Cold night. I misadjusted the heater and it turned off after going to bed. The temp dropped inside so I doubled over the down blanket and pulled on my wool hat and warded off the chill. I started the heater for bfast and became comfortable. Installing the big heater turned into a boon for me for even the 50 deg nights.

Standard time means the sun comes up about the time I wake up. This AM the sky was perfect blue and cloudless. Les, I am glad that I did not add a skylight in the back, the cave allows for sleeping longer and under street lights.

Today i am going to ride the trails that were part of the original 24hrs of Canaan that was the start of the 24 hour racing craze. All the leaves are down covering the trail. But the rock gardens remain leafless and excuseless to not be able to ride:

All ST trails made for bikes. Wandered around following colored blazes for trails. Rock gardens!!!.

Trail went over some slick rock:

I have quit counting falls. My hip hurts from yesterday. In these rocks I loose my balance and start to topple but can’t always clip out. Sideways falls.

Trail went thru a reclaimed strip mine.

So catch the stats: 7.69 miles in 1 hr 39 mins with 1122′ vert. And that was with some flat speedy sections. Lots of time for so few miles. Such is the riding.

Yesterday I rode out and back the Plantation Trail an 8.5 mile 1 way. I thought I could do this within 2 hrs. I picked a nasty rocky trail. many feet of technical riding. Imagine doing 24 hours in this stuff?

back @ van and stayed outside enjoying a fine blue sky and about 65 deg. Putzed around.

Plan is to stop @ spring and drive on into Canaan SP to poach a shower. Success on both tasks.

Back into town. During my ride my cell phone rang. It was Roger from Blackwater bikes and he was calling me per my request from yesterday. I had put my card with a message on his door jam. Good excuse for a stop. I visited him and listened to his ride ideas for down the road. And I slipped in a few words of my own.

As I reflect on past conversations, nobody has asked about rides in areas I know about. They talk about theirs. Many people say they aren’t interested in rides elsewhere as they have the best riding out their front door. Years ago I said the same thing but once I started rambling I learned there was always something different over the next hill. To ask me what have I enjoyed the best so far causes my eyes to go blank and space. I have had several bust rides that drop off the active recall. But the good ones? I couldn’t go to that ride and forever stay there, but maybe Blue Mtn outside Peekskill, NY, or White Clay, MD. But then there is Bend, OR, or the Umpqua River TR. Or Rick’s trails on MT Coeur d’ Alene.

Back to same camp spot as last night. Overcast and not so cold.

Going to ride a part of the Dolly Sods area S. of here and then push down to Slatyfork deeper into the mtns. I called the Post Offive today and my license tabs are there. I need them on by the 9th. Seveal days riding here and then over to Virginia.

Weather forecast is still for mild & dry. Ridden for 9 straight days. Weather will change and I might have missed out. Left knee starts hurting about 90 mins into a ride.

Back when I was conceiving of this adventure seveal asked if I shouldn’t test out this lifestyle before completely casting off. i really have been developing these skills for 10 years starting with the VW bus. This issue of Backpacker has an article about the AT. I chuckled as I read it as it took me back to my early pratice days for this adventure.

Been 4 months of driving, riding, planning, chores, repeat. This computer is the biggest change from previous trips. i spend 2 3 hours on it, writing this and researching over the next hill. I don’t m ake the time to really keep up w/ individual emails or even read.

Quiet night in XG. Something to be said about sleeping in a legal place: No worry about a rap on the van and a badge. Warm night.

Punched in Davis, WV into GPS. And did I see some back roads. I selected shortest route instead of fastest. John Denver’s song, Take Me Home Country Roads was sung about these roads. Windy, twisty, no shoulder, Up & down but seeing a part of the countryside that is missed going the fastest way. Saw remnants of snow drifts along road side. All leaves are gone. Up at nose bleed elevation of 3230′.

Hit Davis, home of Blackwater bikes but they were closed. Walked down to Visitor’s Bureau. Was greeted by woman who fed me w/ info but not bike specific. Bought an Adventure map and drove out of town climbing to the Plantation trail that ran the ridge line. The ride would be an out & back.

Beautiful day, warm like in lower 60s for Nov 5, day after pivotal point in America’s future. Go  America! Maybe our future will be like after Reagan took office: restored pride in America. May the new era be for the peoples’ benefit and may America restore respect throughout the world.

Hit trail, noticed that there were no bike tracks in mud which got me to suspect that I picked a bogus ride. Trail was on top of a ridge, rhododendron thickets cut out for trail. Some boggy spots, lots of rocks & roots, the stuff I came to experience. Smaller rocks with lots of challenging moves. I decided that I would ride out for an hour and then turn around. Different challenges on return. Stalled front wheel against a small rock and I violently lost my balance and did the slam to the ground. I landed on my left elbow and hip. Just pain, no loss of use. Going to be sore.

On way up I noticed a guy alongside the road with h2o jugs: there was a spring pumped out. Never pass up good water so I stopped on my way back into town.

I had wash to do which slipped up on me. I know this because of the number of clean bike shorts I have. Today i had only 2 meaning a wash day.

Stopped at visitor bureau again and asked  questions about how they earn their existence. I learned a whole bunch about web data gathering of user info.

Did wash.

Davis is just a several block long Main street burg. Former bank is now a county gov office. I walked in  admired the original wood work. I noticed the finish on the wood was worn away at the 2 teller windows. With the present economic debacle I could imagine people going to the bank like in the 30’s and the cupboard was empty of our savings.

A small backpacking shop was opened attended by a mother rocking a young baby. I asked about rides and she said that was her husband’s purview and I should check back later. He still wasn’t back when I returned. I left my card and said that I was going into Thomas to a brew pub for a beer. When I entered the pub the bartender asked if I was the biker looking for ride info and she handed me the phone and a phone number. We had a laugh because she sorted out her definition of a biker from the caller. I lacked the tattoos etc of a biker biker.

I drank a jelly jar of their good beer. I saw a picture behind the bar of a guy with a snake. And a guy inn the bar looked like him. I asked if it was he and he said yes. What followed was an educational biology discussion about snakes and their hiberniculum, where a bunch of snakes gather to hibernate. Snakes are affected by hormones and fight other males during mating season but come snuggle time, all bad vibes are past.

Way past dinner time with 2 beers in my belly.

Called Ben, the shop owner with the ride info, and he provided me with info for me to stay another day.

Apparently the 24 hour race craze was born here in Canaan Valley and Ben sent me to the trail system. I found a legal campsite after dark.

Cold and clear night. Need heater and doubled blanket.

Ride here tomorrow then maybe moosey down to Seneca Rocks. I found Slatyfork where my license tabs await. I need to have them on plate by 11/9. Forecast has snow maybe Sat and I do not want to be driving these roads with any snow on them

Slept OK. I peeked out curtain after daylight and observed a police car out on the street apparently watching for speeders. I passed the police roust test. I seemed to have picked the city stadium overflow parking lot.

Started up the gps & punched in McDonalds for a clean restroom for morning growler. Darn thing put me right in the restroom.

Headed West along Northern edge of MD. Stopped in Cumberland for diesel and quick look at Chesapeake & Ohio canal historical site. Just a piece of original canal has h2o in it. No locks. Cumberland also was a civil war site. So much history never learned and not enough time taken to learn it.

Pushed on up into mountains. Up to Coopers Rock State Forest. Drove in looking for a trail map. None of the bulletin boards had any. Drove back X interstate to unsigned park headquarters. @ oafs were working in a ditch: big bellies and smelling of cigarettes. I asked for a map and the 1 in charge complied. The map was a poor photocopy for the trails. All the roads showed well. Both men said that the trails would be a hard ride as if they knew what a bike was about.

It seems that the public sector documents trails that they want the public to use and sometimes the maps aren’t ground accurate. Today I wandered around again to poorly marked trails. I punched in the TH location just in case.

Trails are loose rocky with these green briers along trail’s edge. Good thorns. I learned that the woods are full of these vines and the only safe riding track is down the center.

Rode to Clay Furnace, another old iron furnace.

Ride started with a flat front tire. I found 1 of those thorns from Fair Hill had worked it’s way thru the tire and into the tube where it broke off. Such a small hole emptied all the air. I patched it. The tire lost air during the ride today and I think there is another broken off thorn. I spoke with somebody somewhere else where there were goat heads who said he ran slime and when the season was finished he threw away his tires as they were full of broken off thorns.

Loose rock, green brier thorns, and archery deer hunters.

Nice day: warm, wore long sleeve bright orange jersey for protection.

Looking for shower. XG has them for $21 and a legal place to stay. Mel, I’m cheap and I whine when $ slip between my fingers. yes, $5.00 for a shower is steep when I really don’t need one. After 3 days of riding, it averages out, plus I had a quiet place to sleep. Darn place prohibits alcohol. What is drunk from a glass remains a secret.

10.55 miles and 1400′. Camped back at elevation of 2150′ like Spokane. Nose bleed.

Still sort of warm. 9:30 and enduring an open van door. But I just shut it.

Election day. May my absentee ballot be counted correctly.

Made an involved 2 burner dinner, a benefit of a legal camping place. Left overs for tomorrow.

Scheduled my fork rebuild with PUSH Industries for right after Thanksgiving. Goodness, spend more than a week in Ohio waiting for the fork’s return.

Off to Seneca Rocks, WVA tomorrow.