It wasn’t until we exited Interstate 81, raced through some gears on US 48th Route, and encountered mist-covered fields that I felt like we had arrived. Craig, a college friend who lives in suburban Philadelphia, had a weekend pass, so he hitchhiked with me to Seneca Rocks via “Wild and Wonderful” West Virginia. He’s riding his 2000 Harley Road King and I’m riding my 2011 Triumph Sprint GT.
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Our starting point is Manassas, in northern Virginia, and the fastest route west to the Appalachians is Interstate 66, followed by a three-mile ride on I-81 before we exit and turn onto US 48.
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Once out of state, things change. Time – and our speed – slows down, giving us a chance to notice our surroundings. The simple houses have stone foundations and separate garages. These people out here don’t go behind electric lawn mowers, and they don’t put grass clippings in their pockets. Out here, they proudly drive large gas-powered lawn mowers, with cuttings flying far and wide across vast expanses of land. We enjoy the unmistakable smell of freshly cut grass – it smells like summer.
US 48 is a two-lane road with farmland on both sides for about five miles before going through the woods and over the ridge that serves as the border between Virginia and West Virginia. It was a rapid 9% deterioration to Wardensville, where 48 was majorly changed and became a four-lane freeway. Before the superhighway began, we turned to Old 55 (McCauley Road) and glided through the shaded Lost River valley.
We turned back to 48 just before Baker and made our way to Moorefield, where we headed south on Main Street (US Route 220). The road is flat through more arable land, but mountains on all sides feed our predictions of future land changes. In Petersburg we continued west on Highway 28 and followed the Potomac River North fork South Confluence, which created one of many gaps through the mountains.
Going south, we caught a glimpse of the Champe Rocks, a pair of steep cliffs that emerge from the Champe Knobs in the Allegheny Mountains. About 230 million years ago, the rock that once lay on the seabed was pushed up until it was vertical. The softer rock eventually eroded, but the quartz that made up the fin protrusion was much harder and still exists today. The rocks are located in the Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area in the Monongahela National Forest. Cabin rental ads along the road speak of great fishing, boating, hiking, and camping nearby.
Not long after, the Seneca Rocks – a popular scenic destination in the Mountain State – emerged from the dense forest of the River Knobs. Rock walls are popular with climbers, but after our 150-mile morning hike, Craig and I were more interested in eating. We opened our stores at Yokum’s Vacationland, at the junction of 28th Street and 33rd US Street. In business since 1923, Yokum’s has a department store, a snack bar, and a motel. , cabins and campsites.
The short-term grill is located at the back of the store, so Craig and I walked past all the local merchandise (It caught my eye) and ordered lunch. Hailing from Philadelphia, Craig surprised me by ordering a Philly cheeseburger, but the result looked even better than my cheeseburger, eaten right away. After our meal, we cycled a few hundred yards down the road, parked our bikes a lot along Roy Gap, and walked out to the river, our eyes focused on the climbers high above the rocks. We agree that Yokum’s would make a great hub for taking some of the more adventurous routes through the eastern part of the state.
A 35-mile drive west through the Alleghenies on 33 US Road brings us to Elkins, a classic American town with restaurants, bars, hotels and shops. In the center of town is the West Virginia Railroad Museum and a historic train depot, one of the stops on the Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad, a cruise train that traverses craggy mountain landscape.
After returning to Seneca Rocks, we continued south on US 33, turning east at Judy Gap. On high turns, I want to open the throttle, but I double-check my desire not to miss the view of the German Valley – a wonderful view of the valley and the River Knobs just before the summit of the North Mountain Forks. Thirty miles later, we reached the summit of the High Knob and headed back to Virginia. On the way down, where there is a straight road and old trees create canopy hundreds of meters high, it feels like going through a cathedral.
We bravely made our way through Harrisonburg’s stop and traffic lights before once again ascending Swift Run Gap, where Shenandoah National Park’s Skyline Drive intersects US 33. The two monuments tell a bit of history. of the pass, where, in 1716, Lieutenant Colonel Governor Spotswood and a group of rangers, Native Americans, and government officials attempted to demonstrate that there was an easy road through the Blue Ridge Mountains.
In Stanardsville, we took 33rd Business Street through the historic district. We turn north on State Route 230, eventually ending at US Route 29, where we turn north again. Less than half a mile later, we stopped at a brightly colored Tastee-Freez to escape the summer heat and hunt for sizzling banh chung. A local told us this is the oldest continuously operating, privately owned Tastee-Freez in the US.
The mountains faded from our mirrors as we continued northeast toward our starting point. We’ve only had a glimpse of what we can discover in West Virginia, and we can’t wait to go back.
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