# Favorite rides or climbs around the TN/NC border area?



## Guest (Oct 10, 2009)

I just moved to east TN and live just west of the mountains here, I've gotten out into the hills a bit already and am in the process of linking up with the local club. But due to the season and working every other weekend will probably be riding alone for a bit in the area.

So what are some of your favorite routes in this area? I got a copy of "Climbing in the Southeast" which is helpful but there are bound to be plenty of great places that could not be included. I'm particularly interested in scenic climbs in the mountains, gravel roads or climbs and the middle of nowhere.


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## Mark H (Dec 12, 2007)

Where in Tn. are you located? I live Rogersville, just west of Kingsport.


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## Guest (Oct 11, 2009)

Not too far, I'm in Greeneville.


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## Mark H (Dec 12, 2007)

You say local club, so I assume your talking about TCRC? http://www.tricitiesroadclub.org/
I've been on some of their group rides and you can check out their message board for rides throughout the week and on weekend's.
IMO the hardest climbs around here would be English mountain (only 3 miles up, but has a couple of 20%+ grades) just outside Newport or Unaka mountain (don't recall how long, but it felt like forever) outside of Erwin.


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## Guest (Oct 11, 2009)

Yea, TCRC I joined the message board and hope to hook up with them at some point.

I work 7 on 7 off so I often ride during the weekday when everyone else is at work though. I did one climb out of Erwin last week, up to Spivey Gap, NC past the falls, very pretty around there. There was another kind of the opposite direction out of town that I was hoping to try soon that may be the one you are talking about as it was described as being more difficult than the one I did.

I have to work my way up to them though, love the scenery but living on the FL coast hasn't helped my climbing much.

Edited to correct my poor typing


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## Mark H (Dec 12, 2007)

If you really want to do some climbing and take in the scenery at the same time you should ride the Cherohala Skyway. For more info on that check this club out. http://www.smwbike.org/main/index.html 

Anyway, welcome to Tennessee!!! Maybe we can hook up one weekend and my riding buddies and I could show you a few nice rides out of the big town of Rogersville.


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## TnFeltRider (Jul 27, 2008)

Welcome to East Tn, I live in Bristol, Hwy 421 going over Holston Mtn is quite a climb and as scenic as you could ask for, I live close to the dam ( 8 miles ) and ride out there quite often and work on my climbing skills climbing the dam, the reward is the beautiful view of south holston lake.


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## Guest (Oct 12, 2009)

Appreciate the replies. Question on the Skyway, is the best way to do an out and back route along it or are there other options?


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## Mark H (Dec 12, 2007)

kytyree said:


> Appreciate the replies. Question on the Skyway, is the best way to do an out and back route along it or are there other options?


I've only ridden the challenge,which starts in Tellico Plains and ends there. I'm sure you could park at the welcome center in Tellico and ride from there.


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## Mark H (Dec 12, 2007)

TnFeltRider said:


> Welcome to East Tn, I live in Bristol, Hwy 421 going over Holston Mtn is quite a climb and as scenic as you could ask for, I live close to the dam ( 8 miles ) and ride out there quite often and work on my climbing skills climbing the dam, the reward is the beautiful view of south holston lake.


I've ridden motorcycles over 421 hundreds of times, but I've yet to ride my bicycle. Where would be the best place to park? The boat ramp just across the bridge?


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## Tarheel71 (Jun 12, 2002)

Spivey Gap and Unaka are climbs I have done going from NC to Tenn as part of the Roan Moan century starting in Bakersville, NC. Roan Mtn. is a great 7 mile climb up to Carver's Gap, elevation 5500 ft


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## cyclust (Sep 8, 2004)

I live in the Asheville area, but I used to live in Mohawk, Tn, which is just outside Greeneville. While it doesn't have a lot of climbing, Mohawk is one of the best areas to ride in east Tn. It is rolling farmland with good roads and very little traffic. PM me if you want more details.


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## Guest (Oct 14, 2009)

Roan Mt is on the list, as the area around Asheville.

I'm not familiar with where Mohawk is but I do like riding the rolling farmland around here. I can only take those climbs so often.


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## Guest (Oct 14, 2009)

+1 Roan Mountain! A great climb. I've always climbed the north (TN) side, and the descent into Bakersville is awesome. The Roan Moan route is really nice, here's a link to the Map My Ride map:

http://www.mapmyride.com/view_route?r=769124866526138884


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## Guest (Oct 14, 2009)

Eventually I plan to try and do both sides of most of these seeing as they are so close to me. I felt like a real jack azz coming down from Spivey Gap the other day toward Erwin but a pickup got in front of me and made me feel better as I held my ground on him till it straightens out. Probably used my brakes more there than I would've in a year in FL.


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## TnFeltRider (Jul 27, 2008)

To MarkH
I live close to 421 and yes, the boat ramp would be the place to park, I'm not man enough to ride up 421 mtn yet.


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## Guest (Oct 18, 2009)

TnFeltRider said:


> To MarkH
> I live close to 421 and yes, the boat ramp would be the place to park, I'm not man enough to ride up 421 mtn yet.



I will have to add that to the list, but sounds like it will go on the one of climbs I intend to work my way up to.


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

I second the Cherohala Skyway. Roan Mtn is really pretty, and sometimes there is some cross-country skiing available there in the winter (I don't know if you ski, but it's worth noting). I live in Asheville and don't get to the Tn side that often, but there are a lot of great roads around here. 

The Blue Ridge Parkway is obvious, but some parts are better than others. The climb to Mt. Pisgah from Asheville is popular, but I think it is a little bit boring. Going north on the parkway towards Craggy Gardens is a little more fun in my opinion, but due to a recent avalanche the road construction there has made that route a little bit funky to get through. There are some other more 'epic' ways to climb to Craggy Gardens as well. 

I just disregarded the Blue Ridge Parkway on the south side of Asheville, but I forgot that you would be coming from Tn. If you go through Knoxville and take 441 through the Smokies towards Cherokee, you can access the Parkway from that side. THAT side of Mt. Pisgah is actually pretty nice and the section around Waterrock Knob is particularly lovely. It is over 6,000 ft. in elevation there (not that high if you are used to cycling in Colorado, but high enough to start to feel it if you spend all of your time in the flats). 

For some nice roads that are a bit flatter, I reccomend the area north of Asheville around Weaverville and Marshall. There are countless small roads around there that are sort of away from the beaten path and not in the guidebooks, but I really enjoy them. Try the small state roads that connect Weaverville with the Blue Ridge Parkway if you want to go that route. Another semi-popular area that is a bit flatter is the Glen Bridge Rd area between Arden and Fletcher (south of Asheville). This goes through the French Broad River valley and has a lot of connecting roads that are nice to explore as well. I have ridden there many times, as I used to live on Long Shoals Rd. If you are in this area and need assistance from a bike shop for any reason, I reccomend Carolina Fatz on Brevard Rd. They cater primarily to mountain bikers (they are very close to Bent Creek and Pisgah National Forest, which contains millions of miles of excellent mountain biking, if you are interested) but they carry plenty of road gear too. I promise I am not a shill, I have just received better service there than some of the other LBS's around here. They once pressed a headset and cut my fork steerer and only asked for $5 in return. The nationally known LBS in Asheville that is recommended by cycling magazines and featured in Rapha's website asked me for $50 to perform the same service. Don't get me wrong, I have never really gotten bad service at that particular place and I do shop there from time to time because their shop is really big and carries some things you cannot get from other places. I'm just sharing a personal experience, which unfortunately generally reflects my experience with mountain bikers vs. roadies in general. I really hate to say that....

There is a growing track-cycling scene in Asheville, developing around the Asheville "Mellowdrome." I don't know if you are into that kind of thing, but I'm seriously thinking about giving it a try. The word on the street is that those guys are really friendly over there and they love bringing noobs into the sport. I know that there are some guys that drive from Tn to participate. I think I might give them a call in January or so.

By the way, when I refer to "flatter" rides around here, they are not really flat in the Florida sense. What I mean by flatter is that they don't feature 12% sections that are 10-15k long. They are made up of more rolling terrain. 

Well, I hope that's enough to get you started if you are in the Asheville area. It is really awesome here. The southern Appalachian region is a wonderful place to live. I have been absolutely all over the world and this is my favorite place to be. Drop me a PM if you want more specifics; I grew up in this region and could certainly give you some more details on good places to go around here. I will be super busy through the rest of the year, but I might be available to show you around a bit in the spring if you are in the area. 

Welcome to this wonderful part of the world!

-Chris-


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## Guest (Oct 23, 2009)

Thanks for the lengthy reply. I had been thinking of driving down to around Weaverville and starting some rides from there. I would like to check Asheville out, I've never really done more than pass through. The drome is something I've always wanted to try but its never really been a possibility before, I'll have to add that to my list.

I've been cross country skiing a few times and would like to go more, I've been looking at it not sure if I would be able to go enough to justify getting some ski's but eventually I will.


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## wncbiker (Feb 18, 2005)

*Hot Springs Area*

A good ride that is not to far from Greenville is to drive over to Hot Springs, NC and park. Ride out of town on NC 209 South, you will have a low traffic nice paved road that travels through some nice countryside. As you climb out of Hot Springs, it is basiccaly a 17 mile or so rolling to gradual climb until you reach the intersection of 209 and NC 63 at Trust. There you can continue to climb up 209 for an increasingly steep climb up to the Madison County/Haywood County line at Betsy Gap. Here, you can turn around & downhill back to Hot Springs for a 22-23 mile mostly downhill return to your car.

If you continue on 209 into Haywood County, you can go down a 5 mile downhill to Ferguson Supply Store, and then turn around for a 40+ mile ride.

My friends and I have been doing an annual ride from Clyde, NC to Jonesbourgh TN. that goes in that direction. Also, we will ride into Hot Springs from Cylde & back for a 80 mile ride.


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

wncbiker said:


> A good ride that is not to far from Greenville is to drive over to Hot Springs, NC and park. Ride out of town on NC 209 South, you will have a low traffic nice paved road that travels through some nice countryside. As you climb out of Hot Springs, it is basiccaly a 17 mile or so rolling to gradual climb until you reach the intersection of 209 and NC 63 at Trust. There you can continue to climb up 209 for an increasingly steep climb up to the Madison County/Haywood County line at Betsy Gap. Here, you can turn around & downhill back to Hot Springs for a 22-23 mile mostly downhill return to your car.
> 
> If you continue on 209 into Haywood County, you can go down a 5 mile downhill to Ferguson Supply Store, and then turn around for a 40+ mile ride.
> 
> My friends and I have been doing an annual ride from Clyde, NC to Jonesbourgh TN. that goes in that direction. Also, we will ride into Hot Springs from Cylde & back for a 80 mile ride.


Hot springs is a great place to ride.


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## Guest (Oct 25, 2009)

I rode out around the farms in the Limestone and Jonesborough area the other day, very nice, some nice rolling roads with plenty of short climbs on some scenic relatively low traffic roads.


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## bike_guy (Mar 26, 2002)

kytyree said:


> I will have to add that to the list, but sounds like it will go on the one of climbs I intend to work my way up to.


421 is really not that hard. It's a long climb for this area (5.5 miles from the base, 7.5 miles from the lake), but the average grade is only about 5.5%. There are several shorter, but steeper climbs across the state line in VA. 

I live just across the line in Abingdon and will leave my house climb 421, go on across and loop through Shady Valley and climb back up the other side of 421, it's only a couple of miles from that side. That gives me a good 50 mile ride with about 4000 feet of climbing.


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## mrbull (Jun 14, 2005)

+1 on Hot Springs, I pass through there a couple of times a year on rides; nice fairly empty roads. The Cherohola Skyway is a great ride, too.
The best thing about living in our area(Asheville for me), is going right out my front door and having a ride that other people drive hours for!
Once you get a better idea of the terrain and traffic in your area, Map My Ride can really help plan a ride.
A ride I do every year that crosses into Tn:

http://www.mhc.edu/hotdoggett/

Beautiful scenery, good climbs, next to no traffic.


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