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Pittsburgh RAT Pack |
Canaan Valley Road and Route Info
You don't come to the middle of WV for the nightlife, you come here for the riding! Pretty much any paved road you find on a map will be good fun, but some roads are more fun than others. In general, if a road crosses a mountain, it will be very twisty. If it runs in the valley between ridges, it will be pretty straight and probably include a few towns. Most roads do a bit of both, so pay attention to where the good bits are!
Snowshoe Ski Resort (Pocahontas County) also hosts motorcycle rallies. Click HERE for some suggested routes in the Snowshoe area courtesy of Pocahontas County.
WV Twisty Fix! Here is an awesome all-day ride if you want to get a lean on. You get a bit of everything in this 350+ mile ride. No real time to be a tourist on this loop as it will take all of 7 - 8 hours in the saddle plus time for lunch and breaks. Turn after turn after turn.... Click HERE to download the Streets and Trips 2005 EST file. Click HERE to view a screenshot of the route.
Half Day Loop - here is a wonderful half day loop (140 miles) as well as an extended version (206 miles) that show off the best of the local roads. The Seneca Rocks Visitor Center is a nice visit and you can hike to the top of the north peak (on the left) via a tourist trail (2 hours estimate up and back). The longer version of the loop includes the funky Cool Springs Park/Exxon on route 50, just west of the 50/72 junction. It's a popular spot to take a break. Walk around the "park" and check out all the old farm and train stuff, pet the burros, and people watch.
There is an excellent alternate route between Franklin and Petersburg that is mis-marked in Streets and Trips. Instead of droning along on 220 the whole way, just north of "Upper Tract" (see waypoint #4), make a left onto Smoke Hole Rd and follow it to its end 18 miles later on route 28 in Cabins. Make a right on 28 east to pick up the route again in Petersburg. Smoke Hole Rd is a scenic, remote, narrow ribbon of asphalt through the middle of nowhere. Good pavement, but a little dirty in places and beware of the occassional vehicle taking its half out of the middle.
If you want to have a relaxing day and be a bit of a tourist, do the longer loop (including Smoke Hole Rd) with a Seneca Rocks visit and hike as well as a a stop at Cool Springs Park. Highly recommended. Here are links to EST files and screenshots:
S&T Map 140
Mile Loop
S&T Map 206 Mile Loop
Screenshot 140 Mile Loop
Screenshot 206 Mile Loop
Here are some suggestions for roads. Use this info to piece together your own loops:
Route 32 - it's the only way in and out of the resort, but it's a nice ride for its 23 mile length.
Route 33 - a nice mix of sweepers and switchbacks east of Elkins. Four-lane highway west of Elkins to I-79, then twisty two-lane west of I-79. The section east of Harmon (jct 32) is not to be missed. Follow it past Seneca Rocks, through Franklin, to Brandywine, then over the mountains and down the other side in Virginia. The uphill switchbacks even come with a passing lane. Don't be afraid to turn around and run it back to Franklin to pick up 28 for more fun!
Route 50 - 85 miles of sweepers and switchbacks between Grafton (jct 119) and Romney (jct 28) with very little civiization and some great scenery. Highly recommended.
Route 219 - nice and twisty north of Elkins. Nice and twisty south of Mingo. Kinda straight and mellow between Elkins and Mingo. It's a major north/south artery, so be prepared for some traffic near cities. The windmill farm on the ridge north of Parsons is cool.
Route 72 - the section from 32 (near the resort) north to Parsons is very twisty, remote and beat up. Probably great fun on an adventure bike, but slow going on a sportbike. North of Parsons (jct 219) it gets nice as it sweeps and winds north to jct 50. North of 50 it parallels the Cheat River for quite a while. Ends at jct 7 in Kingwood. Not as technical as some roads, but nice sweepers in the forest.
Route 20 - the section south of Buckhannon (jct 33) to Webster Springs (jct 15) is not to be missed. 55 miles of remote twisties in the mountains. 20 goes through several towns south of Webster Springs to jct 39 in Fenwick (31 miles) and traffic can be tedious.
Route 39 - the section west of 219 through the forest is all great sweepers on excellent pavement with almost no civilization until you hit Richwood 28 miles later. The section east of 219 is supposed to be excellent all the way to Goshen.
Route 15 - a rather twisty connection between 219 and Webster Springs (jct 20)