GALAX, VIRGINIA
I have often heard of the New River Trail and referred to it as a near-bucket list experience for me. I thought that I wanted to ride it, but it wasn’t quite high enough on the list to be bucket list worthy. It was in the category of “If the opportunity presents itself.”
The opportunity presented itself in the form of a club post with the Prince William Cycling Club. It was a gauge of interest followed by plans that came to fruition.
I drove down last night to Dublin, Va., which is only 6-7 miles north of Pulaski. And it is 11 miles south of Radford. We met this morning in Pulaski, and four of us, with bikes, drove to Galax, which was a 50-mile drive.
In Galax, the Bluegrass Capital of Virginia, we met up with a fifth rider, who camped nearby last night. He parked in Pulaski yesterday and rode the trail to Galax, and would be riding back with us to Pulaski.
It was quite chilly. It was 50° (10 ℃) but heavily shaded. In the early miles, we were next to Chestnut Creek, a beautiful waterway in its own right. At times, we were in a deep forest, where the sun wouldn’t reach us. And we felt it.
At one time, when we had little separation and decided to stop and wait, it wasn’t until we saw an opening with sunshine that we stopped simply to soak in the rays. This was in stark contrast to a couple of months earlier we would always look to stop in the shade.
At MP 12 we came to the longest trestle (I think), where the Chestnut Creek empties into the New River. It was here we saw the trail segment to Fries, Va. The New River Trail has two segments from here – the one to Fries and the one to Galax.
The trail was crushed limestone, although some sections were packed so tightly that it looked and felt like asphalt. The dust factor was minimal. If the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) or C&O Canal Towpath is a 10 for dust, this trail was no more than a 3 or 4.
There are many walnut trees along the trail, and with the seasons turning from summer to fall, there were lots of black walnuts on the trail itself. It’s as though our mission was Smashing Walnuts. As I rode, I thought of nine-year-old Gabriella Miller, whose brain tumor was the size of a walnut, and curing it was like smashing a walnut with a skillet.
Two weeks earlier, I had ridden on the GAP using a tubeless setup with 40 mm tires. But the back tire rubbed on the front derailleur mount screw, so I rode today with 32 mm road tires and did just fine. There really wasn’t any section where I wished I had a wider tire.
Just at the halfway point, we came to Foster Falls. This was an old train station with a caboose and some vending machines. There is a camp store there as well with seasonal hours. Likely, there were better food options on the inside than just vending machines. But I never went inside, and I’m not sure if the store was open. And that is it for food options on the trail. On this day, I had all the nutrition and hydration I needed with me on the bike, but on a hot summer day, a rider will likely want more of each.
Here, we also saw a majestic building, The Inn at Foster Falls. This was originally a hotel, but was later a school, then an orphanage, before being restored to a hotel.
We noticed the decking on many of the trestles seemed to be in pristine condition, or more likely, brand new. The reason was Hurricane Helene, which battered North Carolina last year also hammered southwest Virginia. As we approached Pulaski, we knew that at least one bridge was closed for repair and we had to do our best cyclocross move through someone’s back yard to a highway to get around the closure.
We passed under I-77, which was no big deal. There was minimal road noise that dissipated about 200 meters on either side. We also passed the Jackson Ferry Shot Tower, which was used more than 200 years ago to manufacture lead shot for early settlers. Three of our group walked up to the tower. I rode with my road shoes and decided they were not appropriate for the small hike to get there.
The trail is mostly wooded, which would help keep it cool in the summer. We started in chilly temps and looked to get out of the shady spots and into the sunshine. I like fixtures on a trail. The GAP has trestles and big tunnels. I would discount the two tunnels we went through, but point out that this trail may have more trestles per mile than any I have been on.
The scenery mostly follows the New River and does not offer mountainside vistas. But if you love trestles, and I do, you will definitely want to ride the New River Trail.
EQUIPMENT: Trek Checkpoint gravel bike with 32 mm road tires
FEES: If you park in Galax or at any trailhead, you are in the New River State Park, and there is a daily parking fee. Pro Tip: Buy a pack of jelly beans at REI in Virginia and use your receipt for free admission at any Virginia State Park.
LODGING: I stayed at the Hampton Inn & Suites, Dublin, Va.
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