Farlow Gap is a popular trail for

mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

and

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

, located in the western area of

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. It is an expert-level trail, and considered "one of the toughest mountain bike trails in Pisgah National Forest."https://www.youtube.com
2015 Pisgah Race, Stage 5. It is primarily a downhill trail, about in length. It can be combined with other trails to form a loop of about , requiring anywhere from three to six hours to complete.https://www.singletracks.com
Farlow Gap.https://rootsrated.com
Farlow Gap - Mountain Biking.

Description

Nearly the entire trail is

singletrack Singletrack (or single track) describes a type of mountain biking trail that is approximately the width of the bike. It contrasts with double-track or fire road which is wide enough for four-wheeled off-road vehicles. It is often smooth and flow ...

, and starts with a relatively flat section but quickly becomes

fall line A fall line (or fall zone) is the area where an upland region and a coastal plain meet and is typically prominent where rivers cross it, with resulting rapids or waterfalls. The uplands are relatively hard crystalline basement rock, and the coa ...

into a

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small A ...

. It has been described as "brutal" and is one of the steepest and rockiest downhill trails in Pisgah National Forest. Many people ride to the left or right of the rock garden, or dismount and walk on one side of it. The trail drops about in , then connects with the Daniel Ridge trail. After the early steep sections, the remainder of the trail includes some short uphill sections, other rocky areas, occasional

drops Drop, DROP, drops or DROPS may refer to: * Drop (liquid) or droplet, a small volume of liquid ** Eye drops, saline (sometimes mydriatic) drops used as medication for the eyes * Drop (unit), a unit of measure of volume * Falling (physics), allowin ...

, and other

technical Technical may refer to: * Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle * Technical analysis, a discipline for forecasting the future direction of prices through the study of past market data * Technical drawing, showing how something is co ...

sections. The trail also crosses several small creeks, including Shuck Ridge Creek, and one fork of the Davidson River. Farlow_Gap_trail_map_02

Farlow Gap is usually ridden as part of a loop. This requires riding to the top, starting for example from near the trailhead of the Daniel Ridge Trail, and riding a mostly uphill route of about on a doubletrack trail. A short section of this route runs parallel to, and twice crosses the

Art Loeb Trail The Art Loeb Trail is a hiking trail located in Pisgah National Forest in Western North Carolina. The northern terminus is at the Daniel Boone Boy Scout Camp in Haywood County, while the trail's southern terminus is located near the Davidson Ri ...

, shortly before arriving at the starting point of Farlow Gap. After completing the Farlow Gap section, the trail links with Daniel Ridge Trail, which can be taken in one of two directions. Both directions feature more flowy technical riding, both of which return to the start point. A separate short ride from the Daniel Ridge Trail can be taken to see Toms Spring Falls.

Other activities

This trail is used mainly by mountain bikers, but can be equally enjoyed by hikers. Due to the steepness of many sections, horseback riding, and sled-dogging is prohibited. Challenges for hikers include a long strenuous climb when hiking the trail as a loop, rocky sections, and crossing small creeks. Trail rules require mountain bikers to yield to hikers; nevertheless, hikers should be watchful of mountain bike traffic. Mountain bike races sometimes include Farlow Gap as a section of the race, and hikers should either avoid the trail on these days, or be especially watchful. The trail crosses several creeks where water bottles can be filled.

Animals, plants, and geology

There is a variety of birds, reptiles and mammals in the area.

Deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

rabbits Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit specie ...

and

bobcats The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUC ...

may be spotted by watchful hikers and mountain bikers. Farlow Gap and the Daniel Ridge Trail pass through forests with diverse tree species, including

yellow poplar ''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus ''Liriodendron'' (the other ...

red oak The genus Oak, ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many List of the largest genera of flowering plants, large genera, is Taxonomic rank#Ranks in botany, divided into subgenus, subgen ...

, black gum, and

red maple ''Acer rubrum'', the red maple, also known as swamp maple, water maple, or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest Service recognizes it as the most abundant nativ ...

Rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; from Ancient Greek ''rhódon'' "rose" and ''déndron'' "tree") is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are nati ...

also grows abundantly (sometimes called laurel), and remains green all year, its leaves curling in the winter.

History

The early history of Farlow Gap trail is unclear. Geological documents from the 1940s identify a small

mica Micas ( ) are a group of silicate minerals whose outstanding physical characteristic is that individual mica crystals can easily be split into extremely thin elastic plates. This characteristic is described as perfect basal cleavage. Mica is ...

mine located on the trail.North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development, Bulletin Number 49, "Mica Deposits of the Franklin-Sylva District, North Carolina", 1946 Small flakes of the shiny mineral are often seen alongside the trail. The site has also been alternately identified as "Furlow Gap" or "Furlough Gap" in old historical records.

Photo gallery

Image:Pisgah National Forest (Farlow Gap trail sign).jpg, Sign at trailhead (Farlow Gap downhill section) Image:Farlow_Gap_(rocky_surface).jpg, A downhill section. Image:Farlow_Gap_(creek_crossing)_06.jpg, A creek running across the trail Image:Farlow_Gap_(waterfall_visible_from_trail).jpg, A small waterfall visible from the trail Image:Pisgah National Forest (waterfall).jpg, Toms Spring Falls can be reached from Daniel Ridge Trail. Image:North_Carolina_Geological_Survey_-_detail_(1946).jpg, A geological survey published in 1946 shows Farlow Gap (#24) as the site of a

mine.

Notes

References

External links

Brevardnc.com
(Insiders guide to Transylvania County, including information about

Pisgah National Forest Pisgah National Forest is a National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Pisgah National Forest is complet ...

). {{coord missing, North Carolina Pisgah National Forest Mountain biking venues in the United States Hiking trails in North Carolina