WestVirginia Haftield and McCoy Pocahantas Trip March 2016

[DR650TooFewMiles]

I am planning a trip to the Pocahantas trails of Hatfields and McCoys in March 2016, maybe the 11th-16th give or take a day or two. I want to do it in springtime, and the weather sites show that March 2015 had less rainy days than April, and the daytime temps seemed pretty good for riding.  I'm going to work on lodging next, and while I do that find out who is interested of my friends or anyone on here. Moderate to easy riding, ATV or bike (I'm on a DR650), not sure about the more extreme, don't like rocks, prefer moving at a decent pace rather than always riding the clutch and driving slow.  First time going to Hatfields and McCoys.  Any thoughts on the trip, what to take, general comments, secure lodging (I read that theft can be a problem), etc. would be appreciated. And anyone who wants to hook up out there just let me know.  Not sure what I'm expecting out of this post but doesn't make sense to do a trip like this without asking people who have done it before.

[3 legged hyena]

Pretty iffy betting on weather in March.

You should enjoy.

Make damn sure you are staying at a secure location. Folks like swiping bikes down here.

[brianbinwv]

The Bramwell High School / Atv Lodge has secure storage.

[Jason blkblk]

you know I'm in buddy

[hadfield4wd]

I'd look at Bramwell Vacation Rentals. Great place, great people. You will certainly have a lot of mud. Spring thaw.

[L. Euler]

Ashland Resort is really nice and is in the middle of Pocahontas, Pinnacle Creek, and Indian Ridge.   They have a roving security guard that makes rounds about once an hour.  And they have video surveillance plus there is only one way in and out, so theft is not likely.  I have stayed there four times now without incident.

 

I suspect that time of year will still have significant ice on the trails which isn't bad if you have someone on a heavy quad ahead of you to break through it.  Otherwise, you'll need to be comfortable riding on ice and snow.  Pocahontas trails are fairly mild and perpetually muddy.

 

I would join in if I wasn't having shoulder surgery in late February.  I took a fall last November in the Pinnacle Creek trails and tore up a bunch of stuff in my shoulder.  My suggestion is not to try racing from point A to point B.  Slow down and enjoy the scenery.

Edited January 22, 2016 by L. Euler

[pat22043]

My experiences with Pocahantas trails  in the Spring is that they can be very wet. Once you get up on the top of the mountain, there are a lot of places where the trails don't drain well, which turns the trails into ponds. In really wet weather, the ponds turn into lakes.

It can be fun, but you will get wet and dirty. Stay out of the middle of the ponds and lakes. The quad riders like to wallow in the water digging deeper. Since the water is never clear, you can't see what is there. Stay to the edges and you should be OK. Best to check your bike's water resistance before you head out to HM

[hadfield4wd]

My experiences with Pocahantas trails in the Spring is that they can be very wet. Once you get up on the top of the mountain, there are a lot of places where the trails don't drain well, which turns the trails into ponds. In really wet weather, the ponds turn into lakes.

It can be fun, but you will get wet and dirty. Stay out of the middle of the ponds and lakes. The quad riders like to wallow in the water digging deeper. Since the water is never clear, you can't see what is there. Stay to the edges and you should be OK. Best to check your bike's water resistance before you head out to HM

So true. 3 years ago a friend popped a ktm 125 by sucking water in.

Last year I was riding an edge and my bike slipped in over the seat. I immediately killed it. Took an hour to get going as the airbox and exhaust was full of water.

Never ride through a mud puddle at HMT.

[hadfield4wd]

Ashland Resort is really nice and is in the middle of Pocahontas, Pinnacle Creek, and Indian Ridge.   They have a roving security guard that makes rounds about once an hour.  And they have video surveillance plus there is only one way in and out, so theft is not likely.  I have stayed there four times now without incident.

 

 

Ashland is nice as well.  We've stayed there a bunch. It's a little pricey, but they do a nice job.  Part of the reason we started staying in Bramwell was it's 30 min closer to home for me.  And there are several restaurants in town if you don't want to do your own cooking.

 

And don't give yourself the false sense of security that camera's keep thieves away.  It helps but stuff still gets stolen.  I've witnessed it.  Dude was no smart.  He left his keys in his brand new SXS.  First ride out.  Pulled in the night before we chatted,  He was accross the road from us.  Woke up the next morning SXS was gone.  I felt bad for the guy.  Camera's showed video of people in hoodies pushing it out of the campground.  We were there 2 more days and in that time he never got it back.   

 

You need to be smart lock your stuff up no matter where you are. 

[L. Euler]

Ashland is nice as well.  We've stayed there a bunch. It's a little pricey, but they do a nice job.  Part of the reason we started staying in Bramwell was it's 30 min closer to home for me.  And there are several restaurants in town if you don't want to do your own cooking.

 

And don't give yourself the false sense of security that camera's keep thieves away.  It helps but stuff still gets stolen.  I've witnessed it.  Dude was no smart.  He left his keys in his brand new SXS.  First ride out.  Pulled in the night before we chatted,  He was accross the road from us.  Woke up the next morning SXS was gone.  I felt bad for the guy.  Camera's showed video of people in hoodies pushing it out of the campground.  We were there 2 more days and in that time he never got it back.   

 

You need to be smart lock your stuff up no matter where you are. 

 

 

We always chain/cable and cover our bikes anyway.  You can cut 15 miles off of the trip to Ashland by going in the back way.

[hadfield4wd]

We always chain/cable and cover our bikes anyway. You can cut 15 miles off of the trip to Ashland by going in the back way.

What is the back way?

[L. Euler]

What is the back way?

 

Take  Windmill gap road from Coaldale to Cherokee road right into Ashland Resort.  There are a couple hair pin turns along that route that can be troublesome for a large RV pulling a trailer.  We turn crushed the rear of a 45 footer towing a 24ft trailer. 

[DR650TooFewMiles]

I appreciate all the local knowledge that y'all are contributing. I may be shifting this trip to August or later since I'm not a fan of big puddles/small ponds, and work vacation blackouts.  Are these trails dried up for the most part in summer?  There always seems to be puddles but I don't want to spend all day riding through them.

[pat22043]

 I may be shifting this trip to August or later since I'm not a fan of big puddles/small ponds,

 

I love riding there in late August, its usually been dry for most of June and July, and the weather in August is significantly cooler than late June through mid-July

I've found that Rockhouse has more dryer trails than Pocohontas.

[DR650TooFewMiles]

I love riding there in late August, its usually been dry for most of June and July, and the weather in August is significantly cooler than late June through mid-July

I've found that Rockhouse has more dryer trails than Pocohontas.

 

I was going to start asking about the other trails...I didn't know if Rockhouse implied it's mostly rocky terrain, the promotional material doesn't say much of anything about all the trails.

[pat22043]

I was going to start asking about the other trails...I didn't know if Rockhouse 

 

Rockhouse is great. No more rocks than anyplace else in WVa.

 

They recently closed Little Coal River, before I had a chance to try it.

 

Buffalo Mountain has the most single-track and has more challenges for good riders, but too many of the trails at Buffalo Mountain take more skill than I have.

Indian River looks interesting at my level.

[3 legged hyena]

Many of the regulars are still riding little coal.

Edited February 5, 2016 by ohiocoalminer