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Virginia Beach Fall ride

2K views 13 replies 9 participants last post by  CycleAddict 
#1 ·
Last week I did a solo getaway. Been craving a beach trip for a while. Normally people in the Roanoke area go to North and South Carolina beaches since they are just as close as Virginia Beach and warmer in the off season. I think 1977 was the last time I went to VA Beach so I decided to go there for something different.

View from the room was good.


On Saturday and Sunday the bike trails and boardwalks were full. I haven't seen that many people riding bikes since going to Europe last year. Pretty much everything in VA Beach is bike accessible. I only took my car out to the dollar store for a couple of trips and used my bike the rest of the 4 days.
These "station wagons" were everywhere

Being next to a lot of military facilities, the sky and ocean are full jets and ships



Street wheels

My wheels


The right wheels

I am guessing these are called black widow tires, but don't have any fat bike experience


I was impressed with how clean and fixed up Virginia Beach is. I kind of remember it being a lot rougher, along these lines


My second day I rode out to First Landing State park.

One trail is open to bikes. It is 6 miles long and flat as you might expect. Cape Henry trail is about 4 miles of double track and 2 miles of singletrack. I rode everything both ways to get a decent ride in

The double track is hard packed sand and rolls quite well


I could not fathom how a flat sandy road got a black diamond rating

Lots of Spanish moss, cypress and live oaks. Felt more like south Georgia than eastern Virginia
Cypress knees, not sure where the legs are


Some pure swampland


The two miles of singletrack was actually pretty nice



Some savannah type country


Cool way to get around the beach traffic



Quite a few sand traps

After a while I figured out how to ride the sand traps. Just like West Virginia mud but much cleaner, keep your front wheel straight and power on through them.
 
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#6 ·
ccr:
last night i had a dream that i was down there with you.
we were drinking peach brandy and i hopped on the yellow fat bike and started using the giant sand castle as a dirt jump.
(i could be making all of this up.......)
That really happened. The girl in the red jacket was chasing you around and swinging the shovel at your noggin.:eekster: DamPeachBrandy.

I thought that yellow fat bike was really cool and you rode it well.
 
#5 ·
cool pictures. i am from that area, but haven't really spent much time at the boardwalk or seashore in a few years. i have caught a ton of really good size fish right where that helicopter is. when the tide is flipping it creates a real bottle neck and you can catch a ton.

also have hit that helicopter with hooks several times just to see if i could.
 
#9 ·
This guy was hauling his surf board with his bike - multi-tasking


Speaking of helicopters. Watched this guy take a nasty spill kite surfing

While I was watching him, this helicopter dropped down almost to the water and was sucking up all kinds of water into the air (left side of the pic). Guess it was dirty and needed a wash job.
 
#7 ·
I'm from the tidewater area, and September or October is the best time to go to the beach. The temp are awesome, the water is still warm, and a lot of the tourists are gone. Next time try Sandbridge and Back Bay NWR and False Cape State Park. Even less people and there are sand trails down to almost pristine beaches. You need a serious bike cleaning though afterwards with all the sand and grit.
 
#10 ·
Nice pictures! Next time you are in the area hit Ipswitch in Chesapeake. Then Freedom on the way home, 3-4 miles off of 64 Williamsburg Lightfoot exit. After Freedom stop by Pierce's BBQ.
 
#13 ·
Nice Photos!
My Wife and I visit VA Beach each year in September. We've hiked some trails at First Landing State Park but this year we decided to take our bikes to ride Cape Henry Trail and we enjoyed every mile of it (minus the sand traps). It's a very easy trail with some great places to relax and enjoy the view. We love vacationing at VA Beach and definitely plan on riding Cape Henry next year when we go back.

 
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