July 1 and 2 Rides

On Friday, July 1
Ken, Michael, Lonnie, Ralph, Joe, Tom, and myself decided to ride off WMG Rd and have lunch in Bramwell. We rode down WMG and then onto Flipping Crk trail. Down where the trail goes left to Hillbilly Hideaway we stopped and a local came riding by. We chatted and said he was there to check out the new Hatfield McCoy Pocahontas trails. He said they had started grading on Tuesday and me talked to the grader and surveyor on Thursday and they showed him the layout, Trail-head, etc. We decided to follow him. At the point we were at we went on the trail that went straight ahead instead of to the left to HB Hideaway. This is the trail that has two antennas on it. This will be Trail 10 and takes you to the trail-head. We followed him to the new TH area which is above a little grey church on US52. There is a path down to 52 but they told him that would not be the exit off of 52 because they thought is was to steep for trucks and trailers, instead the will put in a new rode connecting further to the west on 52. The coordinates for the TH are N37 20.077 W81 18.397.

Screen-shot of new TH


We then rode some of the new graded trails, they all dead ended since they are not finished with them. He was told they are supposed to be finished with the grading by the end of August. All of the HMPH trails have blue flags along the trails.

We found a new trail that none of us had been on, it is a HMPH trail that goes south at Belcher Cemetery. The first part is just open logging road and then it ducked into the woods and became a very nice trail, it dropped out onto 52 behind somebodies house. I am sure HM is not going to have a trail drop out on 52 so we assume that they will make a trail over to 52 Launch. By the way as some of us thought 52 Launch is not the TH.

New Trail


We had another good lunch at the Corner Soda Shop in Bramwell.

Saturday, July 2
The same crew as Friday plus Greg trailered to Long John Silvers in Welch where Larry and Kevin met us. We headed up the mountain to ride the trails south of Welch. We ran into 4 locked gates and a ditch and pile of boulders on 5 trails. They are serious about their gates.

We headed down a trail that was not on our map and it turned out to be a great trail with one bad spot where the right sight had washed away. A SxS could not have made it. We ended up at a locked gate and a sign that we were in a Hunt Club. We found a way into the creek next to it and got around it.

We then headed down to Coalwood and rode into Coalwood and saw the Launch Site. The also have a very realistic 10' mock up of the Space Shuttle with boosters. We then made the loop back toward the town of Six. We had a little problem finding the trail at one point (I had drawn it on GE something had changed). We took a trail that went down to Hwy 16 that ended at a locked gate. This is the one gate we could not get around. We back tracked and found the trail. It ended at a locked gate but we were able to go to the left down a ravine and up over a berm and got around it. We then took Perry Camp Br and eventually ran into another locked gate. We had to drop down about 8' into a creek and then back out of it to get around the creek.

Locked Gates


We then headed back to the LJS's to load up and drive back to Hilltop.

Based on both days rides I will update the map. I also got some trails over near Flat Top and a bypass around Burning Rock. I have to sweet talk him into letting me use them.

Two nice days for riding for sure.

Was just in Bramwell today with our photographers group and I noticed they have atv route signs up in town already. Had Ice cream at the corner soda shop..yum yum. Told the girl the next time she saw me I'd be on an atv