Ride Guide
This flagship loop connects Thomas, Davis, Blackwater Canyon, and the Dry Fork of the Cheat River across a wide variety of surfaces — gravel, singletrack, rough 4WD roads, and short pavement sections. The ride briefly uses the busy Corridor H (Rt. 48) between Thomas and Davis before transitioning to quiet back roads and forest routes with very little traffic.
Davis offers full services for cyclists before the route heads into the wilderness through Blackwater Falls State Park, tracing the southern rim of Blackwater Canyon with optional short detours to renowned viewpoints such as Pendleton Overlook, Lindy Point, and Table Rock. These cliffs reveal the deep, rugged gorge carved by the Blackwater River, where dark tannin-stained waters plunge through hemlock forests and exposed sandstone walls in one of the most dramatic landscapes in the Monongahela National Forest.
From the rim, the route drops down Red Run to the Dry Fork valley, briefly overlapping with the American Discovery Trail, a 6,800-mile route linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. A quiet paved stretch leads Hendricks (and optionally a short paved trail detour into Parsons for full services) before the return climb begins. The Blackwater Canyon Trail, a non–Forest Service system trail, provides a gently graded, traffic-free route back up the canyon toward Thomas, following the same corridor as Route 1.1.
A hardtail mountain bike is ideal for the rougher sections, though many riders complete the loop on gravel bikes. Dispersed campsites along the route make it an approachable overnight bikepacking trip for families. Those riding with kids may prefer to start and park in Davis or Blackwater Falls State Park to avoid the short stretch on Rt. 48, while others choose to finish in Thomas and retrieve the vehicle afterward, while the rest of the family enjoys time in town.
