Bethel is home to 2,500 people, and is nestled snugly among some of the oldest mountains on the planet, with the tallest peaks of the northeast just a stone’s throw way to the west in New Hampshire, and the rugged Mahoosucs to the north and east of town. It’s a place renowned for its year-round outdoor recreation, with skiing and snowboarding, nordic skiing, fly fishing, paddling, and hiking opportunities in every single direction. Mountain biking is obviously among those opportunities and has been a particularly big part of the fabric of this community in recent years, with Mount Abram opening its bike park in 2019 and Bethel-based Inland Woods and Trails doing amazing work to secure thousands of acres of land, including the 978 acre Bethel Community Forest. 

Old Fort, North Carolina is uniquely positioned along the base of the Blue Ridge Escarpment, a steep slope that drops from the highest peaks of the eastern United States to the valley below. The escarpment represents a rather abrupt “end” to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina, and is home to more than 50 waterfalls and numerous cliff faces in excess of 300 feet in height. The slope drops over 4,000 vertical feet from top to bottom, with Old Fort sitting along the base, nestled between the Catawba River and a number of its tributaries including Mill Creek, Jarrett Creek, Curtis Creek and plenty more.