Once I'd corrected my faux pax of parking in Mr. Sam's spot, I had a good feeling about the ride.

Mr. Sam was the proprietor of the Leasburg Grocery on U.S. 158 in Caswell County and, although it wasn't marked, the parking spot next to the propane tank was his. The store clerk said it was fine to park at the store, just not there, so I moved the Outback near a light pole a little farther out. My riding partner, Alan Nechemias, and I dismounted our bikes from the roof rack and were off to explore Route 3, the 22-mile Hyco Lake Loop, of the new Caswell County Bicycling route map.

The map was published last month and resembles the dozen county bike route maps issued by the state Department of Transportation's Division of Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation. Same color-coded map showing the routes, similar narratives including length and things to look for -- historical, nutritional and otherwise -- along the way.

Although the map may look DOT-sanctioned, it was done minus the benefit of DOT's extensive GIS mapping system, minus the input of local bike clubs, minus professional cartographers and minus the expertise of the bike division's staff. And, perhaps most significantly, minus the several-year lead time it takes to produce one of the guides. In fact, the Caswell map was put together by one man, a casual cyclist who scouted routes by car. The map was produced on a shoestring budget, thanks largely to a $2,500 grant from the state Department of Commerce.

Simple as the map is, it effectively alerts cyclists to the two-wheel possibilities in this lightly populated county along the Virginia border. It's also part of a larger effort designed to draw tourists to a surprisingly rich recreational area little more than an hour's drive from the Triangle.

Exploring the Dan River Basin

Look at a map of North Carolina and recreational opportunities abound. Go west and you've got the mountains and hiking, mountain biking, climbing and snow sports. Head east and you've got coastal swamps, sounds, the Atlantic and just about every water sport imaginable, from kayaking to kite boarding. South yields a golfer's paradise.

And north?

Check out the border with Virginia and you're likely to stare for a while before coming up with something, if anything.

"It's as if we don't exist," acknowledges Lindley Butler, who with his wife, T, founded the Dan River Basin Association in 2002. "We aren't at the center of anything."

The group's goal is "protecting the natural and cultural resources" of the 3,300-square-mile Dan River Basin, which covers roughly 15 counties in North Carolina and Virginia, though the association's focus is primarily on six: Stokes, Rockingham and Caswell in North Carolina, and Patrick, Pittsylvania and Halifax in Virginia. While protecting those resources, they're also hoping to tout the region's recreational opportunities and draw a few tourist dollars along the way.

"The idea is to build this sort of borderlands region," says Butler. "An area of invisible boundaries where we can work together."

And play together.

Playing the Dan

Probably the most recognizable recreational resource in the Dan River Basin is Hanging Rock State Park. With 18 miles of hiking trails, swimming and rock climbing, it's the closest true montane environment to the Triangle. Located just north of Winston-Salem in Stokes County, Hanging Rock rises 1,700 feet above the surrounding countryside. Come fall, its vistas are particularly popular with leaf peepers.

Recognizable to the Triangle's more accomplished paddlers are the basin's three main navigable rivers, the namesake Dan, the Mayo and the Smith. Much of the Dan is runnable even at low water, while stretches of the Dan and Mayo offer Class II to IV whitewater after a good rain (or release from the power-plant dam in Danville).

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