Bike Loop Sumter National Forest

This ride is a challenging mountain bike ride (knobby tires a must) with just under 7 miles on gravel roads in Sumter National Forest. The climb up the Blue Ridge Escarpment should be done early in the day to get the "hard part" out of the way as well as to minimize traffic up the switchbacks. Therefore we recommend this ride in a counter clockwise direction using the map below. Once you top out on the ride at mile 6.3 it has relatively low traffic until mile 16.7 which acts as a thorough fare between Walhalla and Westminster.

Mileage	Description
0.0	Public parking in downtown Walhalla. Intersection of South Broad Street and South Catherine Street. Public restrooms are available a few blocks away on Main Street next to the police station.
0.3	Historical St. John's Lutheran Church (white with Red Door) on Left - founded in 1853 by German Settlers of Walhalla.
4 - 6	Approximately 4 miles from Walhalla you ascend steeply up through switchbacks - this eventually tops off at the left hand turn at 6.3 miles. This ascent is one of the most challenging parts of the ride, especially made worse due to road with no shoulder and drivers with little experience in "sharing the road". This ascent is best done during low traffic times, such as early weekend mornings.
5.4	Yellow Branch Picnic Area on Left
5.5	Tunnel Park on Right
5.9	Sumter National Forest Ranger Station on right
6.3	Left onto Whetstone Rd - Top of Climb
7.0	Left onto Cassidy Bridge Rd.
7.9	Left onto Gravel Rd #744 - This Road descends and ascends several times along Rich Mountain for the next 2+ miles - this is very challenging with the loose gravel though rewarding with some nice winter views toward the east and almost no traffic
11.0	Intersection with road 7441 (stay on main road to the right)
11.1	Next Intersection - Stay Left - Don't Take Gravel Road to Right
11.4	Cemetery on right - then descend to gap followed by ascent
12.2	Guard Rail on Left near Top - top of last major ascent of ride - winter views toward east (left) - begin long descent.
13.3	Bottom of long descent
13.4	Hill Top
14.1	Hill Bottom
14.6	Bear Left onto Paved Road (Misty Hollow - not shown on map)
15.7	Left at Stop Sign onto Ramsey Creek Road
16.0	Cross Ramsey Creek
16.7	Left at Stop Sign onto Coffee Road
17.3	Pass Gas Station, "5 Forks" Intersection and then Pleasant Hill Church
19.5	Pass Willow Run Restaurant
20.1	Right onto Campbell Town Road
21.2	Right onto South Cedar
21.8	Ascend to top of hill and bear right onto Main Street
22.2	Courthouse
22.5	Parking Area

Sumter National Forest gravel road

Typical Scene on Gravel Forest Service Road

Map based on SC DOT 1971 Oconee County Map.
Roads conditions may differ from those shown.
Best to consult a current Oconee county road map.

Miles	22.5
Road Surface	Paved and Gravel Roads
More Detailed (Better) Maps	Good County Road Map: Seneca/Oconee County SC Good State Atlas: Delorme SC Atlas and Gazetteer
Rider Skill	Definitely not a family ride. Riders must be in good shape to endure multiple hills and need to be road savvy. The roads have no shoulders which is typical for upstate SC. Plus the drivers are not use to cyclists. So be extra cautious.