The road starts above the paved parking area at the park maintenance building and gravel trailhead parking area. Proceed gently downhill past some of the animal exhibits, with the wolf habitat on the left and the picnic shelter on the right.
The road passes over a stream and past the
Azalea Trail on the right side and, a little further along, the bottom of
Big Oak Trail. After another mile through the forest, the
Chinquapin Trail is on the right and the road travels next to the water where there has been a lot of beaver activity. After the short lake section, the road follows a tributary through a hollow with a short climb to Feagan's Gap. At Feagan's Gap, turn left and begin a sometimes steep climb up to the
Cherry Knobs ridgeline. The road here is less gravel and more dirt with some washed out sections.
At the top, the road passes the
Cherry Knobs footpath and starts downward, sometimes steeply, to Leadbetter Gap. Take a left turn at Leadbetter Gap and continue downhill less steeply to another finger of the reservoir. From here, the road follows along the banks of the lake in a very gradual descent ending at the dam. Some riders walk their bikes across the top of the dam, some descend in from of the dam to the paved entrance road and ride back up to the parking area on the road.
This road is used by many to get to Feagan's Gap where
Bear Run Trail or
River Mountain Road are used to get to
Indian Pipes Trail and the backcountry of the park.
1 Comment