Avery Creek Trail and Bennett Gap Trail: Two trails that live up to the “fast, steep, and gnarly” badge that the Pisgah Ranger District has earned are the Avery Creek and Bennett Gap singletrack. These two parallel trails are best accessed from the popular horse stable parking lot, off of FS 477. Bennett Gap sits high on a ridgeline descent, while Avery Creek follows the creek down a steep valley center.
Avery Creek Trail splits off to the right of FS 477, after a quick ride and hike up Club Gap trail. The top of Club Gap brings you to a 4 way intersection, where a chainsaw-carved bench will point you down the right path. Avery Creek Trail saw a major facelift in late 2019, cleverly placed rocks, berms, and water bars compliment the rough and rugged terrain that heavy rainfall creates. Hang on to your handlebars and you’ll be rewarded with a fast, rugged trail that is sure to provide an adrenaline rush. Lower into the trail there are a few optional gap jumps for those with the eye for big air, and a mellow climb next to Avery Creek will pull you back up to the lower section of FS 477.
Bennett Gap Trail begins the same way Avery Creek Trail does: a 1,100-foot climb over 3 miles on FS 477. Once you spot the trail marker with Bennett Gap on the left side of the climb, a quick punchy climb brings you past a quiet meadow, and onto a narrow, rhododendron and rock-covered ridgeline. Bennett Gap provides it all, with big moves on narrow rock drops, to high-speed white-knuckle root stair steps. The trail ends with a high pace section of bench cut trail that brings you back down to FS 477, and a quick pedal back to the car.
Getting there: Enter the forest on HWY-276, after about three miles you’ll see the sign for the horse stables on your right hand side. Turn right on Avery Creek road, FS 477, and begin the approach to the horse stables where your ride will begin.
