First HU Virginia Meeting at Appomattox, April 9-12, 2015
 

Virginia 2015 Registration is now officially open!

We're thrilled to announce the inaugural Virginia Travellers Meeting, scheduled for April 9-12, 2015 at Appomattox, Virginia!

Travellers from all over will meet at the Holiday Lake 4-H Camp for a weekend of fascinating presentations, good food, and amazing camaraderie amid the rolling hills, lush forests, and great roads of central Virginia. The 4-H camp is set lakeside in a state forest, and we'll have it all to ourselves. We'll have several rooms for presentations, including covered outdoor sessions. Accommodations include tent camping, rustic cabins, and bunkhouses, and packages of lodging and meal choices are available on the website.

Since it's our first meeting at this location, we're starting from scratch. That means we need YOU to give us a hand! We're looking for presenters and volunteers to showcase their abilities for our fellow HU guests. When you register, you'll be able to volunteer, so please consider getting involved. It's a great way to meet people and you'll have a lot more fun if you're part of the action.

Tentative schedules and presenter lists are on the HU Virginia page, but we'll be adding more as you volunteer to talk about your latest or greatest trip!

Virginia meeting organizer Steve Anderson is being assisted by HU North Carolina organizer Mike Kilpatrick, whom Steve has helped the last several years, so you'll be in good hands. If you have any questions not answered on the HU website, please ask here and Steve will respond as soon as possible.

Thanks for anything you can do to help spread the word about the event. There is a poster that you can print off and hand around to local venues and bike shops too: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/eve...2015poster.pdf

As we count down the days, you can get the latest event updates by subscribing to this thread, (thread tools, subscribe) or visiting the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1503128626606877/

Feel free to discuss the event on this thread or on the Facebook event page!

We hope you can join us and make this new spring event a big success!

Grant & Susan

Thanks, Grant & Susan, for announcing the Virginia Meeting. We're all pretty excited to bring HU to Virginia and we hope many of you will be joining us. We'll do everything we can to make your Virginia Travellers Meeting experience a memorable one -- hopefully a good memory!

The HU meetings are a great way to meet like minded folks....always look forward to our Ontario gathering:funmeteryes:........planning on attending the Virginia meet...

Bob

I love that area of the country. Hard to find anywhere that isn't interesting in some way - and so much history (well, US history) it's scary.

Ooooh! We are so close, we will be there for sure!

Absolutely! It's one of the joys of living here for a history buff like me. I think we'll have plenty to see and do while y'all are here -- and yes, we do speak like that :-)

Excellent, we look forward to seeing you there!

Great! I've been meaning to get to the Ontario one for a few years. Maybe I'll see you back in your neighborhood later next year.

Susan,
I am an avid cyclist laying down between 15k and 20k miles a year all over the U.S.
With 6 years till freedom (retirement) I dream daily of begining my dream of a rtw trip. Although I have plans to jump into the "Adventure Tour" market, I currently own several Harleys....would I be welcome at the Virgina gathering on a Ultra Glide or is it an adventure tour bike only gathering? (I would have PM but I have not made my 5 post yet)
Thank you for your time and THANK YOU for this site so that I may day dream.....
Shorty~

Shorty,

You're more than welcome to join us. Everyone who is interested in overland travel is welcome at HU Virginia, and we invite riders of all types of bikes to join us. We may even have some folks in four wheelers there. Please find your way to Appomattox in April, and maybe we can help make those dreams a reality :-)

Just registered and can't wait! Great venue and right in my backyard. Welcome to VA HU!!

Dave

Looks like a good time. Hopefully I can make it. I thought about trying to be a presenter, but there is already one RTW presenter, and he beat me by a month.

Hello all, I'm hoping to make it up to this event from central NC. I am picking up my first dual sport in 2 weeks, and I have a lot to learn. I have been riding street bikes for many years but I have zero experience off-road. I am excited about all the great topics that will be covered here, including the trip planning and maintenance stuff.

A friend and I will attend the meet, traveling there from Fort Wayne IN, he on a Honda CRF 250L, me on a Suzuki DRZ 400S. We intend to make the trip an adventure in itself, spending some time on mountain back roads. Once there we intend to learn all we can about the Trans-america Trail which we will take in July along with three other friends. This is going to be a great summer. Retirement sure opens up the schedule for fun.

GPS Tracks for Rideouts
 

Will the route files be available for the ride outs?

Perhaps after the event. Given the expected traffic situation near the Civil War activities, we may need to be making adjustments as we go. The most likely answer is that we can download the track files afterwards, then make them available to participants some time after the meeting is over.

Notable rides
 

Hi Steve,

Any notable byways or destinations in general area? I am not familiar with the area.

Thanks.

Kam

Ole man Winter blues
 

I'm so ready for this event in a few days. :clap:Quick logistical planning question. Given this is the Winter (now Spring) :rain: that just keeps on giving, what is the status of heat (or not) in the 4 person cabins? Time to start planning what gets packed...:thumbup1: Thanks.

The 4-person cabins are not heated, so you'll want to bring a warm sleeping bag with you. The bunkhouses are heated, so no worries there.

Winter has been lingering a bit longer than usual around Virginia, but the weather forecasts show it trending warmer. This coming week should see highs between 60-70F and lows around 50F. Come on, spring!

Just down the road from the camp is the place where, for all intents and purposes, the Civil War ended. There will be big crowds for that event, as it is the 150th anniversary while we are in the area.

Within a nice ride distance are wonderful roads, lots of small towns, the Blue Ridge Parkway is in the mountains about 60 miles west, and historical attractions abound.

And, of course, we're going to have a lot of great presentations and workshops for you right at the camp. You won't run out of things to see or do, that's for sure!

Steve, if I wanted to move from cabin to bunkhouse is there still room to do so? Thank.

I believe so, but I'd need to check the latest registration numbers to be certain. Best thing to do is send an e-mail to Susan and ask her to move your reservation to a bunkhouse room from a cabin.

All the best,

Looking forward to again attending a HU event. Leaving SC on Wednesday and weather providing will be close that evening. Any suggestion on places to stay or camp.
Thanks Again


David Welken

I'd suggest looking around Lynchburg or the Roanoke area. Lynchburg is about 35 miles west of the camp, Roanoke a bit farther, and there are plenty of hotels/motels in either area. I know there are campgrounds along the Blue Ridge Parkway, but I haven't really camped in that area. Perhaps someone else can offer camping suggestions.

I see some byways and fire roads in general area. Thanks Steve.

Colorado Rockies, Wyoming, and Continental Divide anyone?
 

Hello,

Anyone have any first experience with Rockies???

I am trying to meet up with HU Virginia Event attendees who have first hand knowledge of the Rockies. Specifically Colorado, Wyoming (Yellowstone and Grand Tetons), Moab in Utah, and the Continental Divide Trail. Let me know your HU handle, bike, name, or some description, and I'll try to find you at the event.

I am trying to shoot for this summer. I am planning to give myself 4 weeks. The plan is to trailer the bike out to Colorado, and then ride out. Tentative plan is to do a 2,500 mile loop. I live in northern Virginia (Fairfax County). Also let me know if this is something you're interested in. I can give you more specifics.

Looking forward to the upcoming HU Virginia event. As Steve pointed out, the weather is trending warmer. Now all we need is a hi pressure front to push the rain out.

Kam
Great Falls, VA

p.s. I am riding out for HU event from Great Falls Thursday morning. Between 8 -9 a.m. My plan is take the scenic way down. 5 hours of scenic byways, country roads, and a few gravel roads. I am heading down from GF to Sperryville via Middleburg, Marshall, Flint Hill, Washington, Sperryville, to Madison via 231 , 231 to Gordonsville, 20 to Scottsville, and 640 to Holiday Lake 4-H campsite. Let me know if want to tag along.http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...es/scooter.gif

Kam,

If you find yourself hitting Gordonsville around lunchtime, I can highly recommend the BBQ Exchange on Main Street. Take Rt 231 (one of my favorite roads in the area) until it ends in Gordonsville, then take a left on Rt 33, go through the roundabout onto Main Street, and it's on the left just after you pass through the center of Gordonsville. Very good BBQ, excellent sides, and friendly folks.

Have a safe trip down, we'll see you Thursday!

Kam,

I saw your post about riding down to Appomattox on Thursday. I sent you email WRT to joining up. If you don't get it, let me know.
Jon

Hi Jon (Caddy4ADV),

The only email I received was this Horizon HUBB email automatic notification. If you need to reach me directly, you can try my HU handle (GF-kam) or kam10250@gmail.com

Kam

HU 2015 Virginia Event photos
 

I just posted my personal photos from HU 2015 Virginia event online. You might see your bike, or favorite gathering spot, or new fellow travelers you met. Just go online to my Flickr account. I'll see if I can post them on HU site.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/125759496@N04/?

A big thanks to the Johnsons, Steve, Morton's, Holiday Lake 4-H staff, the chefs who kept us fed, and everyone else who helped coordinate a fantastic rally.:thumbup1:


Kam

HU Virginia 2015 Group Photo
 

Group pic by Carl Parker. What a great bunch of people, we're privileged to know you all!


http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/eve...pshot_1024.jpg

HU 2015 Virginia
 

Thank you Grant and Susan,
For a fun time and I'm glad to have met so many great like minded traveling motorcycle people.
Hope those who did the beginner off-road training learned some important off-road techniques.

Sincerely,
Alain

Had a great time! Thanks to all!

http://www.kurtnugentphotography.com...DSCF0022-L.jpg

This was my second HU event (NC last fall) and I'm hooked! The organization is superb (thank you Grant, Susan, Steve and the volunteers) and the people who attend make me proud to be a lifelong motorcyclist. I wonder if I can make it to Ontario or Colorado! :thumbup1:

Jerry, we hope you can make the Ontario meet....look forward to you attending.
blogspot;hickeryonthemove:welcome:

A very big "thank you" to all who attended the Virginia Travellers Meeting! When I started planning this a while ago, I hoped we could draw a decent crowd to a nice place and attract some good presenters.

I think we scored on all fronts. We had a great group of people at the camp, the 4-H people welcomed us with open arms, and the presentations were terrific. In addition, we had a team of volunteers who went the extra mile to prepare the venue, kept it functioning on all cylinders, and left it clean and orderly on Sunday. Thank you all!

Don't forget, next year's Virginia meeting will be April 28-May 1, 2016. We hope to see some of you at other HU events between now and then, including the North Carolina Meeting in October. Travel safely, everybody!

HU VA was a grand success it seems. A bit of rain added to the adventure and tested the camping gear. But the whole time was full of warmth and good cheer. Fun to talk with a variety of folks especially those who are living the adventure whether on short trips or RTW.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3j...ew?usp=sharing