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From: Breaks Interstate Park (Virginia)
To: Jenny Wiley State Park (Kentucky)
Miles: 66.56
Climb: 9,150 feet
Average Grade: 5% (5 feet climb for every 100 feet traveled; VERY challenging!)
Day 1 will is a short ride with several big climbing challenges! We start on top of a mountain and the first eight miles of this ride are downhill to the small Town of Elkhorn City, Kentucky. This ride takes us through the heart of Eastern Kentucky. This area is known for the famous Hatfield and McCoy feud. Seems the feud started with a stolen pig, and things went downhill from there!
Breaks Interstate Park is a majestic starting point for the Tour de Kentucky. The park is named for a geological formation. The canyon carved by the Russell Fork River around Pine Mountain "breaks" the mountain out of the mountain range surrounding it. Pine Mountain (see photo) is visible from the park restaurant. The park is shared by Virginia and Kentucky. The lodge is in Virginia, but before we even depart the park property, we will cross the first of eleven state lines we will encounter on this bicycling odyssey.
