This trip report is of Matthew Harms and David Landis’ March 2018 ride on the TransVirginia route in winter conditions. Written by Matthew Harms.

Trip Summary

Dates: March 4-March 11, 2018

Trip Length: 7 riding days, 1 rest day

Total Distance: 409.9mi

Average Daily Distance: 58.6mi

Climbing: 35,958ft

Average Daily Climbing: 5,137ft

Summary Thoughts

Overall, the TransVirginia is a beautiful route. The route passes through a wonderful mix of rural countryside and mountainous national forest terrain. All the while, the route predominantly follows well-maintained gravel roads that don’t require serious technical riding. What’s more, with a few exceptions, you’re far away from motorized vehicles. If you love touring and want to get away from cars, while enjoying beautiful scenery, the TransVirginia is for you!

The route is physically demanding. This past summer on our GDMBR trip, we averaged 15 miles a day more than we did on the TransVirginia. (Though on the GDMBR we were sagged and had more hours of sunlight.) Still, despite averaging shorter daily distances on the TransVirginia, we climbed nearly 1,000ft per day more than we did on the GDMBR. The climbs are all manageable—even fully loaded there was only one brief section of single track (1 mile, before Wolf Gap) that required hiking. The climbs just come frequently—the Appalachians are not nearly as expansive as the Rockies—and even though the valley riding doesn’t have big single climbs, there’s still a good deal of up and down. Stay as light as possible! Due to the weather, we were pretty heavy on this trip, and the riding was slow!

Bike setup: You’ll like want something more robust than a standard touring bike, but there’s no need for suspension mountain bikes or excessively fat tires—the road surface is generally relatively smooth/hard. David rode a Surly Troll and I a Surly Ogre (both with rigid frames and forks), and both of us were quite comfortable. David swears by his Surly Extraterrestrial tires (durable 2.5in tires that roll well on hard surfaces), and my Marathon Mondials (while heavy) have made it through 2,500mi of mostly gravel riding with no tire flats. Any number of other tires would do, but choose something that can manage gravel while still rolling relatively quickly on hard surfaces.

Water, food, and lodging: Even with short days you wouldn’t every need to carry more than two days worth of food. Along the route there are plenty of places to filter water, and many miles of riding in national forests mean that you have no shortage of wonderful, wild campsites. If that’s not your cup of tea, there are also many private-room accommodations on-route—maybe with the exception of a night here or there, you’d only have to camp a couple of nights over the course of a week and a half trip.

Prep, Packing, and Travel

Last August and September, my friend David and I—supported by his wife, Anna, and two young children, Silas and Eleanor (aged 2.5 and 6 months)—rode the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR). (You can check out our report from that trip here.)

After spending much of the fall and winter in front of our computers, writing and making maps for a variety of trail-related projects, we were both both itching for a springtime adventure.

David lives in Harrisonburg, Virginia, and in the past year he’s worked on developing the TransVirginia Bike Route, a mixed-surface bikepacking route from Washington DC to Damascus, Virginia on mostly gravel National Forest and country roads—similar in style to the GDMBR. The route travels largely through the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia (with bits of route crossing into Maryland and West Virginia). David had ridden the route in May 2017, and had since scouted and updated some sections for better roads and services. We thought it would be fun to give it a go from start to end and explore the new sections, fully loaded and get a feel for the route in its entirely.

We set aside a week and a half in early March (starting March 4 from DC) and kept our fingers crossed, hoping for relatively warm, dry weather. As the start date approached, the forecast called for chilly temperatures (highs mostly in the upper 40Fs) but little rain. So far, so good.

Packing for the trip presented some challenges. We wanted to stay as light as possible—we figured we’d be climbing around 1,000ft per 10mi on the trip—but we also wanted to stay warm. Thankfully, we wouldn’t have to pack more than 4-5 meals at a time, due to the relatively frequent country stores along the route; and water wouldn’t be much of an issue, as we’d pass many streams and springs along the way (though National Forest campgrounds don’t open water spigots for another month or so).

Prior to the trip, my pack list looked something like this:

Bike Bags:

• Revelate Frame Bag
• Ortlieb Seatpost and Handlebar Bags
• Revelate Gas Tank, Jerry Can, and Mountain Feed Bags (x2)
• Rear Pannier rack and Waterproof Pannier bags (x2)

Bike Tools/Accessories:

• Tire irons (x2)
• Multitool
• Spoke wrench
• Spare spokes (x4)
• Spare tube
• Patch kit
• Chain lube/grease rag
• Brake and Shifter cables (x1 each)
• Frame pump
• Topeak Modula XL water bottle cage
• Blackburn Outpost Cargo cage
• Blackburn steel water bottle cage
• Voile straps (20in x2, 32in x1) — highly recommended (but go with the 15in to hold water bottles or dry bags in cargo cages)

Camping Gear:

• Big Agnes Slater UL2 tent and ground cloth
• Foam sleeping pad
• 50ft paracord and 35L dry sack for hanging bear bag
• 20F down sleeping bag
• Titanium cookset (1.2L + 400mL)
• Spork
• Pocket knife
• Pocket Primus stove
• 450g fuel canister
• Water purification (Sawyer filter and Aquamira drops)
• Headlamp + spare batteries
• Rear light
• Water bottles (1L, 750mL, and 1.5L Nalgene)
• Light first aid kit

Clothes:

• Bike shorts (x2, one of which was pair of bibs)
• Thick, wool socks (x3)
• Dry wicking long underwear (for camp)
• Long biking tights
• Thermal tights
• Lightweight hiking pants (for camp)
• Short sleeve dry-wicking base layer
• Wool long sleeve base layer (x2)
• Thermal riding jersey
• Down jacket (for camp)
• Fleece-lined buff
• Fleece cap (for camp)
• Lightweight and warm, waterproof gloves
• Helmet
• Biking shoes
• Waterproof shoe booties
• Neon ankle wraps
• Waterproof jacket/pants

Electronics:

• 26000mA external battery
• Various usb cables
• Mobile phone
• Garmin GPS unit (Forerunner 230)
• Wall usb charger plug
• Solar charger

Navigation:

• Nat Geo national forest maps
• GAIA GPS (on phone)

Because of the extra warm-weather gear, I felt heavier than ideal—normally, I’d prefer going without the rear panniers—but better safe (and warm) than sorry, I figured.

Since I’m based in Chicago, I took the train to DC. The ride to Union Station gave me a quick taste of this particular loaded setup (albeit on very flat terrain).

David’s setup was similar to mine, with front panniers instead of rear ones.

Getting to the start point of a tour can sometimes be challenging, but, thankfully, getting from Chicago to DC was no problem. Amtrak often does a good job accommodating cyclists—and has been getting better over the years thanks to bicycle advocates—and the Capitol Limited line (running between Chicago and DC) actually offers a walk on bike service for $20.00. Once you pick up a bike tag at the baggage counter, you get to walk your bike onto a specific compartment in the train without removing any bags. Other Amtrak lines accommodate bikes that are boxed (Amtrak will often provide the box for a fee). Both types of services are often only available at larger stations (and not necessarily on all train lines).

The train ride was long (18hrs), but comfy. Upon arrival the following day, I rode out to Hyattsville, Maryland, where David and I were spending the night with my friends, Ben and Laura, before setting out the following day.

Day 1: Hyattsville, Maryland to Bear’s Den Hostel/Campground (78.1mi, 2,644ft)

We got off to a reasonable start at 7:20am after a delicious baked oatmeal breakfast with Ben and Laura and took a bike trail along the Anacostia River most of the way into DC; by the time we’d reached the route’s official start point at the Lincoln Memorial, we’d ridden around 12 miles.

The DC metro area had had serious wind storms over the past couple of days, and stiff winds out of the NW—already strong in the morning—seemed to forebode a challenging, if relatively flat, day.

From the Lincoln Memorial we followed paved bike paths toward Georgetown, where we connected with the unpaved C&O Canal trail. We’d follow that for the next 35 miles to White’s Ferry. We found signs of wind damage all along the trail and had to hop off our bikes every couple of miles to cross over fallen trees.

Other than that, the riding was relatively pleasant—an easy gradual grade along the Potomac; and the scenery around Falls Church was particularly nice.

Before reaching White’s Ferry we passed several hiker/biker campsites—a good option for many might be riding 20 some miles from DC upon arrival and camping at one of these sites on the first night.

We left the C&O Canal trail at White’s Ferry, a neat cable ferry service, which has been operational (in one form or another) since 1817. At $2.00 per bike, the crossing seemed reasonably priced.

Once across the Potomac, we wound our way through the outskirts of Leesburg (accommodation and groceries would be available slightly off route closer to the town center) and connected with the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) trail, a paved bike trail that connects Purcellville, VA to DC.

Once on the W&OD, we rode around 10mi to the trail’s end in Purcellville and stopped for amazing BBQ sandwiches at Monk’s BBQ.

From there, we had to figure out where to spend the night. We’d intended on staying at Watermelon Park—a campground along the Shenandoah River—but had just received a message that they weren’t yet open. A friend suggested Bear’s Den—a hostel/campground, above Snickers Gap  and 0.5mi off-route, run by the Potomac Appalachian Trail Conservancy—so that’s where we headed, riding along a gravel/paved mix of lovely country roads, before joining VA7 for the climb up to Snickers Gap. Once there, we had one last, steep climb to Bear’s Den, but upon arriving (and realizing we’d have warm showers and a pancake breakfast the next morning) we figured the climb was well worth it! A great place to end a cold windy day!

Day 2: Bear’s Den to Van Buren Furnace area (62.0mi, 4,436ft)

Our second day got off to a late start. The combination of a cold night (low 20Fs), a warm building, and a delicious pancake breakfast made us linger longer than we should have at Bear’s Den, leaving only around 9:00am.

As we left the weather was quite cold but also (as cold, wintery days often are) quite crisp, clear, and sunny. We layered on our warmest gear for the initial descent, and after a short distance along VA7, we returned to gravel, country roads along the Shenandoah River—a lovely stretch of riding.

The miles that followed felt similarly pleasant, as we followed a mix of paved and gravel roads through rural countryside across the Shenandoah Valley.

Before entering the mountains in earnest, we stopped at an amazing country store in Wheatfield, Virginia; ordered generously-sized sandwiches with any/all condiments available; and stocked up groceries for the next three meals. (These country stores ended up being a highlight of the trip!)

From Wheatfield, we headed up Turkey Run Rd., passing through more agricultural countryside, before entering George Washington National Forest around Van Buren Furnace.

There we found a nice primitive camp spot along a creek and hunkered down for another cold night.

Day 3: Van Buren Furnace to Bergdon (43.7mi, 4,610ft)

We woke up to a cold, cloudy morning and a frosty tent; broke camp; and (with no pancakes to slow us down) got off at 8:00am.

Continuing up the same forest road we’d arrived on, we passed around a gate and continued on a rougher double track. A mile and a half ahead, we continued onto a rocky, muddy single track—about a mile of which was a definite hike-a-bike (a small price to pay for the wonderful gravel forest roads just ahead).

Soon, we were back on rideable single track; and shortly ahead we were back onto nicer gravel national forest roads.

We followed Forest Road 92 as it wound its way up toward Wolf Gap. Along the way, we saw more remains of the recent wind storms.

After a brief break to filter water, we made our way up to the turn off to the Wolf Gap National Forest Campground; then we continued on to gravel Forest Road 691 for a steep climb up to Devil’s Hole Mountain.

Temperatures had stayed in the mid 30Fs all day, and as we arrived at the ridge line after a sweaty climb (a spring and wonderful primitive campsite near the top would have made a perfect camping spot in warmer weather) a strong cold wind cut through us, and it began to sleet and hail.

After a couple of miles along the scenic ridgeline (still suffering in the cold wind), we made a chilly descent down to the valley below (now in West Virginia), and soon arrived in Mathias, West Virginia, thankful for the warm confines of Mathias’s country store.

Thanks to the long climbs and the 1 mile of single track hike-a-bike, we’d managed to cover a little over 30 miles in just under 6 hours. We didn’t think we’d have enough time to make it to our intended destination at Switzer Lake (a major climb lay between us and the lake); what’s more, the weather forecast was getting worse, predicting snow and freezing rain overnight.

Given that the new upcoming 10-day weather outlook was now forecasting colder temperatures than originally predicted and given our relative proximity to Harrisonburg (45min drive), we decided to call Dave’s wife, Anna, for a pick up in Bergton, Virginia ~12 mile ride on-route from Mathias. An hour later, we arrived at Bergton’s country store; packed up the car; and headed to Harrisonburg to get a good night’s sleep in warm beds.

Day 4: Harrisonburg Rest Day

In Harrisonburg, we took a rest day to catch up on some admin (editing a printer’s proof of an upcoming guidebook we were working on), and repack our gear with warmer winter layers (additional wool base layers; warmer sleeping bags; and heavier jackets). Beyond that, we switched the pocket rocket style camp stove for a whisperlite international (it’d burn better in the cold, and if we need to use a lot of fuel—to warm up with warm food and drinks—we’d more easily find gasoline than camp fuel canisters along the route) and substituted my lighter tent for a heavier, but warmer, two-person tent. To top it all off, David swapped his rack and panniers for a BOB Ibex trailer, in order to have room for the extra gear.

Day 5: Bergton to Stokesville (63.0mi, 7,595ft)

We were back on-route early on a cold Thursday morning. (Temperatures weren’t likely to rise past the mid-20Fs.) We started once again from Bergton’s country store, and our trip’s climbing was about to start in earnest. Of course, all the climbing meant some great views and rolling riding along mountain ridges, and this day ended being my favorite of the trip.

We had two major climbs ahead of us when we started from Bergton. The first began gradually after we passed through the small town of Criders and began ascending German River road.

The gravel surface was relatively good, and the grade was steady; before we knew it, we’d climbed ~2,000ft to our first high point at 3,675ft on Hall Spring Rd.

From there, we passed by a national forest gate and crossed to the west side of the ridge (where we were once again in West Virginia) and followed a rolling gravel double track out to US33, where we crossed a pass at 3450ft back into Virginia and made a steep descent down to Switzer Lake.

On the far side (south side) of the lake we stopped for a quick, cold lunch break at one of the several wonderful primitive camp sites in that particular area. We also tried clear the ice from our water bottles and filter new water, hoping that by mixing in powerade mix we’d prevent the liquid from freezing as quickly as water did.

After lunch, we began our second 2,000ft ascent of the day, climbing up Dunkle Hollow Rd. As we ascended the temperatures dropped and a small squall passed over us, dusting the road with snow.

We reached the top of the climb at Flagpole Knob (4370ft), and stopped only briefly, not wanting to cool down too much with temperatures now in the low 20Fs.

The next section of riding, along the ridge between Flagpole Knob and Reddish Knob was simply spectacular, with great riding surface and wonderful views.

Lucky for us, the clouds had cleared by the time we reached Reddish Knob (4392ft), and we could see for miles east over the Shenandoah Valley and west into West Virginia.

From Reddish Knob, we enjoyed a long, pleasant descent down to the North River, and after a small climb and descent to Todd Lake, we pushed through the last 4.5mi to Stokesville.

After a grocery run at Stokesville’s country store, we rolled to the Stokesville campground—a popular mountain biking haunt—very thankful for the campground’s hot shower!

We set up camp in the snow and prepped for another cold night.

Day 6: Stokesville to Douthat State Park (79.3mi, 6,913ft)

While we got on the road before 7am, the warm confines of country stores in Stokesville and 15mi later in West Augusta meant that we made slow progress to start the day; in West Augusta we stayed longer than we probably should have, lingering over double cheeseburgers. Still, by 11am temperatures were back in the 30s, and we’d crossed Shenandoah Mountain once again.

On the west side of the ridge, we made good time riding a nice gravel road (Cowpasture Rd) through a beautiful rural valley along the Cowpasture River.

At the end of the road in the small town of Williamsville (no services other than a post office with water spigot at the entrance to town), we climbed a steep paved road over another ridge to a more secluded valley on the ridge’s west side.

We climbed slowly to the small town of Burnsville, before descending down the valley. Not far ahead, we turned off the paved road and climbed up to a gravel forest road that ran parallel to the valley bottom. After the initial climb, the road leveled and offered some wonderful riding through wooded terrain—along the way passing a couple of brilliant primitive camp spots.

After 5 miles, we were back down on the paved road and soon reached VA39 and Bath Alum (a town whose pronunciation, locals were quick to point out, we butchered: it’s “Bath Ail-um”).

A brief jaunt on the larger paved road brought us back to a gravel country road, which we followed to a gravel national forest road; and 11 miles later were back on pavement near the north end of Douthat State Park.

We raced another 3 miles to the park office, hoping to pay for a campsite before the office closed. With minutes to spare we reach the office and caught a park ranger, who directed us to the only open campground, locate 3 miles further down the road.

Upon arrival after dark, we unpacked and headed for the individual shower rooms to warm up with long, hot showers.

Day 7: Douthat State Park to Potts Mountain (45.8mi, 5,997ft)

The next morning, we backtracked 0.3mi north before leaving the main road, turning west onto a national forest road. After passing through one gate and then a second, we continued on a rough, but rideable, double track covered in leaves.

Ahead, the road narrowed to a single track, but the riding felt no different than before—slow going but we made easy progress.

A mile and a half past the turn off from the main road to Douthat, we reached a larger gravel road by a parking area for the Clifton Forge Reservoir (and a couple of serviceable primitive campsites near a stream) and continued out to a paved road (Sulfur Spring Rd) following Smith Creek uphill through lovely rhododendron groves.

After a little over a mile, we turned left onto another gravel road and began a steady climb to 2,450ft, before descending through a damp, cold breeze to Covington, Virginia. Arriving in town, chilled as ever after the long descent (we hadn’t had temperatures above 37F since leaving Bergton), we stopped to warm up at a gas station mini mart and Subway. After a couple coffees and 2’ feet of subs (for me), we tried to head out a little over an hour later, only to find that David’s rear tire had gone flat during our break.

Further delayed, we managed to get off again by noon. Soon we were riding along narrow paved roads up and down tight Appalachian valleys—pretty riding except for the numerous dogs that ran out to chase us.

Eventually, we continued onto National Forest Rd. 351—a really nice ride on good gravel surface along the base of Potts Mountain. Unfortunately, temperatures had risen just above freezing, and the now soggy surface made for slow riding.

Reaching a T-intersection at Potts Mountain road, we turned L and began a slow, steady climb up to Potts Mountain’s ridgeline. Again the muddy, slushy surface made for slow going, but the well-graded road offered a manageable climb. Once at the top, we continued through the ice, mud, and fog on a nice jeep track that rolled along the ridge.

6.5 miles later, we reached VA311. Short on time, we knew we weren’t going to make it to Waiteville liked we’d hoped, so we continued, looking for the first water we could find in the national forest ahead in order to make camp.

Shortly, after turning off VA311 onto another national forest road, we met a local resident cutting wood. He pointed out a nearby spring on the edge of the national forest boundary; figuring we wouldn’t find a better place to stay the night, we made camp shortly after a short day, just after 5pm.

Day 8: Potts Mountain to Pembroke (38.0mi, 3,763ft)

We started the day, climbing the forest road back to the ridge of Potts Mountain, which we followed for another ~3 miles to a rough, narrow double track.

There we descended down the NW side of the mountain into West Virginia.

At the bottom of the main descent we turned left onto Trout Run Rd and descended—passing a nice spring along the way—to Laurel Branch, where we turned left onto Waiteville Rd., following it gradually uphill along Potts Creek.

Once in Waiteville, we continued on to Rays Siding Rd, which quickly turned to gravel as we passed the the Waiteville Community Center. Continuing west, we soon came to the lower trailhead of the Potts Valley Rail Trail.

While the trail technically consisted of some rail-grade surface, it was like no rail trail we’d ridden before. Because the eastern end of the trail started several hundred feet below the actual level of the rail line (long bridges that had once spanned creeks and gorges had long ago fallen apart), we had a long section of single track ascent (a sure hike-a-bike) once we actually found the start of the trail (which was surprisingly difficult to find). To make matters worse, the trail was not well-maintained, and we often had to scramble over fallen branches. All in all, a pretty trail for a hike or trail run; but in condition, it wasn’t much fun on a loaded bike. We’d recommend just staying on Waiteville Rd. and skipping the rail trail entirely for most touring riders.

Once off the rail trail, we continued briefly on a paved road back into Virginia, before following gravel SR 613 up a long climb to a pass at Wind Rock, around 4,000ft in elevation.

The climb was a slog—icy and slushy conditions meant that we felt like we were sliding most of the way up. Once again, we were taking many hours to make few miles.

At the top of the climb, we encountered a pleasant surprise—a group of hikers from Gettysburg University who were also crazy enough to be camping in the cold conditions. They were section hiking a portion of the Appalachian Trail for spring break.

David managed to get brief cell service at the ridgeline—enough to check the upcoming weather conditions. The forecast had once again worsened, calling for 4-8in of snow overnight in Pulaski and another 3-5in the day after, at an elevation much lower than most of our upcoming route. What’s more, with no temperatures forecast above freezing in the coming three days, there’d be little chance of snow melt anytime soon.

David and I conferred and decided to call the trip. We’d adequately managed the cold up until this point, but gravel forestry roads with 5+in of snow would be impassable for our bikes. It was a disappointing call to make with less than 150mi to go to Damascus, but the right one.

We abandoned the route and rode, via Mountain Lake (where Dirty Dancing was filmed), to Hoges Chapel and US460. There a local resident suggested that we’d be best off “drifting” down to Pembroke and waiting for our ride at Tangent Outdoors and its nice cafe. We ended our journey there, muddy and tired but excited to get back out and finish the route soon in warmer weather!