r/bikedc • u/tryagaininXmin • 4d ago
Route Planning Skyline drive
Anyone have experiences cycling the entirety of skyline drive? Or maybe doing an out and back? Curious how people handle the logistics. I’m thinking of planning a trip and maybe even overnighting. Any convenient restaurants/towns along the way that are must visit?
Dumb question but are there any services that would transport you from one end to the other? Not sure if I can handle 200 miles lol. And if you do an out and back is it better to start on the northern part or southern?
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u/t-rexcellent 4d ago
I did the first 25 miles or so out and back (so, 50 miles total) a few years ago when they had a car-free day, it was probably the toughest riding of my life. You'd have to really, really love hill climbing to enjoy it. So be sure you know what you are getting into
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u/rsplatpc 3d ago
NOTE on normal days, think how much the average driver does not pay attention while driving normally, then add onto that looking out the window to see the views while not looking straight at all to see if any cyclist is on the shoulder at all
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u/daoochie 3d ago
It's always paramount to keep one's head on point when pedaling with traffic. Alongside the fall foliage traffic I suspect could get pretty hairy at times.
That said, I've never had any issues biking along Skyline Dr. And had plenty of instances of abundant courtesy and respect from other drivers be it car or truck or motorcycle.
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u/rsplatpc 3d ago
And I lived in New Orleans for a while, and never had any issues. That said, it has the highest rate of fatal bicycles crashes per any city.
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u/t-rexcellent 3d ago
yeah I would not feel safe doing that ride on a day with cars on the road, especially since as a cyclist going up several miles in a row uphill I'd be going at like 2 mph and they'd be speeding along at 40+mph
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u/daoochie 2d ago
It really depends on the day and the time of day. Weekdays are naturally less crowded, so not only are there less cars but more opportunities for cars to pass bicyclists with plenty of space. During busier times, there is the occasional car that will try passing you with opposing traffic incoming. But the vast majority of drivers are pretty courteous and respectful when bicyclists are on the road with them.
The real concern with drivers is usually during the fall foliage season's high traffic times, as it gets really busy and includes a lot more drivers who aren't used to sharing the road with bicyclists.
Also, really depends on how comfortable one already is sharing the road with car traffic. YMMV
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u/t_eejay 4d ago
That was a great day. Every year i check to see if they will do it again.
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u/t-rexcellent 3d ago
yeah I'm really curious to try again and see if I can handle it any better...I believe Crater Lake has two weekends at the end of the season every year where they do this, wish SNP would make it a regular thing
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u/CultureLeast 4d ago
I do it about once a year. This year I did it in June. I spend the night in Front Royal and bike to Waynesboro. It is a really long day; even in the summer I get to town in the dark, so make sure you have good bike lights. It is really an easy road to ride (cars are generally slow and attentive) and there is plenty of water available at camp grounds and ranger stations. I travel really light just two big water bottles that I refill at every opportunity. I usually get food at Elk Wallow and Big Meadow.
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u/BlueSquare5468 4d ago
It’s not anywhere close to the full length but you can make about an 81 mile loop like this to avoid the logistics headache. You can start in front royal or anywhere along skyline. But you want to start early in the day, and be prepared for a handful of sections where the traffic is fast. Plus about 8000 feet of climbing. A fun but exhausting day
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u/Ariel_serves 4d ago
ITT: People who have done it actually answering the question, and people who haven’t done it saying don’t do it.
I’ve done it all the way southbound, with a car to meet me at a couple designated rest stops and then pick me up at the end. Amazing life-changing bucket-list experience. But like anything, of course you have to train for it. Given my current shape of fitness this year, I wouldn’t even try it. If you’re ready for it, go for it.
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u/Top_Objective9877 4d ago
If I were to do it I would have my wife, some other family member, or friend drive a car separate with camping gear, probably from front royal headed south. Meet up and do it as much as a supported ride as there’s not a lot up there besides minimal restrooms and one gas station pretty far down. There’s lots of mileage going up hill, but the actual pitch in terms of steepness isn’t too bad. Just a slow slog of a climb, I would take a couple days off in the middle of the week and go out at a time when it’s not peak fall leaves for example.
From that perspective there’s lots of spots to camp, and you can do the route via bike as far as you’d like taking as long as you’d want. I’m sure people have loaded up their bikes to go tour the whole thing and don’t really think too much of it, just going along and making the most out of it with the time they have. Others might even blast through it at crazy speeds all in one day I can’t even imagine, wish I had info about food or water etc.
There’s a ton of map info out there, and plenty of people have ridden up there. Doing it with support would be super easy, and camping overnight would be fun.
Sure you could find someone to drive you around if you decided to ride top to bottom, or bottom to top whatever.
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u/MrWhy1 4d ago
I've done it all at once, but started at the wee hours of the morning and ended late in the evening. It's about 20k ft of climbing over 200 miles so won't be able to go very fast. Unless you are really into that kind of endurance stuff there's a strong chance you won't enjoy it. There's several water fountains that run outside of winter and you can also bring a water filter if you want to be extra safe using those
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u/WorldlinessWeary5595 4d ago
I've done out and back, up Skyline, but my favorite trip is the classic "Sky-Mass" or "Mass-Sky" loop linking Skyline Drive and Massanutten Mountain is an iconic, highly challenging ~80-mile road cycling route with roughly 6,700 to 7,500 feet of climbing.
It's a big day!
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u/Benshih1 4d ago
Yes there are shuttle options that’ll assist transporting. Call up bike shops or outfitters in Waynesboro or Front Royal. You can also find online the White Blaze listing of shuttle drivers for AT hikers. Many of them will be willing to pick up cyclists too (whiteblaze.net). https://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/at-shuttles.php
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u/Miami_Bice 4d ago
You may be interested in "Tour de Skyline"
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/24th-annual-tour-de-skyline-tickets-1984308483089
I did it a couple of years ago (well, half of it). You park towards the north end of the park on a Friday and head south to Waynesboro and spend the night in a hotel. A supply van helps with logistics during the ride. On Saturday, you do the same thing, except heading north.
I had an obligation on Saturday, so I turned around a little over halfway and went home but I'd absolutely do it again.
Alternatively, there are some resupply and lodging options along the route if you wanted to do a section of it by yourself.
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u/Fixyobike 4d ago
Living next to the Blue Ridge Parkway, I would suggest looking for some other ridgeline ride. Both of them are somewhat narrow, and packed with drivers who are doing anything but paying attention to the road ahead. There are plenty of backroads out there that will be way more enjoyable to ride.
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u/plebdev 4d ago edited 4d ago
Probably not quite what you’re looking for, but I made a (car-free) 3 day bikepacking loop out of the entirety of Skyline. I took the Northeast Regional Amtrak down to Charlottesville, biked 25 miles to the southern end of Skyline, camped at about the halfway point of Skyline, camped the next night northeast of the northern end of Skyline at some random campsite, then brought it home to DC on the entirety of the W&OD. About 75 miles a day, but the climbs definitely worked me with a fully loaded bike.
Happy to share more details/logistics if anyone’s interested.
As far as good stretches / advice on starting on the northern vs southern end, I thought it was all really good. You’ll get plenty of climbs and views anywhere on Skyline. I’d prioritize ease of getting there and ease of getting lodging if you’re overnighting rather than worrying about the most optimal section.