Athens has miles upon miles of illegal singletrack that meanders through the farms and forests surrounding downtown, but don’t bother asking for directions.

Slatyfork is the gateway to one of the International Mountain Biking Association’s Epic Rides. The 37-mile Gauley Headwaters ride moves from open meadows to a maze within the Mon’s tight and technical hardwood forests. A legendary highlight includes the lengthy Tea Creek Mountain descent.

Years ago Kyle Inman, director of the longstanding Virginia Mountain Bike Series, labeled Roanoke the “Colorado Springs of the East.” The nickname has stuck in trailspeak, but few people are ever able to explain the comparison.

Secrets only stay secrets for so long. Given enough time and interest even the best-kept secret will be forced into the light of day. Such is the lot of Panthertown Valley, a 6,700-acre tract of forest, rock, river, and trail that was predominantly the secret playground of local hikers, climbers, and bikers in the know. Until now. Million dollar neighborhoods are being built only a few miles from Panthertown’s trailheads, more bikers and hikers are exploring the valley’s singletrack than ever before, and last winter the forest service revamped the entire area’s trail system. In short, Panthertown Valley is ready for its close-up.

Everything’s happening at once in Chattanooga. The greenway system for this city of 155,000 is getting more extensive, infill townhouses are going up downtown, the Cumberland Trail is growing from the city’s boundaries, and the local mountain biking community is in the process of building 100 miles of singletrack only minutes from downtown.

The Deep Creek Lake area of Western Maryland is a largely undiscovered cornucopia of natural beauty nestled in the Allegheny Mountains. It’s a little sliver of that West Virginia high country that extends over the Maryland border in Garrett County, centered around the 3,000-acre Deep Creek Lake (the state’s largest) and Wisp ski resort.

Despite a location just 45 miles northwest of the nation’s capital, Purcellville feels personably removed from D.C.’s urban sprawl. It’s got an old soul—quaint and historical in appearance with a colorfully diverse populace of around 6,000.

5 of the Southeast's most pristine outdoor oases

Paper mills, tobacco farms, and coal mines have long degraded the Southern Appalachian landscape. But a resurgence of health and eco-awareness in urban centers across the Southeast is giving the Dirty South a cleaner, greener image.

In Fayetteville there are two bumper stickers that brand cars and storefront windows: “I Love Coal” and “Protect Our Viewshed.” The stark contrast represents the evolving dichotomy of the small town populace. It’s changing from an aristocratic coal money nest to an up-and-coming adrenaline oasis crawling with paddlers, climbers, and a small cog of mountain bikers that can’t resist the fruit basket of recreation ripe for the picking in the adjacent New River Gorge, known as the “Grand Canyon of the East.”

There’s a good reason why the Smokies attract 10 million visitors a year, why 250,000 boaters paddle the Nantahala every season, and why Tsali is one of the most beloved mountain bike destinations in the country.

The guy behind the counter at Whitegrass Ski Center in Davis, W.Va. has four jobs. “I’m a climbing guide at Seneca, I edit guide books, I’m an adjunct instructor at Davis and Elkins College, and I’m a ski guide here at Whitegrass,” he says.

If you’re convinced that pure, unspoiled small mountain town utopia just doesn’t exist, visit Damascus. With a population of 1,000, Damascus boasts a colorful mix of retired legacies and outdoor transients. Many folks flock here because of its proximity to the Appalachian Trail: it literally runs right through downtown.

Bouldering is the sport of choice in Boone. Granite rocks pop out of the countryside like weeds in a sidewalk and Boone residents are quick to take advantage of their rocky bounty...