Going down to ride the trails next week... never been there before. We are staying at the Ashland Resort and will be riding the Indian Ridge, Pinnacle Creek and Pocahantas trail systems.

Can anyone tell me if it's easy to find lunch on the trails? I mean, are we close enough to town to grab a sandwich, or should I pack a lunch?

I'm more in tune with the snowmobile trips up north.... no shortage of gas, food (or beer).

 

yes, you can take trails into town to eat. You want to take some water and snacks for the trail though. Make sure to check your lugnuts....everyone in our group of 11, except for those that used an impact gun, had them come loose. Great time up there for sure

 

wow the terrain is that rough out there?

 

Can be...depending on how hard you ride the trails! Our group rode pretty hard...we were not sight seeing too much, except during our smoke and beverage breaks. We were on the throttle pretty good. There are quite a bit of rocks and your machine will take a beating (some trails are more rocky then others though). Make sure to have flat repairs, pump, tow ropes, water, snacks, knife, gps, extra gas, etc with you. There are trails that shoot off other trails that can get you back to your origin or destination quicker, but you can easily ride 100 miles a day there and not ride the same trail twice. Cell phones are worthless there if you have VZ...AT&T works in the towns, not sure on the trails. Maps can be had at the trail heads, or print some off before you go from trailsheaven.com. We had one guy flip his quad, another sink his in a water hole, 1 flat, 1 busted a arm (had to tow it out about 10 miles on the trails), 7-8 atv's had loose lug nuts (those that did not use an impact)...I think that was about it. Things can and will happen out there..the terrain can be rough and you can be a long way from any help (aside from other riders). It is a blast though..we went in May and are going to go back two more times before year end

 

If you are staying at Ashland, you will have quite a ride to get to food. I have not been down since Pocohontas opened, but we always plan to have lunch in town. From Ashland, we leave in the morning and head straight to the connector and up to Mullens. You are looking at about 45-50 miles to get there. We gas up and eat in town and then hit some of the other trails after lunch before heading back. On our way back, if we are too whipped, when we hit route 17 at Northfork, we ride the road back to Ashland. The second day we do the same thing, but head over to Pineville. It is about 50 miles as well and the northwest part of pinnacle creek has some of the most scenic trails that you should be sure to check out. To my knowledge there isn't any food on Indian Ridge, but Mullens has subway, fox's pizza, and the hillbilly kountry kitchen (which is further in town on past fox's and the gas station). Pineville has an Arby's, dairy queen, a Mexican restaurant, and I think a pizza place. It is a couple mile ride from the trailhead to Pineville and the food is into town a bit. We will actually be down at the end of next week too, riding Rockhouse, bearwallow, little coal river, and buffalo mountain. Ride hard and be safe...enjoy your trip!

 

Thanks for the info. I hope the trails are well marked. Do the maps show gas and food?

Thanks for the replies.

 

The maps are very clear...it will show you the community connectors and the towns, but once you are in town you are on your own to find food!! Stop and ask a local is about the easiest way. Actually the towns that you will be in are very easy to navigate and find what you are looking for!!

As a side note...we have ridden thousands of miles on Hatfield McCoy trails on our quads and have never had one loose lug nut...you can check if you please, but don't lose too much sleep over it!

We are pulling out of Ohio next thursday, riding little coal river for thursday, bearwallow on friday, rockhouse saturday, buffalo mountain sunday, and rockhouse again on monday before we head home! We do this long trip once a year and three shorter trips throughout the year....you will enjoy and you will be back--keep posting with questions. We have ridden every system except pocahontas and know many of the good lodging and dining options!!

 

Not too worrried about the conditions or issues. I ride sleds up north (Waaaay up north)... each year we typically do 1000-1200 miles in 5 days. Try blowing your engine 60 miles from the nearest road or residence when it's -20* F. Northern Ontario is the epitomy of "the middle of nowhere".
At least a quad has wheels (if you have to drag it).
http://www.hardcoresledder.com/forum...e-img_0711.jpg

there... I can pull it from another forum.

How do you post an attachment? FAQ says there's a "manage attachments" button. I don't see it.

 

Was just down there a couple of weeks ago. Stayed at Wild *****'s ATV Rezort which is just a couple miles from Ashland. On the Pocohontas trail you can ride into Bramwell and eat at the cafe. Only about 15 miles.

 

Well... just returned from 3 days of riding the HMT. Rode Pocahontas, Indian Ridge and Pinnacle Creek. Had a very nice time. Conditions couldn't have been better. First day was a bit hot, but not too dusty... rode Pocahontas to Bramwell. Second day included a thunderstorm while we were eating lunch (Mullens). Last day was overcast in the AM and clear - rode Indian Ridge.

First time impressions:
1. Ashland Resort is a very nice place to stay. Accomodations and camp store were better than expected.
2. Trails/markings were very good. Never got lost.
3. Trail maps were fairly good.

Food & Gas are available in Bramwell & Mullins, as well as the Ashland Resort (at camp store, no restaurant)

Here is what needs improvement (keep in mind, this is coming from someone whose accustomed to snowmobile trails in Northern Ontario and Michigan). The following suggestions are commonplace on larger snowmobile trail systems:

1. Trail maps that include the connected trail systems (i.e. ONE map).
2. Trail maps should show gas and food locations.
3. Signs on the trails for businesses who support the trail systems (again, food and gas).
4. Lastly, the connector trail between Indian Ridge and Pinnacle Creek is brutral... like riding up a dry riverbed in most places. Several spots were definitely not "Green trail" material.

All in all, it was a great trip with a lot of new experiences. We will definitely do it again sometime.