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Posted by: 2TV
There are quite a few Marylanders (and a few in nearby PA too) that ride at Michaux on a regular basis, especially during the winter season. I try to get up there once a week, normally on Sunday but sometimes Saturday, and sometimes both days! The down side is that for MD riders to legally ride there (or any other public land in PA) you must have a quad that is registered in a state that has an reciprocity agreement with PA (I just registered mine in PA - cost $20 for a two year period for us out of staters) and you also need insurance too.
Oh, and one other thing, for some reason dirt bikes aren't allowed to ride at Michaux on the ORV trails. Only ATVs are allowed (just in case anybody was planning on riding there that have friends with dirt bikes)...
Posted by: 2TV
No I'm not but thanks for the tip, I did a search and I think I found the site you are talking about. I don't have time now but will look into it more this evening...
Posted by: 2TV
Amphib, it should have only cost $20 to register 1 quad for PA (to legally ride at Michaux) for a MD resident. You fill out the form (available online here), be sure you only apply for a registration (not a title since you are an out of state resident). Also be sure to take exemption 8 (see instructions for details). You mail the completed form to DCNR with a copy of your title or certificate of origin and a check for the registration fee ($20). You will get a license plate in the mail in about 3 to 4 weeks. That's all you need to ride in PA. However some places require other things such as Michaux also requires that you have liability insurance on your quad (I have full coverage on mine). Michaux is only about an hour away for us and is the best riding available that's reasonably close (the blue and black trails are awfully rough for sport quads though - too rocky). Here is a map of the Michaux Trail System. Note that the numbers on the map are NOT trail numbers, instead they are intersection numbers.
The other place we go to sometimes (about a 2 hour drive) is Taskers Gap in VA. Some of the trails there are even more technical (rocky) that what Michaux has!
I think I've talked to you on Quadcrew before too, you will find other ride area information listed on the "Other Favorite Trails" section there...
Posted by: 2TV
The "most difficult" level trails at Taskers Gap are rougher than what Michaux has (with maybe the exception of the Grave Ridge trail at Michaux - that has some nasty spots in it). Some of the "more difficult" trails are on par with the rocky blues at Michaux. Some of the easy trails at Taskers (as at Michaux) are sport quad friendly, especially on the opposite side of the road from the parking area.
You don't need any form of registration (sticker, plate, etc.) to ride at Taskers Gap, just show up and ride. Here is some more info on it...
Posted by: 2TV
Yes, The Cove is an interesting place. In fact I helped to map out some of the trails there (I was a member of a club that spearheaded the dirt bike / ATV trail development). It's a great place to camp as well (nice setting). They also hold Jeep events there from time to time and they do some really crazy stuff...
Posted by: 2TV
This is the original website for The Cove and will give you the details about camping and other activities that they offer. They have a different website associated with off road riding.
Amphib, a bunch of us (8 I think so far) plan to be at the Big Flat parking lot (Michaux) at around 10:00 tomorrow (Sunday) if you are interested in joining us...
Posted by: 2TV
Amphib, I actually like doing the blue trails there, they are typically narrow and rough, then towards the end of the day I'll wind down on the easier trails, although sometimes (depending on who's in the group) we do a speed run back to the Big Flat parking lot via the Log Sled / Huckleberry / Big Flat trails. During the winter season Piney Mtn Road is open for snowmobile and ATV use, this is a smooth dirt road, pretty boring IMO but it's an easy way to get from one end to the other very quickly. Then you have the Big Flat trail, the Huckleberry trail, the Log Sled trail and the Slate Quarry Road trail which are available during both the summer and winter seasons. Those are all green trails and are fun on any quad.
We had 8 riders today, 6 of the group stuck to the green trails while another rider and myself did mostly blue trails...
Posted by: 2TV
I've ridden at Hatfield McCoy with a group of riders from Westminster before, do you recognize any of these guys?
I used Street Atlas USA to plot a course to the Piney Mountain Parking lot of the Michaux State Forest riding area and starting from the Rt 140 / Rt 97 intersection, you are only about 39 miles away. Here's what the map package gave me:
- mile 0.0 - NW on SR 97
- mile 19.6 - RIGHT on to US 15 North
- mile 26.1 - exit US 15 on to SR 394 (Shrivers Corner Rd)
- mile 26.2 - LEFT onto SR 394 (Shrivers Corner Rd)
- mile 26.3 - keep RIGHT on to SR 394 (Shrivers Corner Rd)
- mile 26.7 - go STRAIGHT on to SR 394 (Shrivers Corner Rd)
- mile 31.1 - in Biglerville turn RIGHT onto SR 34 (S. Main St)
- mile 32.8 - go straight on SR 34 (changes to Carlisle Rd)
- mile 34.2 - bear LEFT on to S Main St
- mile 35.1 - go STRAIGHT on to N Main St in Bendersville
- mile 35.5 - go STRAIGHT on to Bendersville Wenksvill Rd
- mile 36.5 - bear RIGHT on to Pine Grove Furnace Rd
- mile 38.1 - go STRAIGHT on to Bendersville Rd
- mile 39.4 - turn LEFT into Piney Mountain Parking Lot (just past the junction of Piney Mountain Ridge Rd and Bendersville Rd).
Now I've never travelled this route myself so I can't vouch for how the roads are (for hauling a trailer, etc.) since I come from the other direction. If you'd like a copy of the maps showing the route, PM me with your email address and I'll send them. I'll likely be there myself this weekend if the weather is decent, probably on Sunday however I go to the Big Flat parking lot since that is the closer one for me.
Oh, be sure you have your PA tag mounted on your quad and have the registration and proof of insurance with you as the rangers there seem to check on a regular basis (I have never been checked yet but some of my friends have)...
Posted by: 2TV
Yes, I used to ride my dirt bike in that area back in the 70's. It was a combination of trails and power line right of way riding (and some really nice hill climbs). There is one place where you cross Sleepy Creek and go uphill for 1/2 mile on this really rough trail, called the Devil's Nose Jeep Trail. That led to another network of long trails. Most of where I rode eventually became off limits though as property was posted and cabins started popping up so I quit going there years ago. There may still be some legal riding remaining though if you know the area or are with someone that does. Even way back when I rode there, where I went involved getting on paved roads here and there to go from one section to another...
Posted by: 2TV
The Cove has some trails that are like dirt roads, some that are loose (almost like sand) and rutted, and a lot that are rocky, and some of those rocky trails (these are "jeep" trails, not really set aside as ATV trails) that are more like boulder fields. As a campground it is a scenic place. As ORV riders you have to go slow and quiet on the campground roads or near the camping areas (they have 8 seperate camping areas last I knew). The property has around 3000 acres but as ORV riders you do not have access to all of it (however it's been about 3 years since I was there last so things may have changed since, Crypto is likely to be a better source for up to date info on this place).
SlimJonesy, is this riding you do around Cherry Run all legal? If so I'd be interested in checking it out myself sometime. BTW it was "big" back in the 70's too but you had to know where to go. We went out with locals one time and after that went on our own, and where we rode was by "memory" and we didn't find near all of the places we went on that first trip out. From then on we just stuck to trails we were familiar with, but kept ourselves occupied for much of the day. I know back in the old days we used to park our trucks on the power line that crossed Cherry Run Rd, but when that got marked "no tresspassing" we lost interest in the place. As for places that don't cost "an arm and a leg", Taskers Gap in VA (in the George Washington National Forest) is free. Michaux is "free" too as long as you have your quad properly registered and insured. There are other legal riding areas in PA too (see Crypto's "PA Riding" link above). Michaux I believe is the largest of these nearby riding areas though.
Yes, the Hatfield McCoy system (currently over 500 miles of trails total and expanding very soon) is a premier place to ride IMO. Riding there is by permit (each rider must have a permit, not the machine itself, so one rider can buy a permit and take multiple machines down there, i.e. an ute and a sport quad). For WV residents an annual permit (good for 365 days from the date of purchase) costs only $26.50. For out of state (non-WV) riders a 1 day permit costs $19, a 7 day permit cost $37 and an annual (365 days from the date of purchase) permit cost $79.50. The only problem is that it's about 6 hours away from where I live but even still I try to get down there from 2 to 5 times per year...
Posted by: 2TV
Crypto have you seen the cave at The Cove? It's not a publicized attraction (in fact for liability reasons the owners of the property probably wouldn't want people going in there) but a few people know about it. I had heard about it, then discovered it while I was mapping trail out there. Here are some pictures of it that were taken about 5 years ago of my son and I going in (12 pictures in sequence if you do a slide show). It's in the back end of the place, just off a trail that leaves their property not far past where this cave is. The property past the line is posted so one has to turn around at that point.
Slimjonesy, thanks for the invite but I'll pass on that simply because I try to stay legal where I ride now. BTW living in Chambersburg you are only about 20 minutes or so from Michaux, have you ridden there? From your description of where you ride it sounds like I was going primarily in the opposite direction from where you go. I would start off of Cherry Run Rd at the power line and then work my way towards Berkeley Springs (away from Martinsburg). I know there was one point where we had to cross Rt. 9, we did this to get to the Devil's Nose Jeep Trail and to the ridge trails beyond that.
Taskers Gap has a good variety, but nothing really steep or overly challenging IMO (except for a couple of trails). If you want to see some videos of the nastiest trail they have there check this out (go to the post dated Aug 01, 2006 12:58 pm). One of those videos shows me pushing a Rubicon which couldn't quite make it over some of the big rocks on it's own...
Posted by: 2TV
Unfortunately there's no way around that. Since you are a PA resident, you will have to pay the state a title tax on your ATV...
Posted by: LOVINMYRAPTOR350
2tv,
i live in westminster between baltimore and frederick could you help me with directions to Michaux i see your close in frederick, i would like to check it out next weekend im sick of driving to paragon and far away places like that
Posted by: LOVINMYRAPTOR350
crypto,
i want to go to the cove this weekend but everyone says its really really rocky!!!! is this true?
also 2tv- ive been to michaux twice just didnt recognize the name im 45 minutes south of there ill have to meet you guys up there one day
Posted by: Amphib
Howdy KFX 700,
Yea, "worry free" spots ,if there are such animals, would certainly interest me. Used to ride over near Coca Cola drive but the cops moved in last Sunday. Sure would appreciate any info. you might want to pass on.
Posted by: Amphib
Ya know my bro and I rode down to the Piney Orchard area but couldn't find any trace of the "area" you are talking about. A friend of ours mentioned the same place but we couldn't find it. Just be careful down there since alot of land belongs to a gravel company. Where exactly do people go riding? Is it near a small church?
Posted by: Amphib
Crypto,
I appreciate your feed back but the link you suggested does not work. Thanks anyway.
Posted by: Amphib
OK. Your suggestion works. Just tried Michaux State Forest near Gettysburg yesterday. Alot of folks said its too rocky but my brother and I liked it. Thanks for your help. Have a good one.
Posted by: Amphib
Loosenuttzz,
The "coca cola" spot is a parcel of private land located off of Coca Cola drive in Anne Arundel County. C. C. drive is off of Route 100 very close to Arundel Mills Mall. People have been riding illegally for a good number of years. Raids have occurred over time and when the partolling subsided, riders would gradually move in. Up until recently, I've been told that police would occasionally stop by and leave if everyone was acting sensibly. Sensible riding unfortunately never seems to last very long. Reoccurring accidents (they've had some deaths) and stupid riders ultimately bring in the law and halt riding.
I'd say its any where from 20 to 30 acres with varying terrain. Sort of a fun place. I wouldn't venture out there any time soon though since it was raided 2 weeks ago. I know because my brother and I were out there just as everyone was bailing out. Appearently someone got indignant with a security guy and he called the cops. My take is that this area won't last too much longer since construction is happening all around. I'd advise that you do a quick recon before entering. You can literally park on the side of the rode and walk up some small mounds (we usually drive up when its safe) and take a peek etc.
Got any safe places in Harford Co.?
Posted by: Amphib
2TV.
Yea, getting registered for Michaux did come with a price. 25 bucks to register and 25 for paper work was a bit steep but the pain of that faded once we started riding. Something about riding and not worrying about the law that just sort of compensates. We came up from Glen Burnie so its alot closer than going to Green Ridge. Heck, I'd go there just for the convenient parking. The entry / egress was a far cry from Green Ridge's "yak trail." It was so bumpy, I thought my quad might bounce off my trailer,,,,, even though it was strapped down. Do you know of any other places closer than Green Ridge? Heck, I wouldn't even mind paying someone if that would make things easier. Thanks for the feed back.
Posted by: Amphib
2TV,
We completed the documentation at a place in Fayetteville called Roxys. Approx. 20 bucks for retistration and another 25 for paper work. Oh yea, a plate holder and we were up close to 50 bucks. Guess we payed for convenience. Yes, I believe we did some comm. on the "Quad Crew" links. Your ride reports are excellent. I've thought about Taskers Gap but if its rockier than Michaux, it'll be a low priority. For now, we'll stick with Michaux and do some riding out in Western Md. Thanks for the info. and good riding.
Posted by: Amphib
Loosenutzz,
Got any idea where your thread (on the "Cecil County Where to Ride") is located? I looked at 16 pages and couldn't find your info. Goldang, there's over 3 thousand hits on that thread. That's alot of talkin. Anyway, just mentioning this for what its worth.
Posted by: Amphib
2TV,
Thanks for the invite. I would like to have ventured up but I generally stay close to home on New Years eve. I'm hoping that I can make it up to Michaux more frequentlty now that I'm more familiar with the area. I know my brother feels the same way. I'll give you a holler in the future. By the way, aside from that easy long trail, is there any other reasonably good trail at Michaux?
Posted by: Amphib
Hey Slimjonesy,
Is Hedgesville legal or would I need to be looking over my shoulder. I like to ride but don't like stress. So how is it?
Posted by: Amphib
So how do I get there and where's a good place to park?
Posted by: jeff7457
Where in MD do you live? We live in the Glen Burnie area and were out riding today. Had a ball but the place we ride is a bit small and we are looking for new places to ride. Maybe we could share places!
Jeff
Posted by: jeff7457
I have talked to a few guys that have been to Coca-Cola and they had their truck windows knocked out. So I don't think that I'll be going there. We ride at Bloody ponds every weekend and will be there tomorrow. That place will be short lived because they are planning to develope that area soon. A friend has been telling me about a place on Solley road and another place on Marley Neck road. I am trying to locate a trailer so that my son and I can travel up to PA.
Jeff
Posted by: jeff7457
2TV
Does the COVE have a web site? I would be interested in their camping sites.
Thanks,
Jeff
Posted by: loosenutzzzz
i live in harford county, got a couple decent places,where is this coka-cola spot, is that in hdg?? or glen burnie, i heard bloody ponds is not as good as it used to be??
Posted by: loosenutzzzz
hey daniel, are you on raptor forums? check it out, i have met 2 other people that i have riden with that have 700's, another buddy of mine has a 700 and another has a 660
Posted by: loosenutzzzz
look into the cecil county where to ride topic, i'm on that one and found a few good places to ride,several hundred acres of ridin......check it out
Posted by: mykfx700
I know of a couple places to ride, if you want to find them or go out riding with me. Let me know I'm always up for finding new places that are worry free!
Posted by: mykfx700
I live right next to glen burnie, I think I may go out tommorow! I ride up at coca-cola alot but I'm trying to go up to the place off of piney orchard. Have you been up there? I hear it's huge, but I don't want to go by myself so let me know what's up!
Posted by: mykfx700
You go straight down Piney Orchard Pkwy and you run parralel with the train tracks and it will turn into patuxent pkwy I think... You go maybe a mile or so and on the right you will see this very small park, there's a parking lot where I was told you can park and unload your bikes and go riding. Their is no privacy from the main road so I didn't want to ride out there by myself but I think if you unload the bikes quick and get them out of the park you'll be ok. or you could find a better place to park! If anyone wants to go with me let me know in a PM and we'll figure something out... As for Coca-Cola I went riding on friday and there were about 10 other people riding. And I would be skepticle to ride at bloody ponds considering the construction stuff is right in the middle, but let me know if you go out there and what it's like! I know it's nothing like it was 5 years ago.
Posted by: Crypto
you guys may want to check this out. There are several places within a couple hours (give or take) from you.
Riding Areas
Posted by: Crypto
sorry, not sure what's wrong with it. Try to copy this and paste into your browser address bar. It worked for me when I did that.
http://www.enduro.4t.com/riding.htm
edit: I think I fixed the link above
Posted by: Crypto
I ride at The Cove a lot, just past Winchester VA. It's a great place to ride with about 30 miles of trails (some very challenging). It does cost 25 bucks to ride, but totally worth it to me. I find it more challenging than Taskers Gap.
Posted by: Crypto
You aren't too far from Lake Cove
The Cove
or Taskers Gap
Taskers Gap
Here is a link to several PA places. Michaux is in Adam county:
PA riding
Posted by: Crypto
Quote
Originally posted by: LOVINMYRAPTOR350
crypto,
i want to go to the cove this weekend but everyone says its really really rocky!!!! is this true?
also 2tv- ive been to michaux twice just didnt recognize the name im 45 minutes south of there ill have to meet you guys up there one day
Some of the sections are pretty rocky, but most of the trails are not bad. There are REALLY rocky areas which you can avoid, some designated for jeeps and are pretty much impassable. Overall, There is a nice mixture of rocks and just trails, but if you don't want to have to deal with rocks at all, I wouldn't go.
If you can deal with some rocks, there are some great trails to ride. I think around 30 miles.
If you don't like rocks, go to Taskers Gap. It's only about 35 miles further south down 81. There are some rocky areas (which can be avoided), but mostly pretty easy trails.
BTW- I think they are temporarily closing Taskers Jan22 - March something.
Posted by: Crypto
Quote
Originally posted by: 2TV
Crypto have you seen the cave at The Cove? It's not a publicized attraction (in fact for liability reasons the owners of the property probably wouldn't want people going in there) but a few people know about it. I had heard about it, then discovered it while I was mapping trail out there. Here are some pictures of it that were taken about 5 years ago of my son and I going in (12 pictures in sequence if you do a slide show). It's in the back end of the place, just off a trail that leaves their property not far past where this cave is. The property past the line is posted so one has to turn around at that point.
Slimjonesy, thanks for the invite but I'll pass on that simply because I try to stay legal where I ride now. BTW living in Chambersburg you are only about 20 minutes or so from Michaux, have you ridden there? From your description of where you ride it sounds like I was going primarily in the opposite direction from where you go. I would start off of Cherry Run Rd at the power line and then work my way towards Berkeley Springs (away from Martinsburg). I know there was one point where we had to cross Rt. 9, we did this to get to the Devil's Nose Jeep Trail and to the ridge trails beyond that.
Taskers Gap has a good variety, but nothing really steep or overly challenging IMO (except for a couple of trails). If you want to see some videos of the nastiest trail they have there check this out (go to the post dated Aug 01, 2006 12:58 pm). One of those videos shows me pushing a Rubicon which couldn't quite make it over some of the big rocks on it's own...
That's really cool. I had not heard about it. You got some nice pictures. I love that copperhead!!!
Posted by: slimjonesy
Anyone ever heard of Cherry Run in Hedgesville WV?
Im in Chambersburg PA
Posted by: slimjonesy
I ride there almost every weekend. Its HUGE! You can ride along the river,creek and power lines from Hedgesville to faling Waters or the whole way to Martinsburg. I dont know what it was like in the 70's, but its really big. We wnt around through trails and never crossed the same path and i out 24 miles on mine last sunday. Any other places that dont cost an arm and a leg that you know about? I live in Chambersburg, but im from Hagerstown.
I heard about this resort in VA or WV that caters to ATV's, like a little town of some sort. You can ride to the resteraunts and what not. I think its called Hatfield Mcoys?
Posted by: slimjonesy
Well it is posted, but like i said, its VERY big and we see people back there a good bit. When we are pulling in near the river where we park the local people wave and say hi and so do the railroad people. Im sure its not legal but we have never had a problem and we go every weekend. Heck i just got back about an hour ago! (Oh yea, and it was MUDDY as HELL!) I had to be winched out once today,lol. Cherry run has straight riding,BIG hills, small hills, WATER,mud holes, slalom, and just about everything else you want in a good days ride. Let me know if you want to check it out sometime. We go atleast once a week.
Later,
sLiM
Oh yea, my buddy lives 2 miles from Cherry Run and he know his way around there better than anyone. We rode about 40 or 50 miles today for about 3 hours or so.
Posted by: slimjonesy
Yea i am only 20 minutes from Michaux, but i have only had my ATV for 3 weeks now. I havent had time to get my insurance and also when i get my plate to ride, i have to pay my taxes on the ATV since i didnt have to pay them when i bought it in WV. All in all thats like $800. After spending so much on riding gear and goodies, im almost broke,lol.
I think we might try the cove in a couple of weeks.
Down at Cherry run, we park at the river, next to the camp ground and work our way back crossing 2 sets of railroad tracks, then along the power lines and through the woods along the river.
Posted by: slimjonesy
Yea i know, it sucks, but i will get it taken care of soon.
I wanted to plan a trip to Hatfield Mcoys soon, but i wanted to ask you what hotel you recommend. We want something that we can ride our ATV's from the hotel to the trails so we dont have to load them up.
Also maybe some good places to eat/drink?
Thanks again!
sLiM
Posted by: slimjonesy
Im pretty sure its not legal, but i ride it every week atleast once, sometimes 3 times a week, and wee see people back there all the time with ATV's, motorcycles and we have even seen jeeps and trucks taking on the monster mud pit. Its ALOT of fun and VERY big. We go for about 3 hours and usually around 50-60 miles. Its a blast.
