EXPLORE
SINGLETRACK AND SUDS
BIKEPACKING THE BEER TRAIL TO ASHEVILLE A three-day mountain biking adventure through North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest BY MIKE BEZEMEK
WE WERE ONLY A MILE OUT FROM REEB
Ranch when I began to question our plans. My buddy Boberts and I were riding loaded mountain bikes up DuPont Road, a paved highway with little shoulder. Hearing an SUV approaching behind us, I glanced back. A passenger
was hanging out the window, preparing to give us a piece of his mind. Probably the typical, get out of the road. “You guys rock!” shouted a friendly young man. He flashed two supportive hang-loose hand gestures and issued a roaring whoop. Woah, I thought. Not what I expected. During the 20-minute climb, more cars passed. One driver honked and fist pumped. Another yelled, “Killer!” A third slowed down to drawl, “Bad assss.” By the time we reached the Lake Imaging parking lot, we felt like visiting dignitaries. A few riders came over to chat, inspect our brand new Revelate Designs bikepacking bags, shake our hands. One dude said we’d inspired him to join the sport. Two athletic ladies with arms buffer than my legs gave us approving nods. While I announced my candidacy for mayor of mountain biking, Boberts kissed a baby in a bike carrier,
blessing the child with good fortune and fine riding stamina. Something we’d need ourselves to complete the trip. This was our first bikepacking trip, after five years of traditional touring with racks and panniers. Our three-day plan was to start ES TIMATIN G TH E with a quick outRIDE AROUN D and-back to DuPont 80 MILES WITH for a looksee at this 8, 000 FEET OF CLIMB IN G , popular trail network. WE H OPED From there, we’d pass TH IS WAS A REALIS TIC FIRS T through Brevard and B IK EPAC K IN G into Pisgah National TRIP. Forest, where we’d ride and camp for two days. Finally, we’d cross the Blue Ridge Parkway, ride the flowy singletrack of Bent Creek Experimental Forest, and end with a biking brewery tour of Asheville. Estimating the ride around 80 miles with 8,000 feet of climbing, we hoped this was a realistic first bikepacking trip.
O S K A R B L U E S B R E W E R Y O P E R AT E S T H E R E E B R A N C H N E A R B R E VA R D , N . C . P H O T O S C O U R T E S Y OF THE AUTHOR
To preserve our legs, we limited our DuPont visit to an easy route, mostly the Hilltop Trail and Buck Forest Road to the covered bridge above High Falls. On our way out, we stopped by the picturesque Triple Falls, made famous as a filming location for The Hunger Games. Reeb Ranch (see what they did there?), where we camped the night before our ride, was established by Oskar Blues Brewery as a destination for mountain bikers, campers, and festival goers. Our next stop was The Hub, a cycling shop and taphouse near the entrance to Pisgah. Here we purchased a topo map but skipped having another beer because we needed to hydrate— ahem, with water—for a big climb into the forest.
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