Peddler's Glory with Friends

[chaosjake]

Peddler's Glory is an old road right-of-way in Preston County, WV. I posted about it when I took the JTR up it for the first time in 2022. This time, my wife was riding shotgun in my hydro blue JTR, Matt and his kids were in the hydro blue JTW, and Chris and his son were in the JK. The trail had eroded a good bit in the two years since I ran it, so I was glad to have upgraded to 35s since then, but I think 33s would still work.

The video is ridiculously long, sorry. And the audio is just some royalty-free beats I found, so feel free to mute. It's still one of the toughest trails I have tackled, with great Appalachian terrain. I still haven't found a Vermont class IV or New Hampshire class VI that can match this for a challenging public road.

Sponsored

 

[Lunentucker]

A chainsaw and some bus hogs could make Eastern trails a lot more fun.

 

[chaosjake]

A chainsaw and some bus hogs could make Eastern trails a lot more fun.

I mean... isn't figuring out how to thread the gaps half the fun?

 

[Lunentucker]

I mean... isn't figuring out how to thread the gaps half the fun?

I have about two miles of wooded ATV/walking trails on my property here in VA, and they're by far better maintained than many of the jungle tunnels in the mountains.
I don't care about rocks and mud, but I'm not going to drive through something that was pruned 6 inches narrower than my truck and has all of those cut rough edges sticking out.
It's dumb.
make it about the terrain under the tires, not the bushes.

 

[chorky]

I have about two miles of wooded ATV/walking trails on my property here in VA, and they're by far better maintained than many of the jungle tunnels in the mountains.
I don't care about rocks and mud, but I'm not going to drive through something that was pruned 6 inches narrower than my truck and has all of those cut rough edges sticking out.
It's dumb.
make it about the terrain under the tires, not the bushes.

Here in my area the ATVers and dirt bikers do that on purpose. Just enough cut back so they can make it and nobody else. Once I used to think they were just a bunch of lazy pos's. Now I'm confident they do it on purpose. Everyone wants to think this road and that trail and this forest belongs to them and nobody else has rights to it. It's so dumb. Half the time anymore, I find more inconsiderate jack wagons that are Americans and the europeans or asians visiting to see cool things are the ones being respectful and courteous. It kills just about any respect I have for that crowd that's for sure. Some of them even block roads on purpose.



I'm jealous of all those water crossings though. Out here people have a hayday with them. I think there is maybe one on the entire forest.

 

[Lunentucker]

Here in my area the ATVers and dirt bikers do that on purpose. Just enough cut back so they can make it and nobody else. Once I used to think they were just a bunch of lazy pos's. Now I'm confident they do it on purpose. Everyone wants to think this road and that trail and this forest belongs to them and nobody else has rights to it. It's so dumb. Half the time anymore, I find more inconsiderate jack wagons that are Americans and the europeans or asians visiting to see cool things are the ones being respectful and courteous. It kills just about any respect I have for that crowd that's for sure. Some of them even block roads on purpose.



I'm jealous of all those water crossings though. Out here people have a hayday with them. I think there is maybe one on the entire forest.

What's funny is that the majority of these trails are closed to off highway vehicles. They're supposed to be for Jeep and other 4x4's.

I do think it's a similar mentality at work though, and the people who maintain the trails make them somewhat unwelcoming to people who don't want scratches all over their paint.

 

[chorky]

What's funny is that the majority of these trails are closed to off highway vehicles. They're supposed to be for Jeep and other 4x4's.

I do think it's a similar mentality at work though, and the people who maintain the trails make them somewhat unwelcoming to people who don't want scratches all over their paint.

That's interesting. I don't know much about road rules over in your neck of the woods. Theres no such thing as an actual 4x4 trail here. Wild Bill is 3 hours north of me and that's the only one within at least 200 miles. All our 'trails' are just standard FS roads but with a low maintenance level. I could get into all the infra road specs but it's not helpful. What's funny is almost every road here is traversable by 2wd sedan. It's pathetic IMO. But when we do road maintenance, depending on what is being done, usually it's daylight and all the brush is cut back with a masticator by at least 3' on either side of the road prism. I think the only other maintenance is done on actual dirt bike and atv trails by the few groups that exist.

It's kinda comical, and sad, how that works though isn't it. All these people complaining about no access but then when it comes time to actually do something about it they either dont, or they make their case even harder by trying to pretend like they own the place. It's a shame really...

 

[Lunentucker]

That's interesting. I don't know much about road rules over in your neck of the woods. Theres no such thing as an actual 4x4 trail here. Wild Bill is 3 hours north of me and that's the only one within at least 200 miles. All our 'trails' are just standard FS roads but with a low maintenance level. I could get into all the infra road specs but it's not helpful. What's funny is almost every road here is traversable by 2wd sedan. It's pathetic IMO. But when we do road maintenance, depending on what is being done, usually it's daylight and all the brush is cut back with a masticator by at least 3' on either side of the road prism. I think the only other maintenance is done on actual dirt bike and atv trails by the few groups that exist.

It's kinda comical, and sad, how that works though isn't it. All these people complaining about no access but then when it comes time to actually do something about it they either dont, or they make their case even harder by trying to pretend like they own the place. It's a shame really...

Yeah, the majority of these are forest service roads in the Washington and Jefferson National Forests. 6 feet wide on some of these would like a freeway.

 

[mtbjeeper]

I think pin stripes are a fairly normal part of north east wheeling. As to why the trails are so narrow I won’t debate, I’m just glad we have as many places as we do to wheel being such a congested and private part of the country.

Wheeling is real hard on your vehicle, from the paint to the wheels. You either take the plunge and embrace it or you don’t and you stay on Forest service roads. Either way you outside having fun.

Nice video by the way but there are some really fun and challenging class 6 roads and off-road parks real close to Boston.

 

[chaosjake]

I think pin stripes are a fairly normal part of north east wheeling.

Yeah, I treated my last couple of trucks (a first gen Taco and a K5 Blazer before that) way too precious and missed out on a lot of fun. When I got the JT, I told myself that I wasn't going to cry over minor pinstripes. The problem with Peddlers Glory is the gaps between tree trunks, which will leave a bigger mark than a pinstripe if you get it wrong.

Nice video by the way but there are some really fun and challenging class 6 roads and off-road parks real close to Boston.

Now you're speaking my language. I have been to 508 and have Jericho on my to-do list, but I'm interested in exploring more class 6's. I was going to try Woodbury Mountain Road up near Stowe when I was there in April, but they got a ton of snow that weekend. I usually spend more time in NH, but I'd like to get to know VT better. Send any suggestions my way.

 

[chaosjake]

I'm jealous of all those water crossings though. Out here people have a hayday with them. I think there is maybe one on the entire forest.

There are maybe 6 or 8 water crossings on that road, but after it rains you can't even tell whether you're in the road or the creek half the time.

 

[mtbjeeper]

Try signing up for the Vermont Pilgrimage. It’s the first week of October, there might be some spots left.

Armor Ditch Off-road Park in Ossippe is a lot of fun. You can camp on property (no amenities) and there is a nice restaurant/bar there as well. It will also give you lots of practice with your winch and recovery gear. They have a rather ominous rock garden there that I have not built up the courage yet to try because it looks really expensive.

 

[chaosjake]

Try signing up for the Vermont Pilgrimage. It’s the first week of October, there might be some spots left.

Armor Ditch Off-road Park in Ossippe is a lot of fun. You can camp on property (no amenities) and there is a nice restaurant/bar there as well. It will also give you lots of practice with your winch and recovery gear. They have a rather ominous rock garden there that I have not built up the courage yet to try because it looks really expensive.

Oh nice, I've never heard of Armor Ditch. I'm up around the lakes a good bit in summer, so I'll have to check it out.

Sponsored