Hell all, i have a trip set up for the 28th and 29th of july going down to ride in harlan kentucky at the black mountain atv park. Im very excited to go down. Wondering if anybody else has been down there or is going. Any tips. I hear its a great place. Ill get a thread when i get back to report on how the riding is. talk at ya later

 

I've been down a couple of times. The last was Memorial Day weekend. The riding is fantastic and so is the scenery. Get in touch with the Ridge Runners before you go. They will make sure you have a guide (for free) for off-park riding. There is no fee to ride at all and the town (Evarts) is ATV friendly as long as you are sensible.

A couple of tips:

Make sure you can bring extra gas on the quad. Some of the off park trips are +-100 miles. The flat Fuel Packs are great.
Harlan Co. is a dry county. If you intend to have a beer, you better bring it with you.
Make sure you go by the camp fire. They have a fire every night at the RV park in Evarts where everyone sits around and tells riding stories, tells big lies and maybe knock back a cold one.
Be careful. When they say a trail is RED, they mean it.

I wish I was going with you guys. If you run into PoWhiteBoy, tell him RSeb says hey.

 

thanks so much, we are renting 2 atvs for me and my buddies father so we are starting at the trial head of putney. I balieve this is the actual park. Is the trails here good if you know and is there a trail that leads over to the other trails at everts. Will the maps down there show us if there is. thanks abunch

P.S. i knowticed you have been to big rock in maysville. How is the riding there. I want to make a trip down there sooner or later. Were abouts do you live if you dont mind me asking.

 

The Putney trailhead is just another entrance to the same park. But, there are disadvantages to entering that side. You cannot drive your quad on the streets over there, so you will have to trailer them to the traihead. Also, I believe they charge a fee to park or something at Putney. The trail up from Putney can be tricky if it's wet too. Next trip, you ought to consider staying on the Evarts side.

Once you're on the park, you could go down to the Evarts trailhead and drive into town for fuel, food, etc. The maps are available at almost all retailer down there and they are very good.

I live in Campbell Co. Ky near Alexandria on a farm of about 300 acres. So, I ride almost every day. Mostly just for transportation and towing and hauling than for fun.

Big Rock is, IMO, the best place to ride locally. They have about 2000 acres with trails of all kinds. My biggest problem with BR is that there are no maps and the trails are marked very poorly if at all. but, it's not very crowded, they have some challanging trails, a decent snack bar and the owner (Duke) is cool.

A group of us is going to BR this Sunday. You are welcome to join us if you can. We all ride utilities. We like some challanges, but we're not into taking crazy risks. Most of us are between 35 and 45, so our invincible days are past.

Let me know if you're interested.

 

There is a possibility i might go down with ya. Me and some buddies are going riding sunday and were planning on going to richlang furnace which is a park in ohio if you havnt hear of it. We are around the ages of 18 and 19 and our dads arnt coming out with us this weekend to ride like usual. Kinda a different thing to us, haha. We have been wanting to go down the br but i dont know if we have the time for the 2 hour drive this weekend, Ill get back at ya though.

 

ALSo, i forgot to mention that you have a very nice quad. Looks sweet. aslo, i was wondering if it was hard to find some of the places on your picture page. IM sure you cant just tell me how to get there haha but is there a map that might, thanks.

 

Definitely try to enter the park at the trail head in Evarts. You can park and unload in lots of different locations in town, FREE. You can legally ride thru town for food, gas, etc...just obey all traffic laws. You can also get a FREE guide while you're in Evarts. If you plan on camping, you can camp in Evarts, FREE. I wouldn't even mess with the Putney trailhead, if I were you. Go to the Harlan County Ridge Runners website, which is www.rr.kyoutdoors.com click on Forums and get with bellman, who is president of the Ridge Runners. He will definitely hook you up with a free guide, and give you suggestions on anything else. While you're there, eat at Sister's Restaurant in Evarts. Great food. You will have a blast. Beautiful scenery, great trails, from easy to extreme, and the friendliest people you'll ever meet. Prepare to have the time of your life!

 

Thanks dude. You inspired me to put up a few more pics.

A lot of those places on my picture page are of places on off park rides - The "Stone Mountain" and "Big Black Mountain" rides in particular. They are not mapped and you will need a guide. Fortunately, they are easy to find and the price is right [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img] . As atomlinson said, Bellman can hook you up. Just tell him how long you want to be gone and what kind of riding you like and he'll hook you up with the right guide.

One other thing to keep in mind down there. There's a decent chance that your cell phone will not work. Some services work up on the mountain though. I have Verizon and it was completely useless down there. A buddy with Cincinnati Bell had service on the mountain only.

If you don't already have FMS/GMRS radios, you ought to get some before your trip. The Ridge Runners monitor channel 3.

 

Ya, im pretty good at finding trails so im sure i will find many trails that will lead us off the actual park. Less then 8 days till i leave.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img][img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img][img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

You can get cell phone service in the city of Harlan, but not Evarts. You can get a signal up in the mountains though. If you go with a guide, one favorite place that he/she will take you to is Bald ****. You should be able to get a signal there. There are pay phones in Evarts, at the gas stations. Definitely bring the FMS/GMRS radios if you have them, even if you don't use a guide. Most of the members and staff of the Harlan County Ridge Runners will have radios with them, so if you should need any help, just give them a shout on channel 3, and they will bend over backwards to help you out.