Chris Fordney: Trails are calling as fall nears

By Chris Fordney

The leaves are beginning to turn, which means it's time to dust off the hiking boots and clean and lube our mountain bikes and get out and enjoy the fall scenery.

And it's time for View from the Valley to seek out a couple of suitable trails in the area.

One recent afternoon, Cindy and I headed up to Bear's Den on the Appalachian Trail, the closest and most convenient place to get on the trail from Winchester.

We've been up there several times, but this time we did not park in the big commuter lot where Va. 7 crosses the Blue Ridge at Va. 601.

This lot gives you access to the trail for hikes up to Bear's Den, the big rock outcropping a short distance south, or to Raven Rocks, the cliffs that are a more ambitious distance to the north. (Out to the latter and back would be an all-day hike.)

To cut off the hike up to Bear's Den, we instead drove south a short distance on Va. 601 to the Bear's Den hostel, where you can park for $3. A short trail links the hostel to the rocks at Bear's Den, and it positions you well for a descent into the "rollercoaster," the notorious segment of the AT just to the south where a young hiker died from heat-related injuries several years ago.

That tough reputation seems a tad overblown. Any hiker in reasonable shape would do fine on this part of the trail which, as its name implies, involves a series of short, rocky ascents and descents and immerses you in a nicely wooded section of the mountain.

We walked for about an hour to a secluded creek before turning around. We saw one rare and slightly nutty creature -- no, not a South Carolina politician -- an AT through-hiker who said he had walked the entire, 2,175-mile length of the trail the year before.

Two days later, I met my mountain-biking buddy Steve-O (no relation to the jackass) near Bentonville for an attack of the Veach Gap Trail on the Massanutten Mountain. We got to the trailhead by driving across the Indian Hollow Bridge and about a mile on Panhandle Road to a national forest parking area across from the gates of a private development.

This trail has both historical and natural interest. According to a faded sign on its lower section, George Washington asked Gen. Daniel Morgan to cut a road across the Massanutten range and into Fort Valley in case the British forced the Continental Army out of New England and it needed a place of refuge. Washington never needed the road, but parts of it survive here.

The first leg of this trail is a moderate to difficult climb for about half a mile before it turns left and heads steeply up the mountain. Steve-O is a former mountain bike racer and made the top from the parking lot in 37 minutes, a climb of just over 1,000 feet. I came puffing up an undisclosed number of minutes later.

After a rest, we headed south on the Massanutten East Trail, which is a delightful bit of ridge-top singletrack. There are stretches of smooth, moss-bordered trail interspersed with rock gardens and some fairly technical but short descents. Advanced riders will find it all rideable while intermediate riders probably will be walking their bikes through some parts.

We turned around at Milford Gap, and by the time we got back to the car, we had covered about nine miles.

As always, the fun part was going down.

And as always, bring food, water and a proper map.

Contact Chris Fordney at cfordney@nvdaily.com