Greetings TransVirginia riders! You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which you have striven these many months. For those of you signed up for the Mountain 565 route, you’ll tackle one of the iconic gravel climbs of the Shenandoah Valley/Eastern Panhandle Regions, Judge Rye Road, into Hardy County, where you’ll partly intersect with the Lost River Classic gravel race (in the opposite direction) en route to Mathias and then back out into Virginia again via Crab Run Road.

Mathias has several resources available to you. Lost & Found Pizza and Provisions is an excellent pizza place, which closes at 9pm. Misty Valley convenience store is located north on route 259, slightly off the route. It might also be closed for those passing through after 9pm. There are some camping amenities. Several miles up Howard’s Lick Road is Lost River State Park, which has several tent spots. A larger private campground, Big Ridge Campground, is located adjacent to the park on Dove Hollow Road.

However, the Mathias Community Center has a field in which to camp, a covered pavilion for shelter, and also bathrooms which will be unlocked overnight. I will be ordered two cheese and two pepperoni pizzas to be dropped on a picnic table around 8pm Saturday for food for riders passing through in the night. Cold pizza is better than no pizza.

I’ll also be informing the Lost River community of the ride, so maybe other trail angels will appear to drop supplies for you at the Community Center. Please note: the Community Center is rented Sunday morning starting at 11am, so please vacate the pavilion before then.

Here’s a map with precise points of interest in Hardy County: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/50771455

Any TransVirginia rider will get $10 off to register for the Lost River Classic on August 16!

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