Pisgah MTB Trip Report - 3 of 5

With some Pisgah National Forest riding under our belts we decided to turn our attention to Dupont State Forest today.  Equipped with some trail suggestions from Brian at the Bike Farm we drove about 30 minutes to the Buck Forest parking lot.

Bikes ready to go.

Part of the enjoyment in being on a guys bike trip is to not have a schedule and the ability to take our time as we care.  So, we setup our camp chairs behind the car in the parking lot and took our good ol' time eating some food and getting ready to ride.  As we were hanging out, a vehicle pulled in and it was the couple from out west we had met the day before.  It was a little unexpected to see them again.

Slick rock!

Eventually we rolled out and rode Corn Mill Shoals Trail to do a clockwise loop of Burnt Mountain.  It was a good little climb up and a fast ride down!  We then rode the Little River Trail to Cedar Rock Trail and got our first taste of Dupont slick rock.

A cairn to show the way.

Slick rock riding is typically thought to be out west, in Moab, UT for example, but Dupont is one place in the eastern US where you can ride slick rock trails.  Despite the name, slick rock offers lots of traction and allows you to ride up steeper than normal gradients.  The slick rock trails we rode were not particularly steep but it was a fun experience.

Topping out.

We spent some time taking pictures and eating atop Big Rock.  The views were nice but seemed distant due to the large, flat area atop this mountain.  A few other mountain bikers passed by as well as some hikers.  A group of about five young boys mountain biking with a couple adults came riding up as we were headed down the Big Rock Trail.  It was good to see some young blood cranking it up.

An expansive summit.

Within a few minutes we rounded a corner and found an impressive view to the north.  Hey, we are on vacation with no schedule so we stopped again for some pictures.

 More pictures.

The ride back down to Corn Mill Shoals was a fast one.  There was plenty of downhill excitement with corners and drops.  It was quite fun and we headed back to the car having enjoyed our first several trails of the day.

 One of the Dupont locals.

Once again we setup camp chairs behind our car in the parking lot and relaxed while eating.  We studied the map and made a plan for an afternoon ride to see the airstrip as well Bridal Veil Falls.  Back out Corn Mill Shoals and then we rode the Shoal Trail and Laurel Ridge Trail to work our way over to Airstrip.

 Check out the Klein!

There was an interesting water crossing along the way.  We came to a crowd of ten to twelve people at the crossing.  Some were going one way and some the other, but everybody was walking and not riding across the stream.  Turns out the rocky bottom was very slippery with signs warning to dismount.

 Slickrock is indeed slick when under water and slimey.

There is an interesting history to the park.  Its name comes from the DuPont corporation and the area was once a getaway for employees, complete with an airstrip for flying in / out.  Obviously it's now a state park bu the airstrip is still there.  We rode right down the middle of it with arms held horizontally, air plane style.

A nice view to the northwest at the end of Airstrip.

Distant mountains beneath the clouds.

The Briery Fork Trail dropped us down from the airstrip with several big berms and switchbacks.  We descended in a hurry and rode over to Bridal Veil Falls.

Bridal Veil Falls

It didn't seem like there was match water falling at the water fall.  It was impressive to see the expanse of rock from below, but we had to ride up it.  Good thing we did as there were several pitches to the falls.

Some interesting bowls and puddles. 

Halfway up.

At one point it seemed like a storm was going to blow in but it never became more serious than a few sprinkles.  At the top most point of the falls was a nice spillover.  We walked around the side and behind the water.  A head rinsing was refreshing with the cold water.

 The top falls.

For the second time today we rode Corn Mill Shoals back to car. The stream crossing was in play again on the ride back.  It had been a great day of riding at Dupont.

In Brevard we stopped at Sycamore Cycles to check things out and got a good tip for a Mexican restuarant for dinner.  I ordered some sort of sampler and ended up with what seemed like two dinners.  This worked out well to replenish some calories spent today.

Refuel!

Back at camp we setup our folding cots in lounge chair configuration and relaxed until after dark.  The insects were again surrounding us in full symphony, but I had no problem falling asleep tonight.

Katydid in love with the lantern.