Cycling the North Bend Rail Trail in West Virginia | Bike Camping Trip | Gravel Biking Path
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- Опубліковано 7 лют 2025
- Riding a bike path/rail trail in West Virginia turned out to be much more of a gravel ride than I would have expected - but we were all prepared with our gravel bikes. My weekend started with a 50 mile commute down the Ohio & Erie Canal Towpath Trail and then over to Dundee, OH for some camping. We then drove to North Bend State Park and set up camp. We had a 71 mile day out to Parkersburg for some beers and late lunch. The next day we rode out to Pennsboro and had breakfast but some incoming storms limited us from riding the whole trail as planned.
Strava of the Rides:
Towpath - / strava
To the campsite - / strava
North Bend day 1 - / strava
Day 2 - / strava
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Music: Transpanda
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Was doing some research about this trail and thinking about doing it this summer! Great video as always!!
It is really cool. I want to go back and finish it.
Rode from Wolf Summit to North Bend State park yesterday (about 42 miles) Did this on a 28 year old Raleigh M40 mountain bike. I haven't ridden much this year, so it was a lot of work. The path is pretty consistent, gravel for the vast majority of it. The section through Salem is paved. The first tunnel needs some work as it is really rutted. The rest of the tunnels were very well groomed, better than the trail itself. Make sure you have a good light. Most of this section was up hill 1%, which on the road, on a road bike, probably wouldn't be noticeable. On gravel, on a mountain bike it is constant effort. Cool trail, definitely worth the effort.
Great. A fun ride out there. 🙂
Thanks - it was very cool.
Epic! That's a ton of miles, well done! Extra points for the breakfast head in the opening
Thanks. Definitely was out of it when I first hit the road.
My Great Grandfather opened a drive in where that hot dog stand now is in Parkersburg back in the 60's. I still have his sauce recipe.
interesting content Tim Fitzwater. I smashed the thumbs up on your video. Keep up the very good work.
Thanks man!
Cool video. What a group ride 👏
Thanks! It was an awesome time.
Awesome!!
Thanks!
Nice work Tim, it was a great time!!!
Thanks! Even with the weather it turned out to be an awesome weekend!
Cool cats
Very cool
Thanks!
@@TimFitzwater I was just over there. I wish I had more time to check it out
We had planned to ride even more but the weather stopped us.
@@TimFitzwater I heard. I'm in Chicago now.
Really like your videos NICE
I appreciate that! Thanks!
Looked like a good ride.
Definitely a place I want to go ride more around - very pretty
I will be joining you good people in a few weeks. Can't wait.
Where are you guys located? Is this part of a gravel bike group? Looking forward to join if not to far from Charleston.
Looks like a pretty cool ride, Tim. I didn't think your kind could go out in the daylight 🧛🧛🦇🦇🧛🧛
Sunscreen!
Another masterpiece
Thanks man!
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻Cool Ride Tim!!
Regards from Brasil man!!
Thanks man!
We just made UA-cam videos of the too. You all seen a lot more it seems. Wish we seen more. We'll be back. Cool video. Thanks for sharing
Awesome and thanks! I’m out on a riding trip now but will check out your videos when I’m back!
Awesome video. Easy to watch, looks like a great trail. We may be overdosing them with WV.
Thanks - saw yours just posted - going to check it out at lunch break!
WV is underrated and a well kept secret. Keep these vids coming.
North Bend sounds too rocky on most reviews. I am planning on biking Greenbrier Trail, New River Trail and Virginia Creeper starting June 8, 2024 ! Obviously some driving in between because those trails are not that long. Thought about North Bend and still may do it. 😂
It is rougher than most bike paths though I've been told that the fiber optics construction is done and some of those parts are smoother now.
Once again a excellent video. Music is awesome. Who is it?
Thanks! It is a band called Transpanda - freemusicarchive.org/music/transpanda
Hope you enjoyed, this is my neck of the woods! The NET has the best burgers around here and excellent IPA.
We had a blast! The NET? I’ll have to google that. We are all beer nerds and the guy who planned this trip owns a brewery here in Akron, OH.
The NET is where we ate! And yes the burger was excellent as well as the IPA. Best pub style burger I’ve had in a while and they are not shy with the fries!
Lol - it’s where we ate!
Tim, myself and four friends are planning a trip in June 2025 to drive and do the Virginia Creeper Trail. On the way back we are stopping off at Parkersburg to do parts/possibly all of the North Bend Rail Trail...from your video, it looks like the tires of choice were gravel/MB.....would a hybrid work (in your opinion) on that trail surface? We all live in the Northeast Ohio area
I have been told the trail is better now as the fiber optic project is done. It is still rougher than your average bike path though. I would go as wide as your bikes will take. I would not want to be on anything below 38 personally - wider if possible.
All I’m saying is there was a surprising amount of footage to !FunnyBrad’s lower right leg. Could help but notice he was showing just the tip... ☯️🦎
Just the tip! He knows what he is doing!
just seeing this now Tim...great footage. my brother lives real close to Bolivar. We've biked that part of the trail many times. would love to do the North Bend Rail Trail. where did you get off the towpath in Bolivar, and how far to Dundee? i take it this was all roads
Thanks!
I’ll be honest that I don’t remember all the details but I do have the links to every ride below - so dig into that. It was all road to Dundee though.
Man! That looked like a great ride! It got me a little more excited for our trip to ride the Virginia Creeper in a month or so!
Serious question, and it is sad that I have to ask this, but do you carry pepper spray, or anything else for self defense while gravel biking these remote areas?
The reason that I ask, we recently had an innocent young man killed on one of our most popular gravel roads in the state when he and his girlfriend stopped to help a "stranded" motorist who turned out to be an inhabitant of a nearby homeless camp that had been established in a National Forest. It was a robbery gone bad. When the authorities got to the homeless camp, they were met by a 5 year old with a LOADED shotgun! Everyone but the 5 year old and one other woman had fled the camp before authorities arrived.
While this is certainly an uncommon occurrence, it still has me thinking about it...
I’ve heard the Virginia Creeper is awesome.
No - I don’t carry anything special for self-defense. Even riding past the homeless camps around here on our abandoned tracks and stuff I don’t worry too much. I always feel pretty safe with my ability to outrun anything on my bike - and when it comes down to it violence is exceedingly rare no matter how much the news loves to show it. Way more likely I’ll die from being hit my a car at some point.
@@TimFitzwater Agreed the news media makes it money by sensationalizing everything.
We are pumped about the Creeper. We carried our son and his friend up there when they were in 8th grade and now that they are 22 years old, they have asked us to go back with them! So we will be carrying our home-built teardrop up there for a long weekend in about a month for a weekend with a bunch of friends and family.
Rad video! I’m in Columbus, and I’m thinking of bikepacking this trail with my brother and son - how fat were your tires? One of the bikes can only fit 43-45mm and I’m concerned about comfort. Would 43 be enough, or do I need some fatter tires?Thanks!
I was on 42s. I have heard that they have smoothed out some of the roughest sections.... I think most people would be fine that size.
@@TimFitzwater Fantástico! That’ll simplify things quite a bit. Thanks, Tim
nice video, really digging the tunes, looks like an epic ride! Was that a rail trail that you hit once you got into WV? I've been looking more into those lately, wish there was a more comprehensive map of all those somewhere.
OH hey it says it right in the description!!! haha derp! Sry! lol
Yeah! And check the description because I link to the Strava rides so they show exactly where we rode. It was a fun and beautiful ride! The band is linked there too / they are called Transpanda.
Nice looking trails! How did everyone handle the rain?
We knew the forecast looked bad for the second day and were prepared to get soaked. There was hail and thunderstorms on the radar and it somehow all missed us - so awe actually fared way better than expected! We cut short the ride and cracked some beers and the sun came out - what can ya do?
Early on you mention "North Bend,WV" I Google mapped that and it's a town 150 miles south of Parkersburg. Were you there or did you just mean North Bend Trail?
I'll be honest in that I don't remember at all! This vid is a couple years old.
@@TimFitzwater Haha it just popped up in my feed I assumed it was new.
Zoar Valley Trail at 1:35 ?
Yes.
I found this wow
Yes! A "classic"!😂
5:10 John Travolta?
That is "Funny Brad"!
Oh, gimme a break!
You drive a lot on that