The Hornet

04/30/2024

Tickets go on sale May 3 at 10 a.m.

07/10/2023

05/21/2023

Come on up or down to the Freedom Ridge Welcome Center!!

02/20/2023

As the Backroads of Appalachia team revs up their engines and hits the winding roads of their beloved region, they know that their mission is clear: to promote Motorsport tourism and encourage visitors to explore all that Central Appalachia has to offer.

To achieve this goal, the team takes their message to the places where motorcycle enthusiasts gather. From local rallies to major events like Daytona Bike Week, they set up booths, hand out flyers, and talk to people one-on-one, sharing their passion for the region and encouraging visitors to support local businesses.

But attending these events isn't without its challenges. The cost of lodging, transportation, and other expenses can take a toll on the team's finances, and they rely on the support of the counties and cities they represent to make these trips possible.

Despite these obstacles, our team remains committed to their cause. They know that promoting Central Appalachia is worth the effort, as it can bring in much-needed tourism dollars and support local communities. Plus, we truly believe that the region is a hidden gem, with stunning natural beauty, rich cultural heritage, and exciting outdoor activities that are just waiting to be discovered.

So the next time you see the Backroads of Appalachia team at a motorcycle event, be sure to stop by and say hello. You might just discover your next great travel destination – and help support a worthy cause in the process. And if you're a resident of the counties we represent, consider giving them a call and showing your support for funding our endeavors. After all, it takes a village to promote a region, and the Backroads of Appalachia team is grateful for all the help they can get.

11/22/2022

Congressman Rogers Applauds a $1 Million ARC Grant for Backroads of Appalachia Nov 21 2022 WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Rep. Harold "Hal" Rogers (KY-05) applauds Backroads of Appalachia for earning a $1 million competitive grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) to promote tourism through ...

10/21/2022

10/17/2022

We are just 2 days away from Thunder Beach 2022 with Indian Motorcycles of Panama City Beach and Born to Ride Magazine Southeast!
If your attending the Rally do not forget to stop by and see our booth and display at Indian Motorcycles of PCB, meet our volunteer rally team, and register for your chance to win one of our custom barrel tops donated courtesy of our friend Marty Jordon and ”Written in Stone”. Also stay tuned right here on our page for live coverage of Thunder Beach 2022 starting Wednesday October 19th at 9:00am!

Let’s Rally Appalachia!

10/17/2022

Located on Lower Johns Creek in Pike County, Snivley Chapel is the oldest church building in Pike County. The chapel was built in 1853 on land obtained from Martin Lesley and his wife, Sarah. The Lesley’s offered their land to the trustees of the church, of which Martin was a member, along with Thomas May, James Maynard, Allen Lesley and Samuel Marrs. The congregation had been meeting since the 1830’s in various locations. Services were held in member’s homes or other available locales, as there was no church building at the time. Reverend W. J. Snivley was serving as minister for the congregation, and when the new structure was complete, the church building was named in his honor.

https://tourpikecounty.com/things-to-see-do/history_culture/snivley-chapel/

10/03/2022

The stone towers on each end of the Pauley Bridge are constructed of sandstone. It is the only WPA bridge with sandstone in the construction. The WPA labeled these end portions with their own emblem. The very top of each end reads “W. P. A.” and “1936”. In 1992, the National Register of Historic Places listed the bridge in its register. It was not until 2000, however, that the bridge was closed to vehicular traffic. The bridge measurement is approximately 390 feet across and often people use it as a photography backdrop.

Www.Tourpikecounty.com

09/29/2022

Almost Heaven, West Virginia..
Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River
Life is old there, older than the trees
Younger than the mountains, growin' like a breeze.....

All who grew up here know this song well as do most others but did you know that John Denver was an extremely intelligent man? When he wrote this verse in the song what most do not know is it actually comes from a Fact of Science and Nature. The Appalachian Mountain are some of the oldest mountains on planet earth and the Blue Ridge Mountains are the oldest of the Appalachian Mountain Range. For those of you who have traveled the world like we have then you already know that there is truly no place more beautiful than right here in the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky, Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, and West Virginia. From the seasonal changes of Spring when everything comes to life to the incredible natural spectacle of nature that is Fall, There is simply nothing like it and it is something you will never forget.
This Fall get in your car or fire up your bike and come to one oldest mountain ranges on earth and witness the magic that is nature in full color. Download the Backroads of Appalachia Mobile Application today with over 4000 miles of GPS enabled routes through the Appalachian Mountains to choose from! Available now for download on IOS and Android absolutely free!

Let's Ride/Drive Appalachia

09/26/2022

There is a wealth of history to be discovered at the Big Sandy Heritage Museum. Come and see the tools utilized by our ancestors to tame the wilds of Appalachia. View artifacts from our history that both inspire and serve as a reminder of the costs paid and the mistakes made to shape the modern day world. Included in these exhibits are Hatfield McCoy artifacts, exhibits on Native American culture from our region, as well as Civil War artifacts.

https://tourpikecounty.com/things-to-see-do/history_culture/

09/20/2022

Like many beautiful locales within Pike County, Breaks Interstate Park provides visitors with an outdoor adventure and first hand nature experience that they will never forget. At the center of this marvelous locale resides a 250 million year old, 1600 feet deep canyon that is the largest canyon east of the Mississippi, which contains more than 13 miles of hiking trials. Each hiking trail typically is no more than 1 mile long, but by being interconnected, provides a much longer route to challenge more experienced hikers.

Featuring a thriving wildlife habitat, vibrant gardens of Catawba Rhododendron and other rare flora, beautifully flowing streams and majestic mountains, Breaks Interstate Park is the perfect destination for outdoor enthusiasts, photographers and hikers. While there, make sure to stop by the museum, which contains exhibits on wildlife and plants that will be sure to inspire your curiosity.

For those of you who enjoy a day out on the water, visit the Breaks Interstate Park’s Laurel Lake, a 12 acre stretch of clear blue water, or the 2 acre Beaver Pond, both stocked to the gills with a flourishing population of bass and bluegill. Rent a pedal boat and take your family out on the lake for a day of relaxation and fun or go swimming at the pool. There is a wealth of things to see and do at the Breaks Interstate Park, so while visiting Pike County, make sure you pay nature a visit!

09/13/2022

Dils Cemetery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Hatfield-McCoy Feud Historic District. Buried in the cemetery are: Randolph McCoy (the head of the McCoy clan), his wife Sarah, their daughter Roseanna (who ran away with Johnse Hatfield), their son Sam and his wife, Martha.

While by its nature a somber place to visit, the Dils Cemetery is a must see destination for lovers of history, especially for historians who study Hatfield and McCoy or African American history. The Dils Cemetery is located at the mouth of Chloe Creek and the By-Pass Road in Pikeville, Kentucky. The property was purchased in 1871 by Col. John Dils, as part of a larger tract that ran several miles up Chloe Creek. Later Col. Dils sold the property excluding the cemetery from the deed. The property, previously owned by the Syck family, already contained the graves of this family. Col. Dils set aside a space on the top of the knoll for his own family to be buried and then with his and his descendants’ permission, allowed other person to be buried there.

https://tourpikecounty.com/things-to-see-do/history_culture/historic-dils-cemetery/

09/08/2022

09/07/2022

Hatfields and McCoys, two American Appalachian mountaineer families who, with their kinfolk and neighbors, engaged in a legendary feud that attracted nationwide attention in the 1880s and ’90s and prompted judicial and police actions, one of which drew an appeal up to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1888.

The Hatfields were headed by William Anderson (“Devil Anse”) Hatfield, and the McCoys by Randolph (“Rand’l”) McCoy, each of whom fathered 13 children. The families lived on opposite sides of a border stream, the Tug Fork - the McCoys in Pike county, Kentucky, and the Hatfields in Logan county, West Virginia. Each had numerous kinfolk and allies in the respective counties they lived in.

The origins of the feud are obscure. Many attribute it to hostilities formed during the American Civil War, in which the McCoys were Unionists and the Hatfield's were Confederates, others to Rand’l McCoy’s belief that a Hatfield stole one of his hogs in 1878. However, although animosities had built up and occasional fights had broken out, the first major bloodletting did not occur until 1882, when Ellison Hatfield was mortally shot in a brawl with McCoys and, in revenge, the Hatfields kidnapped and executed three McCoy brothers...Tolbert, Phamer, and Randolph, Jr.

These murders sharpened the backwoods warfare, and thereafter Hatfields and McCoys repeatedly ambushed and killed one another. Hatfields arrested in their home county and McCoys arrested in their home county were invariably released or acquitted of their deeds because of their respective local support and influence. Fighting reached a climax in 1888. On New Year’s Day a group of Hatfields led by Jim Vance attacked the home of patriarch Rand’l McCoy, missing him but shooting dead a son and a daughter and burning his houses. In retaliation, a posse of McCoys and neighbors, headed by a Pike county deputy sheriff, made successive raids across the border into West Virginia, killing Vance and at least three others, battling with a West Virginia posse, and eventually rounding up nine of the Hatfield clan for indictment and trial in Kentucky. West Virginia filed suit in federal court, charging kidnapping and lawlessness; Kentucky defended the abduction; and newspapers all over the country began carrying front-page stories of the feud and sending in reporters. Finally, in May 1888, a divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Kentucky had the legal right to detain the accused for trial. The trials, later in the year, resulted in one sentence of death by hanging and eight sentences of imprisonment.

tourpikecounty.com

08/31/2022

Attention: Backroads of Appalachia needs you to assist us in testing our Android GPS Turn-by-Turn Functionality for the Backroads of Appalachia Mobile Application! If you use an Android Device and would be interested in assisting us with Beta Testing please respond to this post and provide your email address for the invitation. You will receive an invite with the Backroads of Appalachia Mobile Application Android GPS Beta included.

As everyone knows we are a community-based organization and it is our motorsports community of supporters that makes us and what we do the best it can be including our mobile application. Thank you to all in advance for your continued support and assistance!