The route shown here also incorporates Pilot Cove and Slate Rock early on. While you can choose to bypass this add-on for an easier ride, Pilot Cove and Slate Rock create a top-notch short little loop in and of themselves. Not only that, Slate Rock offers up one of the best views in Pisgah National Forest from a bike legal trail. If you have the legs, I highly recommend working it into your Laurel Mountain loop.

Once the dirt road climb is finished, the Laurel Mountain trail continues to climb along the ridgeline, with some sections of hike-a-bike.

Once to the top of Pilot Rock, it's all gravy! Pilot Rock drops fast and furious through a sea of rock gardens, babyheads, boulders, and boulder-filled switchbacks. Pilot Rock is one of the gnarliest trails you'll find outside of a dedicated downhill mountain bike park. If you enjoy that sort of thing, the endless chunder and technical challenge will keep you engaged all the way down this ripping descent! Do take a moment to pause every once and a while, because the views from some sections of this trail are camera-worthy in their own right.