Road Tripping to Pisgah, NC and Knoxville, TN

If you're from the Northeast like me, you know what mud season is and what it means as a mountain biker. With MTB community folklore spread across local facebook groups saying "Every time you make a rut on a muddy trail an [insert cute tiny animal species here] dies" it seemed a spring trip was to become an annual thing for a few of us. Whether it's wanderlust, our love for hero dirt, or our absolute loathing of riding pavement and muddy roads in bone chilling misty weather, we made it a thing. There are plenty of winter activities in the northeast to occupy time and maintain fitness through the season. But it's always that dreaded in-between season when we need to get away. In the past we've flown our bikes across the country and ridden some of the best trails in the Southwest. This year, though we decided to stay within driving distance (15 hours NH to NC) and visit one of my favorite riding areas in North Carolina, and scope out what Knoxville has to offer as well. We weren't disappointed. On day 1 we drove over to Kitsuma Trail in Pisgah National Forest outside Asheville, NC. We didn't stop to take many pictures as it was our first ride on dry dirt for quite some time. It felt amazing, and painful all at the same time. It hurt so good.

On day 1 we drove over to Kitsuma Trail in Pisgah National Forest outside Asheville, NC. We didn't stop to take many pictures as it was our first ride on dry dirt for quite some time. It felt amazing, and painful all at the same time. It hurt so good.