It’s late October and the morning sun is just starting to rise over the hills of the Cheat River Valley, a tributary in eastern West Virginia.

The sky glows pastel and fog stalls on the water of Cheat Lake. Route 68 is void of cars as I roll past the exit for Cooper’s Rock, a reminder that almost all trails in West Virginia are close to a lot of places, but somehow never really near any of them.

It’s been years since I last made this drive, and little seems out of place. The roadside Americana that is making me nostalgic for a time I barely knew is enhanced by the alt-country tunes of Son Volt coming through my speakers.

Resting twenty minutes east of the small town of Bruceton Mills, West Virginia, Big Bear Lake Camplands is home to some of the state’s finest mountain biking. Rugged, raw, and uninfluenced by the current trends in trailbuilding, Big Bear offers riders backcountry flavors with easy access to the trailhead. Waiting for me in the trailhead parking lot is John Herod.

He’s a stalwart member of the West Virginia riding scene and is always game for an early morning role call to snag a few photos. As we unload our bikes, a late fall frost seeps into our windbreakers.