Traveler III
I promised @Dusther210 I'd write something up, so here goes! While not an epic excursion by any means, any chance to get out for 10 hours of seat time with the missus, and dogs to enjoy the VA/WV border is a good day! We, initially, intended to drive a good portion of the MABDR Leg 3 northbound from Douthat State Park in Covington, VA to Moorefield; where we'd then break off due east back home to Front Royal, VA. Unfortunately, our Sun thru Wed morning camping plans got scuttled, and we had to break camp Tuesday evening due to a death in a friend's family. We then just super-slabbed it straight home. Sunday, however, gave us the perfect day to do a majority of the planned route, albeit southbound.
I fired up Gaia, and ensured the map sections were downloaded to my phone as a signal is non-existent in large part out west. This run also served as a test, of sorts, of routing a map in Gaia, and ensuring everything was simpatico with the new head unit I'd installed with CarPlay before I had to actually rely on it. We headed west around 10AM, jumping off of Corridor H just east of Moorefield at North River Road. As we crossed over Cor-H for the third time, on McCauley Road, a gravel path up to a water tower provided a great shot, and perfect potty break for the dogs.
Continuing on we rolled through Petersburg, grabbing a quick bite to eat and managed to luck into the greatest spot to enjoy a sundrenched lunch with an incredible, unencumbered western view! Just past the post office, I spied what looked like a park on the hillside to the left with a large pavilion. I whipped it around, and it actually ended up being a "coming soon" site for a church. With nothing but a grass-covered lot, and picnic tables, we sat back and enjoyed our luck.
Finally we turned onto Smoke Hole Road to start heading south. Sadly I'd never been down that way, despite looking at it on paper and vowing to ride it on my, now gone for two years, Ducati Multistrada 1200. After driving it, I really regret not hitting it on two wheels...oh well! A narrow, twisty, soft-shouldered road...littered with fishermen...necessitated a leisurely roll. This is all perfect as Havoc Actual...aka Stealth Pig...isn't built for high-speed thrills
. While trying to keep one eye forward, and the other roaming, gecko-style, over the gorgeous cliffs and water, we arrived under Eagle Rocks. Mandatory pics!
The water was deep and fast, and my young Dutch Shepherd started getting antsy as any body of water is like crack to him...time to drive on as I didn't feel like dealing with a drowned rat.
FINALLY we hit dirt, and I instantly started wondering if the track was taking us up a driveway. Not to fear as it opened back up a bit as a forest road. Then...bam...the first of two reservoirs the route goes by (that look eerily similar, BTW). What a fanTAStic spot to get out, stretch your legs, and let the dogs out. Once, again, I had to restrain Havoc from going from fur missile to fur torpedo.
The rest of the route meandered through forest roads, and over a couple decent creek crossings that have the potential for flooding, apparently. This was an initial concern of mine when driving back from Douthat as we were towing a light camping trailer our RTT is mounted to. Turns out it wouldn't have been an issue at all. After the first, small crossing,
my wife exclaims out of nowhere, "I wanna drive!" Now...big deal, right? To me it was. You see...in June '19 our world was rocked with the revelation of an egg-sized (that's HUGE!) brain tumor that slowly took residence in my wife's head. Since a successful resection in July '19, it's been very much two steps forward and 1 to 1.5 back as she endured radiation, chemo, and just the after effects of having someone rummage around her gray matter with a scalpel. While she's been driving for quite a while now, her confidence just wasn't there. For her to suddenly want to drive a vehicle that doesn't drive like ANYthing she's handled before in the dirt was a big step forward. So I happily swapped seats...with a bit of a knot in my stomach
But she absolutely loved it, and once she figured out the throttle management, did just fine. Granted...these were some of the tamest forest roads out there, but it was the boost she needed for next time! She hit a small creek crossing, then eagerly tackled the next, largest, one. Apparently this can get a bit rowdy after a large amount of rain, or snow melt, but it was perfect for her to play in while we were there and would've been an easy day to pull the trailer through. She was even kind enough to turn around and come back and get me...though I'm pretty sure it was just an excuse to play in the water, again!
After a bit of rest for the dogs at a random pull-off, the day simply continued until we broke east to Staunton to join the masses on I-81N...on a Sunday evening...ugh. But the dirt was perfect with nary a muddy spot more than 20 feet long. We made note of the plethora of other trails on Gaia in the area, recorded some future campsites, and are just waiting for those pesky gates to open back up! Pretty stoked that the route would easily allow for us to pull our Intech Explore once we get it in June; enjoying some remote sites in the area.
It's adventure TIIIIIIIME!
I fired up Gaia, and ensured the map sections were downloaded to my phone as a signal is non-existent in large part out west. This run also served as a test, of sorts, of routing a map in Gaia, and ensuring everything was simpatico with the new head unit I'd installed with CarPlay before I had to actually rely on it. We headed west around 10AM, jumping off of Corridor H just east of Moorefield at North River Road. As we crossed over Cor-H for the third time, on McCauley Road, a gravel path up to a water tower provided a great shot, and perfect potty break for the dogs.
Continuing on we rolled through Petersburg, grabbing a quick bite to eat and managed to luck into the greatest spot to enjoy a sundrenched lunch with an incredible, unencumbered western view! Just past the post office, I spied what looked like a park on the hillside to the left with a large pavilion. I whipped it around, and it actually ended up being a "coming soon" site for a church. With nothing but a grass-covered lot, and picnic tables, we sat back and enjoyed our luck.
Finally we turned onto Smoke Hole Road to start heading south. Sadly I'd never been down that way, despite looking at it on paper and vowing to ride it on my, now gone for two years, Ducati Multistrada 1200. After driving it, I really regret not hitting it on two wheels...oh well! A narrow, twisty, soft-shouldered road...littered with fishermen...necessitated a leisurely roll. This is all perfect as Havoc Actual...aka Stealth Pig...isn't built for high-speed thrills
. While trying to keep one eye forward, and the other roaming, gecko-style, over the gorgeous cliffs and water, we arrived under Eagle Rocks. Mandatory pics! The water was deep and fast, and my young Dutch Shepherd started getting antsy as any body of water is like crack to him...time to drive on as I didn't feel like dealing with a drowned rat.
FINALLY we hit dirt, and I instantly started wondering if the track was taking us up a driveway. Not to fear as it opened back up a bit as a forest road. Then...bam...the first of two reservoirs the route goes by (that look eerily similar, BTW). What a fanTAStic spot to get out, stretch your legs, and let the dogs out. Once, again, I had to restrain Havoc from going from fur missile to fur torpedo.
The rest of the route meandered through forest roads, and over a couple decent creek crossings that have the potential for flooding, apparently. This was an initial concern of mine when driving back from Douthat as we were towing a light camping trailer our RTT is mounted to. Turns out it wouldn't have been an issue at all. After the first, small crossing,
my wife exclaims out of nowhere, "I wanna drive!" Now...big deal, right? To me it was. You see...in June '19 our world was rocked with the revelation of an egg-sized (that's HUGE!) brain tumor that slowly took residence in my wife's head. Since a successful resection in July '19, it's been very much two steps forward and 1 to 1.5 back as she endured radiation, chemo, and just the after effects of having someone rummage around her gray matter with a scalpel. While she's been driving for quite a while now, her confidence just wasn't there. For her to suddenly want to drive a vehicle that doesn't drive like ANYthing she's handled before in the dirt was a big step forward. So I happily swapped seats...with a bit of a knot in my stomach
But she absolutely loved it, and once she figured out the throttle management, did just fine. Granted...these were some of the tamest forest roads out there, but it was the boost she needed for next time! She hit a small creek crossing, then eagerly tackled the next, largest, one. Apparently this can get a bit rowdy after a large amount of rain, or snow melt, but it was perfect for her to play in while we were there and would've been an easy day to pull the trailer through. She was even kind enough to turn around and come back and get me...though I'm pretty sure it was just an excuse to play in the water, again!
After a bit of rest for the dogs at a random pull-off, the day simply continued until we broke east to Staunton to join the masses on I-81N...on a Sunday evening...ugh. But the dirt was perfect with nary a muddy spot more than 20 feet long. We made note of the plethora of other trails on Gaia in the area, recorded some future campsites, and are just waiting for those pesky gates to open back up! Pretty stoked that the route would easily allow for us to pull our Intech Explore once we get it in June; enjoying some remote sites in the area.
It's adventure TIIIIIIIME!
