A three day bike tour of the 78 mile Greenbriar River Rail Trail in West Virginia. We did this as an out and back trip, so the total mileage was about 160 miles. The trail is very scenic with lots of bridges and a few tunnels. The farther north you get the prettier the scenery. We stayed both nights in a B&B in Marlinton, so we didn’t need to carry any gear on the second day. The trail is crushed limestone and is pretty well maintained. I took my Trek 920 touring bike and one pannier.
Useful Links
Here is the best website about the trail: https://www.greenbrierrivertrail.com/
Here is a direct link to the trail map: https://inter-cdn.com/images/document/4430421/GreenbrierRiverTrailStatePark_brochure_map-11.pdf
Cass Scenic Railroad: https://mountainrailwv.com/
Where to Park
We parked at the southern trailhead, which is actually at mile marker 3 on the trail. The parking lot is small and doesn’t have many spots. I’ve done this ride three times and always started on a Friday after driving 4 hours up from North Carolina. I’ve never had a problem finding a spot in this lot, and never had anyone mess with my car while it was parked there.
Description
Day #1: Drove up from NC to Caldwell, WV, which was about 3.5 hours of driving. Caldwell is the southern trailhead. Got some lunch at a local restaurant (Cook’s Country Kitchen). So, we started down the trail about 1:00 in the afternoon. The first day was 53 miles up to Marlinton. There are only a couple of places for water on the trail, with the best being at MM 28. In Marlinton, we stayed at a local B&B called the Old Clark Inn. Its a nice place that caters to cyclists on the trail. They have a secure area to lock up your bikes that is covered. There are a few restaurants in town, but the best is Alfredo’s.
Day #2: Rode to the end of the trail in Cass, which was about 25 miles. So 50 total miles for the day and back to the Old Clark Inn for a second night. We started early in the morning, because we had reservations at the Cass Rail Road to take a steam locomotive ride, and we didn’t want to be late. If your even a little bit into trains, I highly recommend a train ride. I suggest making a reservation to insure you can get on the ride you want. In Cass there is a decent lunch place and souvenir shop. There is also a pretty good museum dedicated to the railroad industry in this area of the country. This northern section of the trail is the most scenic, so you want to leave some time to stop and take pictures and enjoy the views.
Day #3: Rode the 53 miles back to the southern trailhead. Took in the scenery from the opposite direction, and enjoyed the last day of the tour. Loaded up the car when we got there and drove home.
Here is a link to my Strava statistics for the three days:
Day #1: https://www.strava.com/activities/5750660854
Day #2 (Marlinton to Cass): https://www.strava.com/activities/5755589708
Day #2 (Cass to Marlinton): https://www.strava.com/activities/5755589906