Well, another successful bike trip weekend is in the books. The Chapel Hill (with one Durhamite) gang of Misfit Mountainerds headed to Boone, NC to ride more savory trails in the western half of the state. Breathing real outside air, not stuffy office air, can really help get your head right.

In order to maximize the enjoyment, we rolled out early Friday morning, stopping off at West Kerr Scott Lake, just south of Wilkesboro, NC. The system of trails there, including Warrior Creek, Dark Mountain, and the Overmountain Victory Trail (OVT) are some of the most fun you can ride or run in the state. No joke.

After a solid morning ride, we re-carb loaded with grub and beer from Black Cat Burrito in downtown Boone. Feeling mostly re-charged, we then proceeded to assault the Rocky Knob Park. After about 10 minutes, I didn't feel so spritely anymore...too many pork nachos. But press on, we did, and bombing down a small mountain with extra carnitas does help acceleration, but not so much braking. 

As you can see, our VRBO accommodations were quite luxurious. Nothing like a soak in a fancy tub with a chandelier to continue conquering the bike trip weekend. Sampling the beverages and fire roasted pizzas at Appalachian Mountain Brewery that evening also help nurse the day's injuries and maladies.

Saturday began with a trip back to Wilkesboro to ride the full Warrior Creek trail. Dammit - that trail is so much fun. Not shying away from meats, we feasted at The Pedalin' Pig for lunch, devouring almost one of everything on the menu. The overly ambitious in the merry band of misfits returned to Rocky Knob to ride the whole thing, while the rest of us rode/pushed up a few shortcuts to have a few fun minutes of descent. Four rides in two days will get your head right, but destroys your thigh muscles and your "sit bones". Oh yeah...you know what other place is must-drink locale in Boone? Lost Province, Boone's downtown micro-brewery. 

There are tens of thousands of men and women who depart on getaway weekends each year, and we tip our hats (our super-soft trucker hats) to them. Breaking away from the pressures of adulting by playing like a child in the woods is therapeutic emotionally, physically, gastronomically, and psychologically. 

As with any vacation, getting your head back into office mode on Monday can be challenging. But better to have biked and lost, than to never have biked at all. Or so said W. Shakespeare.