West Virginia/Virginia - best Central Appalachian/Alleghany Mountain passes + more WV

[Chuck78]

I thought I would share some of my favorite routes in West Virginia "The Mountain State" with you all, since it contains some of the twistiest roads on this half of the US. These are all routes that I have done and loved or plan to do based on reviews and recommendations from others (a guy on sport-touring.net really helped me discover the reddish knob/moyer's gap/Lost River mountain routes, what a good find that was).

These first two can all be done in one long 9 hour 300-ish mile ride for the die hard iron butt types, but to split it into 2 rides, you get to do every mountain pass in both directions, so that it really doubles the different rides you do on this amazing terrain.


The first starts at Seneca Rocks, a monumental 900' tall Quartzite rock cliff formation that just straight up out of the base of a forsted mountain. It goes up to the 4900' tall peak of Spruce Knob, the highest point in WV (and a great twisty mountain climb ride), over North Fork Mountain on US33, through the very scenic and serene Smoke Hole Canyon and then up into the side of North Fork Mountain on Smoke Hole Rd, then on northeast to Howard's Lick Rd SE into Lost River State Park, a very very nice mountainous ride. Then returns back through the Smoke Hole route.

Spruce/North Fork/Smoke Hole/Lost River ride:

http://goo.gl/maps/d5l2k


or the long URL:
https://
maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Seneca+Rocks+Discovery+Center,+Roy+Gap+Road,+Seneca+Rocks,+WV&daddr=US-220+N+to:County+Rte+28%2F11%2FSmoke+Hole+Rd+to:Lost+River+State+Park+Rd,+Moorefield,+WV+to:Howards+Lick+Rd+to:County+Rte+2%2F3%2FSmoke+Hole+Rd+to:Spruce+Knob+Trail&hl=en&ll=38.790486,-79.149628&spn=0.854177,1.234589&sll=38.903057,-79.204559&sspn=0.213207,0.308647&geocode=FUSOUAIdptdE-yGcwF4_KYA3SSmRPX-xxCq1iTGcwF4_KYA3SQ%3BFfPYTQIdCYFF-w%3BFbadUQId_4dG-w%3BFYAQUwIdM5pL-ykvqPGVKxe1iTED-hLoxKfpNg%3BFVaDUQIdd9VL-w%3BFYQUUQId1D1G-w%3BFT2DTgIdxWxC-w&oq=Seneca+Rocks+disc&t=p&mra=dme&mrsp=5&sz=12&z=10


This second route takes you on US-33 over Shenandoah Mountain, then south to Briery Branch Rd as it climbs the mountain again to the Reddish Knob lookout point (4300' peak), then back down the other side on the very twisty mountain pass down Reddish Knob Rd and across Sugar Grove Rd to the very recently paved for the first time Moyer's Gap Rd, which is a very very amazing twisty climb up into the mountains and then through a gap between the two peaks to the north and south of the road, and then turns around back south on Sugar Grove Rd which turns into VA-614 across the border, then you catch US250W through some mountainous twisties to a gas stop, then turn around and take 250 east all the way across the Shenandoah Mountain pass (very exhillarating!), gas up on the other side, turn around and repeat the entire ride minus the Moyer's gap section that you have already ridden both directions.

This route covers both of the best stretches of twisty mountain roads in the entire eastern US (33 and 250 over Shenandoah Mtn), as well as another killer mountain pass on narrower paved roads.


ShenandoahMtn-US33/Reddish Knob/Moyer's Gap/ShenandoahMtn-US250 ride:

http://goo.gl/maps/U1Cc3

or just in case, the long URL:
https://
maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Seneca+Rocks+Discovery+Center,+Roy+Gap+Road,+Seneca+Rocks,+WV&daddr=US-33+E+to:Hinton+Market,+Rawley+Pike,+Hinton,+VA+to:Briery+Branch+Rd,+Dayton,+VA+to:Reddish+Knob+Spur,+Dayton,+VA+tooe+Hill+Rd+to:Moyers+Gap+Road+to:US-250+W+to:US-250+E+to:Sugar+Grove+Rd+to:Reddish+Knob+Rd+to:Hinton+Market,+Rawley+Pike,+Hinton,+VA+to:Brandywine,+WV+to:US-33+W&hl=en&sll=38.552461,-79.232025&sspn=0.857022,1.234589&geocode=FUSOUAIdptdE-yGcwF4_KYA3SSmRPX-xxCq1iTGcwF4_KYA3SQ%3BFYZjTQIdutRG-w%3BFfDgSwIdDKRJ-yFyiiclpHOfAinDjKm3rsG0iTFyiiclpHO***%3BFdidSgIdXGVI-ynV0fE5wri0iTHHqtr33Teutw%3BFY_pSgIdTd5G-ykvc3Ous7e0iTFKwijKrF_tSw%3BFYOwSwIdwgFF-w%3BFWmqSwId65pF-w%3BFe63SAIdZ2xD-w%3BFV_7RwIdptFF-w%3BFaqiSwIdXMhF-w%3BFRQwSwIdSC5H-w%3BFfDgSwIdDKRJ-yFyiiclpHOfAinDjKm3rsG0iTFyiiclpHO***%3BFUheTQIdJ9JG-yntXZ0urc-0iTFh_WYEs8sAjg%3BFbJyUAIdLrhE-w&oq=Brandyw&t=p&mra=mi&mrsp=13&sz=10&z=10



and for good measure, the very high elevation and very scenic (but less technical) Hawk's Nest/WV60/WV39 route:

http://goo.gl/maps/kuuEg

long URL:
https://
maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Hawks+Nest+Rd&daddr=Gauley+Bridge,+WV+to:WV-16+N%2FWV-39+E+to:WV-20+N+to:WV-55+E+to:Seneca+Trail+to:Maury+River+Rd+to:VA-39+E&hl=en&ll=38.084851,-80.183716&spn=1.725115,2.469177&sll=37.824701,-79.436302&sspn=0.108204,0.154324&geocode=FWSfRQIdkz0q-w%3BFXhnRgIdshAp-ynbLNbNZMhOiDGYV31EkmXGDg%3BFcVURwIdvRQp-w%3BFU5VRwId-Ggy-w%3BFUNBRgIdjog4-w%3BFUhERwIdTNE5-w%3BFcXVQwId4JpC-w%3BFWnVQAId1UBE-w&oq=Gauley+Bridge,+WV&t=p&mra=mi&mrsp=7&sz=13&z=9

 

[Dogma]

I did Smokehole in a downpour a couple years ago. You didn't know there were river crossings on that road, did you?

33 over the ridge into VA is great fun. The rest of that ride looks great too.

Your ride to Hawk's Nest has the best part of 16, but that road is a good ride all the way to 47 (a very good road itself), if you're headed that way. I like to connect that with OH-555 when I'm going to Fayetteville. The rest of your route looks like a good ride. Try the section of 60 just west of Rainelle someday for some lovely curves.

Links to dpep's maps for the WV rally based in Fayetteville are floating around here somewhere. Try the WV rally threads, or maybe Don himself can hook you up.

 

[Chuck78]

Yes, that Hawk's Nest to Gauley is an awesome ride & fairly technical. 39 is good fun for a long long ride with some technical curves, but the least technical of the mountain routes. More maps to come in the near future of 60% of WV that I know or have researched

 

[Chuck78]

Not going to make it to WV again this year unfortunately, but I've vowed myself to make it back there several times next season after some more bike upgrades. Here are some photos:

WV-72 aka Dry Fork Rd near Canaan:

US33 near Seneca Rocks

US33 is packed full of nonstop turns & steep hill climbs in the mountains from Harmon, WV all the way to Hinton, VA just over the WV/VA mountain ridge border. A lot of them are very highly banked 25-35mph (actual riding speed) turns & hairpins which are nothing short of amazing...

Smoke Hole Canyon & Rd are amazing & tight & then amazing scenic sweepers

(Above photos from ridingwv.com)

 

[Chuck78]

Reddish Knob

WV61 between Deepwater & Kincaid, GREAT ride

The county roads up the paved side of Spruce Knob, amazing ride, LOTS of hairpins, amazing views, amazing high altitude lookout at top!

 

[Chuck78]

Some amazing amazing southern WV/western VA twisty routes can be found as mapped by the die hard FJR Owners Forums "FODS" FJR Owners of Dual Sports

Just Google search the title I cut and pasted below to find threads of that title on several forums. If riding VA-16 Tazwell to Marion aka the Back of the Dragon, their twisties loop that includes that stretch of amazing road is by far the best route to link to it that I've ever seen:

FODS 2015 Comes to Southern WV Routes

All pavement routes

Twisties South Loop http://goo.gl/maps/fVBnN

Potts and Peters Mountains Turnabout http://goo.gl/maps/7W3HC

New River Gorge Bridge by pavement http://goo.gl/maps/z6Oob

Burke’s Garden by pavement http://goo.gl/maps/7sa2T

Sights and Sounds Loop http://goo.gl/maps/8zt7X

 

[Steve]

Thanks, Chuck. :encouragement:

As Dogma can tell you, it's a rather amazing sight to see a bunch of GoldWings on those first two routes.

Our GoldWing chapter went to visit the Chapter in Elkins, WV for 12 consectutive years over the Memorial Day weekend. They would take us around the area, showing us a lot of their favorite roads, which include Spruce Knob and Smoke Hole, as well as several others. If you are in that part of the state for a while, consider staying at the Super 8 Motel in Elkins. Friendly people, decent rooms at a decent price. When we went there, we basically took every room they had, so there was nothing but motorcycles in the parking lot. We got a better rate with a group discount, but I think the 'normal' rate is still rather affordable.

.

 

[pontiacstogo]

Once a year we make our way down from central PA to Hot Springs VA - we mostly follow 220 south with a stop in Cumberland MD (the scenic railway there is first notch). 220 takes you through Keyser WV down past the Seneca Rocks area to the Homestead Resort in Hot Springs VA. Stunning hotel - highly recommend a stay there if you get the chance;

 

[Chuck78]

http://www.wvgazette.com/article/20140824/GZ01/140829665

Darn... Hope they figure out a good way to make this stretch of highway safer without doing away with the two amazingly fun curves that they speak of... This article came out about 3 weeks before I declared on my way eastbound that from Harmon WV and east across the VA mountain border was the best stretch of highway anywhere in the eastern US, and a few days later I declared horseshoe curve to be probably one of the most incredible curves I've ever leaned hard into... About 5 seconds after you see the eastbound "entering Pendleton County" sign, you see the sign that orders truckers to pull over and stop in a truck pull off lane and check brakes. At that exact point when you see the massive downhill you are about to take on eastbound and look up to the horizon to see the most amazingly beautiful and scenic mountain view you have seen up to that point, with many more to come. All of Pendelton County is filled with amazing mountain views more so than many surrounding areas. Grant County also...

I am crossing my fingers that they just add additional runaway truck ramps and additional signs with flashing lights, as well as maybe some concrete barriers that prevent vehicles from plummeting off the side of the mountain when their brakes go out.

Something like a lower inside downhill lane on horseshoe curve with a concrete barrier wall above separating the two lanes would be sufficient to keep runaway trucks from going into the other lane. Seems that a lot of politicians and officials realize that the twisty roads are one of the things that makes west virginia so unique and amazing, and are slightly resistant to alter the paths of the roads at least, although some are pushing.