitchell Climb.  After taking in the view, we'll descend back to the Parkway and take a little bit more easterly route south avoiding the gravel road we used for the approach.  This is going to be a monster of a day so be prepared and take your time.

Departure Time: 9am

Route: Mt Mitchell from the East (https://ridewithgps.com/routes/4795980) (little gravel first 10 miles on Curtis Creek)
Distance: 85 Miles (60 in the route map  + 25 miles round trip to route start from Black Mountain)
Elevation Gain: 7,142

Dinner: Highland Brewing, this is a great local brewery in East Asheville

Saturday June 20th - Paris Mountain and a little bit of South Carolina
Overview: We'll have to make a 90 minute drive this morning to South Carolina where we will be riding up Paris Mountain, site of the 2009 U.S. Pro Championships and popular training ground of the beloved George Hincapie.  After the ride, we'll head back to Black Mountain for one last dinner and some revelry.

Departure Time: 9am

Route:  Paris Mountain (https://ridewithgps.com/routes/939766)  
Distance: 76 Miles
Elevation: 5,597 Elevation

Dinner: Trail Head, downtown "pub grub"

Sunday June 21st - Departures
Departure day!  Hug your buds and get the hell out of here.

Accommodations:
All are welcome to stay at my place.  I have a guest room and 2 kids rooms.  We can toss out some blow up mattresses or even a hammock in the yard if you are so inclined.  If you want to hotel it there is a Hampton Inn.  My wife and kids will be away so we have the run of the place.

Travel:
Black Mountain is about a 7-8 hours by car from the Columbus area.  If you want fly into Asheville, I'll pick you up.