Rolling Ridge

Dogs Off-leash

E-Bikes Unknown

Arrival:
Coming from Rt 7, you'll park in the gravel parking lot at 1400 Parker Ln, Bluemont, VA 20135 which is the Shenandoah University River Campus at Cool Spring Battlefield. This used to be the Virginia National Golf course years ago. There has always been a port-a-potty here, year after year.

Pre-Ride:
Be ready to be self-sufficient on this ride, there are no bail outs or 'easy' ways back. There will be plenty of long rock gardens, places on the trail with no cell service and no water; unless you bring a filter.

The Start:
You begin from the parking lot and head north along either of the paved path sections inside the fence. Do not turn right following the gravel road past the large white house. As you continue along the paved path, if you took the right path, there is not need to climb the steep hill section of the paved path and go up the hill as if you were on the old golf course.

Continue as far north / away from the parking lot as you can on the paved path until an obvious wide section of cut grass / trail with a sign reading 'Ridge to River Trail, 0.2 miles.'

You'll enter the woods and begin a smooth and flowy packed trail until you reach an info booth. If you choose to read the map, you'll be riding (for this route) the Perimeter Trail. Just after you'll come to your first real stream crossing with a sign saying 'Walk Your Bike.' **Ignore the sign which says "Trail Closed" because it is for a small walking path to the right towards a small waterfall; it is not for our MTB trail.**

After crossing the creek you'll see two stacked signs which say:
"Welcome to Rolling Ridge"
"Ridge to River Trail"
"Appalachian Trail 2.6 miles"

At this point, the trail will continue for a couple hundred yards until the trail turns right (very obvious, even in the snow) and first big climb begins. During the beginning section of the climb, you'll see blue hashmarks on the trees, but shortly after the markers will transition to white diamond cutouts nailed to the trees.

The trail will level out after a few minutes / few hundred yards of climbing, and the white diamond markers are now your best friend. Follow them and the signs which are well placed and you can't get lost. Sometimes the sign may just say 'Trail' with one or two white diamond markers, indicating a significant turn in the trail.

You'll climb the power line 'road' up for a good ways until a 'Trail' sign on the left blesses you with an indicator that the steep climb is over... for this section.

Enter the rocky section of the ride. You'll now traverse and climb some more rocky sections until the half way point of this ride between mile five and six...approximately. After, it will still be rocky, but a lot more downhill compared to up. Stay on the perimeter trail and follow the white diamonds on the trees and you'll be good to go.

The trail will come back to itself and bringing you back to the top of the first big climb. Send it down the hill, through the old golf course and back to the parking lot.