Bent Creek - Hike and Mountain Bike near Asheville, North Carolina
~375 Wesley Branch Rd, Asheville, NC 28806, USA,Asheville,North Carolina
35.49285986, -82.61817131
8.0 miles SW of Asheville, North Carolina
Address: ~375 Wesley Branch Rd, Asheville, NC 28806, USA
GPS: 35°29'34.3"N 82°37'5.4"W
Maps | Directions
State: North Carolina
Trail Length: 30.00 miles
MTB Difficulty: Intermediate
Trail Type: Network
MTB Trail Type: Singletrack

Hike and Mountain Bike

Bent Creek is the go-to trail system for the greater Asheville area, and with the deeply-ingrained mountain bike culture in the Asheville/Brevard area, and Western North Carolina in general, Bent Creek sees a ton of traffic. There are several different trailheads and ways to access the trail, and many weekends all of the trailheads are all filled to overflowing. Cars that can't fit into the parking lots line the nearby forest roads, and Lake Powhatan Campground is usually filled as well. This might be the busiest mountain bike trail in North Carolina... and as you'll see if you ride here, there's a good reason for it!The trail system is composed of two very different areas: a flatter area, and a much more mountainous section on the ridge.There are numerous singletack and doubletrack trails in the lower, much flatter areas near Lake Powhatan. These are great beginner trails or warm up/cool down sections. These segments include Deerfield Loop, Explorer Loop, Homestead, Lower Sidehill Trail, Pinetree Loop, and others.If you're looking for a climbing challenge and/or some killer high-speed descending, the place to go is definitely towards the ridge. Green's Lick is the widely-renowned descent, and if you're riding here, you have to ride it! Green's Lick is very fast, flowy, jump-filled, full of massive berms and wallrides to rail (even bigger than those on Ingles Field Gap and Wolf Branch), a few rock gardens, several technical rock features, and offers absolutely no respite until you reach the bottom! Other trails on the ridge that work well as climbs or descents include Ingles Field Gap, Wolf Branch, and others. Courtesy of Singletracks.com

Never modify trail features. Ride trails when they're dry enough that you won't leave ruts. Speak up when you see others on the trail and always yield to hikers, horses, and others coming uphill. Always ride on the established trail.

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Be courteous, informed, and prepared. Read trailhead guidelines, stay on the trail, and don't feed the wildlife.

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  1. Plan Ahead and Prepare
  2. Travel & camp on durable surfaces
  3. Dispose of waste properly
  4. Leave what you find
  5. Minimize campfire impacts
  6. Respect wildlife
  7. Be considerate of other visitors

Directions

From Asheville, North Carolina

  1. Head east on S Pack Square (154 ft)
  2. Turn left onto N Pack Square (289 ft)
  3. Turn right onto Broadway St (0.3 mi)
  4. Slight right onto the Interstate 240 W/U.S. 70 W ramp to U.S. 74 Alternante (0.2 mi)
  5. Merge onto I-240 W/US-70 W
    Continue to follow I-240 W
    (1.5 mi)
  6. Keep right at the fork to continue on I-26 E, follow signs for Interstate 240 W/Interstate 26 E/Interstate 40 (5.1 mi)
  7. Take exit 33 for NC-191 toward Blue Ridge Parkway (0.2 mi)
  8. Turn left onto NC-191 S/Brevard Rd (2.0 mi)
  9. Turn right onto Bent Creek Ranch Rd (0.3 mi)
  10. Slight left onto Wesley Branch Rd
    Destination will be on the right
    (1.5 mi)
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Crashed Going down Hardtimes Trail, Bent Creek For by pawak2001
Mountain Biking Bent Creek near Asheville, North C by BKXC Mountain Biking Bent Creek by Cooper Sellers

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