Breaks Interstate Park, VA to Hindman, KY – 78 Miles
I woke up yestedat without any real agenda or plan on where I was going to try to make it. I considered just having a rest day and hiking around in the park a bit. Slept in then made a good breakfast complete with bacon, eggs, potatoes with cheese on them and coffee.
After finishing breakfast and packing up I went to find the park office so I could grab some Wi-Fi and talk to them about the hiking trails in the area. Found out that the only way into the canyon was a 5 hour round trip hike, so I decided to bike instead. Got a few more views on the way out of the park.
After leaving the park there was a good decent. Rode past the Gateway Motel where Max stayed the night before. He was probably just about getting done for the day as it was around 2 PM. I was going to try to ride to Hindman, Ky, where there is a cyclist hostel, which was about 60 miles from Breaks. I called the hostel which is actually at the Knott County Historical Society before I left and he told me that he just had some cyclists come through who were almost robbed in a town called Lookout on the route to Hindman. That combined with the threat of loose dogs had me adequately nervous about the day ahead.
Shortly after leaving Breaks I hit the Virginia / Kentucky state line. There was an immediate noticeable difference in the amount of litter on the side of the road once entering into Kentucky.
I like Virginia’s sign better.
The terrain was gorgeous, but I was on full alert the rest of the day on the lookout for dogs and meth addicts looking to rob me. I rode through Ashcamp, then on to Lookout. About every house had a dog either in a small cage, on a short chain, or not restrained at all that would then proceed to run down the road after me. Once I got to Lookout I missed my turn and went about 2 miles past it downhill and had to ride back up probably adding 30 minutes to an hour to my ride. Not good after getting such a late start.
The turn out of Lookout took me up a one lane rode through the mountains past trailer after trailer. Very impoverished part of the country for sure. Did a good amount of climbing, and yesterday ended being the second biggest climbing day of the trip so far at around 7000 vertical feet.
I was so concerned with time and the threats of the road that I didn’t end up taking another picture all day. I rolled into the Knott Historical Society around 930 PM. I only had to ride in the dark for about 30-45 minutes, so it really wasn’t too bad. David, the guy who owns the place, is really nice. He gave me good directions for a shortcut on the way here. He told us the history of the area. I guess much of the land was given out as land grants after the revolutionary war and many of the families haven’t left since. Some have done well and some haven’t. Definitely an interesting part of the country that I don’t intend on passing through again anytime soon.
