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Bike Trip Links:
2008 Connellsville to D.C.
Trip Report!
Training Rides/
Trip Preparation
Data from the Bike Trip
Trail and Bike Links:
Great Allegheny Passage
C & O Canal Towpath
Bike Washington
Background and Preparation for the Trip:
My Dad and I decided over a year ago to try biking to Washington D.C., using the Great Allegheny Passage bike trail and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath bike trail. Both of us have spent a lot of time riding on the Great Allegheny Passage from Connellsville to Ohiopyle or Confluence. We started doing this around 2000, and from then on it has become a favorite pasttime of ours. We both have done several long rides, most often from Connellsville to Confluence and back. I began doing some longer rides over the past two years, and last year did two ~100 mile rides. Late last August my Mom dropped us off in Cumberland, MD and we rode the 88 miles back to Connellsville with no problems. It was then that we really knew we were going to make a long trip.
In January we picked the dates for our trip, and we decided it would be around the 21st of June in order that we would have as much daylight as possible. We decided on the dates of June 15th through the 21st, which would give us 3 days to ride down to D.C., one day of rest down there where we could take in some of the sights, and 3 days to ride back. As it turned out, that would equate to about 90 miles per day. We decided on leaving from Connellsville since that's where we always start from, and we elected to stay in hotels since neither of us ever camp, saving us from having to haul that extra gear. About two months before the trip we made hotel reservations, in the event that we arrived somewhere and couldn't get a hotel room. On the way down we would stay the first night in Cumberland, MD; the second night in Shepherdstown, WV; and the next night we would arrive in D.C. and stay in Arlington, VA for two nights. On the way back, we would stay in Williamsport, MD; and again in Cumberland, before riding the final day back to Connellsville.
Our first training ride was Christmas Day (2007) and the only goal was to get in as much riding as possible between then and the trip. That wouldn't be too hard for me, but my Dad's work schedule did make it difficult for him to get a lot of training in. However, he did what he could, and I did as much riding as possible. Our longest ride together leading up to the trip was 70 miles, and my longest solo ride was 90 miles. Very rarely though, did my Dad get a chance to ride on consecutive days, and when I did, the distances usually weren't too long. So I was a little concerned with how our legs would handle 3 days of long rides (and then 3 more) consecutively. Would we be constantly sore, or would we be too tired to keep up a decent pace? My Dad did tell me though, that he had one time ridden 54 miles without stopping once for a break, and even after longer rides he never developed much, if any, soreness. And I had been riding a lot, so I was fairly confident that we would be ok. As long as we didn't push it, we felt that we would be fine and that we'd be able to minimize any soreness.
Totals for my training rides:
To see the complete table summarizing all my training rides, please click on the following link:
Training Rides/Trip Preparation
| Number of Rides: | Distance (Miles): | Time (Minutes): | Time (Hours): |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42 | 1185.67 | 5610 | 93.5 |
Day 1 — Connellsville (PA) to Cumberland (MD)
Our trip began on Sunday, June 15th at approximately 5:45am. We started in Connellsville, just south of the Bikes Unlimited bike shop, at the trail access there, and headed south towards Ohiopyle and beyond. This is the section of the trail that my Dad and I are most familiar with, having ridden it probably hundreds of times since 2000. We decided to just try to keep a pace of ~10 mph, taking our time and conserving our energy. There had been some heavy thunderstorms in the area the day before, and the trail was a little wet and soft, so that slowed us down a bit anyway. Nothing of significance happened for awhile, but for those who haven't ridden this section of the trail before, once you get into the mountains the scenery is very beautiful. The trail follows the Youghiogheny River as it flows through the Chesnut Ridge. I decided before the trip that I was going to keep track of my heartrate, record all the food that I ate, and calculate my approximate calorie consumption. Dad and I also had speedometers/ odometers for our bikes, so we were able to keep track of our trip distance, average speed, time, and constantly be able to see how fast we were going.
We took our first break at the gas line, which is a cleared area overlooking the river where a gas line runs underground. The clearing and overlook, about 10 miles from Connellsville, is a popular spot for riders to take breaks. After a quick rest, we rode another 6 miles into Ohiopyle and again took a brief rest. For most of the short trips that we've made over the past several years, Ohiopyle has always been our destination and turnaround point. When I first started riding the trail, I used to think it was a big deal to be able to ride from Connellsville to Ohiopyle and back. The more I rode though, the more I discovered that it really wasn't much. I think the trips became more enjoyable the more I did them, even though the route was the same. And it was always nice riding into Ohiopyle, no matter what time of year or day. I enjoy every trip I make up there, whether it's on the bike, or making a trip in the car to see all the nearby sights. Well, after our rest at Ohiopyle, we continued to head southeast towards Confluence, taking our time and enjoying the nice morning. This is probably the most heavily- used section of the trail, from what I've seen, but it still being early there were only a few people around. Confluence is another favorite destination of both mine and my Dad's. One of the things we enjoy doing is riding into Confluence on the trail, then making the short ride up to the top of the Youghiogheny Lake Dam. On this day though, we couldn't expend any unneccessary energy riding up to the dam. We quickly passed through Confluence and headed towards Harnedsville, about two miles further east. There we took another break and got ready for a little bit more difficult section of the path.
From Connellsville to Confluence, the trail rises about 450 feet in 26 miles, but from Confluence to Rockwood, the trail rises about 500 feet in 18 miles. Leaving Harnedsville, you can tell that things get a bit more difficult. There the trail follows the Casselman River, and this section is just as beautiful as the scenery we had already ridden through. We made our way up to the first of the Pinkerton bridges. This is a beautiful area where the Casselman makes a large oxbow around what's called the Pinkerton horn. The old railroad track crossed the river, went straight through a tunnel, crossed the river again, and ended up back on the south side of the river. The tunnel is closed though, so the bike trail turns sharply to the right and follows the same route as an old backup railroad track around the oxbow in the river. The trail comes back to the other bridge on the opposite side of the tunnel and picks up the original trail again. We stopped on the first bridge (the western bridge) to get some food and also to take some pictures. The trail around the Pinkerton horn was recently resurfaced, and the sand tends to get really soft after heavy rains. This proved to be true then, and for the next several miles into Rockwood, the trail was really soft and it slowed us down considerably. On the few training rides that I did out that far, the trail was always in bad condition, or rather my timing was bad as I always hit it after rain. Riding in wet concrete was how I thought it felt, (just because it frustrated me that it slowed me down so much), although on this day it wasn't too bad.
We made our way into Rockwood and again stopped for a break in front of the Visitor's center there. This was the halfway point of our first day, and both my Dad and I were feeling pretty good. The trail seemed to be drying out a little more, and the weather continued to be very nice. We kept up our 9-10 mph pace as we made our way to Garrett, and then to the Salisbury Viaduct. The farthest I had ever ridden on one of my solo rides was to Mile marker 39, which is about 5 miles past Rockwood. The only other time my Dad and I had seen this section of the trail was on our trip back from Cumberland last year. So we were in territory that wasn't too familiar, and it was nice to see this section of the trail again. At the Salisbury Viaduct we stopped for a break, and took several pictures of the area. The view from the viaduct, looking east to south, was magnificent. We couldn't have asked for a better day to start our trip on! From there we quickly rode into Meyersdale, stopping at the train station visitor's center to look around and rest up again. Continuing southeast, we began the last part of our ascent up to the Eastern Continental Divide. From Connellsville to the divide, the trail rises about 1500 feet. From Meyersdale to the divide, we only had another 200 or so feet of climbing to do, and we were looking forward to getting up to the trail's highpoint and being able to ride downhill into Cumberland from there!
This is another beautiful section of the trail. After passing through a gap in the mountain, following Flaugherty Run, the trail opened up a little, cutting through some farms and more open countryside. Dad was thinking about where he would put his dream home up there, and I was simply enjoying the scenery, the weather, and the ride. A few short miles later, we finally saw the road that crossed over the trail, marking the point of the Continental Divide. It was downhill to Cumberland from there! We stopped to take a break, and several more pictures, at the divide. Continuing on, we headed towards the Big Savage Tunnel. About a mile or so before we got there, however, we almost ran into an unexpected trail user. A cat was walking towards us on the trail, but something seemed a little different. We stopped to look for a few seconds, wondering if we were seeing what we thought we were. I went to get my camera out of my tow, but before I could, the cat turned and headed off the trail into the brush. It was from that angle that we could see it was no ordinary cat. It was long! It's hard to tell how big things are on the trail, unless you're right next to them, but this cat was definitely much longer than a house cat. We think we saw a young mountain lion, but we can't be 100% sure!
We rode past the spot we estimated the cat had entered the brush, but we couldn't see it at all by then. It was only another mile or so to the tunnel, so we rode there quickly and stopped for a few more pictures before continuing on through. Coming out of the tunnel, we came upon the overlook that probably has the most magnificent view on the entire trail. Here the trail turns to the south/southwest, and the mountain drops considerably to the east/southeast. The view looks southeast to the valley below, to the Mason-Dixon Line, and to the mountains surrounding Cumberland and beyond. Cumberland itself isn't visible, but you can see the gap in the mountains that leads into Cumberland. The sky was just a little hazy now, so it wasn't the most clear view, but we spent a while there anyway just enjoying the wonderful sight.
We were now only about 21 miles from Cumberland, and the trail from there was all downhill. From the Continental Divide to Cumberland, the trail drops about 1700 feet, making this last section a very easy and fast ride. We passed over the Mason-Dixon Line, then through a short tunnel, and then into Frostburg, MD. We were cruising along pretty well, but entering tunnel I forgot to take my sunglasses off. I really had to slow down, especially towards the center of the tunnel, since all I could really see was the tunnel entrance and darkness all around. It felt like I wasn't even moving, or that I was riding on a huge treadmill. We continued our descent past Frostburg, through another tunnel, and then finally onto a paved section of the trail as we neared Cumberland. In a few minutes we rode up to the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad Station, and the sign marking the point where the Great Allegheny Passage ends and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath begins. Our first day of riding was over, and it had been a great ride! I wiped off the bikes while Dad looked around a bit, and then we headed to the Holiday Inn to check in. We spent about an hour in the pool just relaxing, and then went to find a place to eat. Day 1 of our trip was wonderful!
Day 2 — Cumberland (MD) to Shepherdstown (WV)
While the first day had been pretty easy, the second day turned out to be a bit more difficult. This was going to be our longest ride of the trip, covering approximately 112 miles from Cumberland, MD to Shepherdstown, WV. We woke up at 4:45am, got ready, checked out, ate breakfast, and were on the trail at 5:40am. We had previewed the first few hundred yards of the Towpath when we had visited Cumberland last year, but as we continued on, this section was all unfamiliar to us. We quickly learned that at least not all of the Towpath is in the best condition, as we had to dodge a puddle or mud hole every so often. For the next several miles, we saw hundreds of deer, but as we continued on it became more difficult to pay attention to the scenery. We were dodging a mudhole every 50 yards or so, and this forced us to slow down somewhat. We made our first stop at the locks at Oldtown, MD, took a few pictures, and then continued to ride east.
It was interesting to see the differences in the trails and the scenery that surrounded them. The canal along the towpath was still full of water in many places, and it was pretty much stagnant and covered with algae, or just really dirty and black. Not to mention the smell wasn't the greatest either. We figured we were probably fortunate that the weather was cooler, because things may have even been worse in very hot weather. All in all though, the scenery was still very nice, and it was also good to be riding along a path that we had never seen before. It made the ride seem a bit faster. As my Dad said, a lot of this trip would be mental. You're riding through pretty much the same scenery over and over again, with a few differences to break things up a bit. It can get tiring in a way, but you just have to keep going.
One of the things that broke up the monotony a bit was the Paw Paw tunnel. We stopped at the entrance to take some pictures, got out the flashlight, and then proceeded to ride through. We realized pretty quickly that the path in there was much too rough to ride, and I ended up slipping off my pedal and scraping my shin. That's when we decided to just walk the bikes through. That was a good decision too, because one bad move on the bike could've sent one of us over the railing and into the canal below. Our trip would have ended right there if that had happened! Sometimes it really is best to just take your time. After the tunnel we rode through another bad section of mudholes, and as we continued further along, we decided that we would give ourselves a break. There was a paved trail, called the Western Maryland Rail Trail, that ran pretty much along the same route as the Towpath, but on the other side of the canal and higher up. There was a sign directing us to its starting point from the Towpath. So, we decided to "cheat" and take this trail for its entire 22 mile length, saving us from having to dodge and ride through so many mudholes on the Towpath.
Afer a brief rest in Hancock, we continued down the Western Maryland Rail Trail. The next 11 miles passed quickly, and before we knew it we had reached this trail's end. One problem, however, was there was no access back to the Towpath! We must have missed the last access point, but instead of riding back, we pulled out the map and decided we could just take the nearby road to the next access point. We took the road for about a mile until we saw a sign for Fort Frederick. I seemed to remember from the Bike Washington Website that there was Towpath access at Fort Frederick, so we decided to take a chance. Sure enough, the roads in the park eventually led back to the Towpath. Our mistake turned out to be a good one since we were able to briefly view Fort Frederick. Back on the Towpath, we made some good time. The trail was in pretty good condition for the next several miles, and before we knew it, we were passing by the town of Williamsport, MD. However, the approaching dark clouds that we had noticed for the past few miles finally caught up with us. We were caught in a light thunderstorm.
The ponchos we brought came in handy, at least for our upper bodies. The rain continued to fall, the Towpath continued to get worse, the bikes got muddier, and our legs, shorts, and shoes were drenched. We rode on like this for several more miles, but luckily the rain finally stopped. Soon we had to take a detour on country roads since the Towpath was washed out in one particular section. The route was somewhat challenging, due to the hills and the traffic, but we were relieved to finally coast down the last hill and back onto the trail. The happiness was short-lived however, because the next section of the trail was in terrible condition due to the rain. We were pretty much riding through a small creek for much of the last 11 miles. Both we and the bikes were filthy. Our pace was pretty slow, but we finally made it to the bridge that leads across the Potomac to Shepherdstown, WV. We knew we needed a car wash, and as it turned out, we were blessed to find one — right behind our hotel! Some other bikers had the same idea as us, and they were almost finished cleaning up when we got there. We hosed the bikes — and ourselves — off, and went to check in. In front of the hotel we met a nice couple from Texas who were biking from Washington, D.C. to McKeesport, PA. Both my Dad and I talked with them while we were in the process of checking in and getting our gear up to the room. Day 2, although difficult at times, turned out to be pretty good. Although we weren't looking forward to what we guessed would be lousy trail conditions on Day 3, we knew we were only 72 miles from Washington!
Day 3 — Shepherdstown (WV) to Washington D.C.
We started out just a little later on this day, probably about 7:15am. The first several miles of the trail weren't bad, and even all the way into Harper's Ferry, WV, conditions stayed decent. Just beyond Harper's Ferry however, the mudholes started to become larger and much more frequent. We had to stop to clear the trail of a fallen tree, which with the help of a runner we were able to do, and then we proceeded on through more mud and puddles. We were really taking our time in an effort to stay as clean as possible, and for awhile we weren't in too bad of shape. The Potomac continued to grow wider and wider the closer we got to Washington. Around mile 40 we passed a large power plant, and the kayak training stream that uses the plant's outflow. That was a neat setup they had there, and also the path was in good condition at that spot. A few miles later though, conditions got worse again, our pace slowed, and the bikes picked up a lot of dirt.
We passed White's Ferry and were only then about 35 miles from Washington, but a few miles later we had a little delay. I had been watching my Dad's rear tire and it seemed like it was getting low. After a few minutes I mentioned it to him, and although it wasn't too bad yet, we stopped and changed it. The flat stopped us for about half an hour, as it took a little more time to put one of the heavy-duty inner tubes in. We were hoping that with this tube there wouldn't be another flat. In the few weeks leading up to the trip, I had gotten 3 flat tires on my bike and one using my sisters'. After the last flat, I decided to put one of the heavy-duty tubes in, and change my rear tire, and so far on the trip everything had been good — no flats! With one of those tubes in my Dad's tire, we were hoping that we wouldn't have to stop for a flat again. As it turned out, we were right. That was our first and only flat of the trip.
Several miles of mudholes later, trail conditions started to improve. This was around mile 23. I stopped to take some pictures of the Potomac here, and we were optimistic that the trail would stay just as nice. Just a few minutes later, Dad wanted to check something out on his tire, so we stopped at a lock and took a break. A brother and sister were there taking a break as well. Both were around my age, in their late 20's or early 30's I guessed. They asked us where we had come from, and we began to talk about our trip as Dad worked on his tire. A few minutes into the conversation, the sister asked my Dad, "Does your wife think that you're nuts? (for making the trip)" My Dad responded with "Oh yes!" And that is true!
After talking for a while longer, they told us that the trail would be in good shape all the way to D.C. We were both glad to hear that, and we continued on towards Great Falls. The next few miles went by quickly, and soon we were riding through the park. A runner that we passed yelled for me to slow down. I did, and he ran along side me for a little while, asking questions about the trip. It seemed like a lot of people were really interested in what we were doing. After a minute or so of talking with him, I rode to catch up to Dad. We stopped for a little while to check out the rapids and the falls, and to take several pictures. It is a pretty neat area, and almost seemed to be out of place on what had mostly been a slow moving river. We spent about 20 minutes there, and then continued on. The trail there, and the canal and the scenery, looked wonderful. We rode on quickly though, since we were getting anxious to reach to the end of the Towpath. Soon we were passing underneath the Beltway, and continuing on we saw more signs that we were back in civilization again. About a mile from the end of the Towpath, something interesting happend.
We were now in Georgetown, and we noticed a film crew on the trail. They didn't look to be doing much of anything though, and we passed right through them. Right after that, we noticed a guy jogging on the path towards us, however he was on the wrong side. A few seconds before they would have collided, my Dad swerved over to the left to miss him, and I followed his route. As both of us passed by the man, we noticed who he was. It was John Edwards, the former Presidential candidate! We had just ridden 270+ miles to almost crash into John Edwards! I'm sure he would have been thrilled to meet us too!
After our near collision with John Edwards we were just a few minutes from the end of the trail. As we continued on we hit a dead end in the path, but looking at my guidebook I saw that we had to cross a bridge over the canal, and the path continued on the other side. So we rode back just a little, found the bridge, and made our way forward. The city was pretty busy, and the path crossed a few streets before we got to lock number 1. The book indicated that Mile Marker 0 — the beginning (but really the end, for us) of the Towpath — was around Thompson's Boat House, which was right down at the river. So after getting confused for a little, we finally made our way to the boathouse, locked up our bikes, walked around the boathouse, and found Mile Marker 0. We had made it to Washington! Half of our trip was over!
We rode back to the Francis Scott Key Bridge and crossed into Arlington. I had forgotten to print directions to our motel, but we did have the address. The few people we asked didn't know where Arlington Blvd. (or it may have been Ave.) was, but one pointed us in the right direction. We had been riding around Arlington for about 15 minutes by then. As we were going in the direction the man at the gas station said to go, we saw a police officer. Dad asked him for directions, and he said that Arlington Blvd. was the name for Route 50, which we were looking at and heading towards. So we turned left along the route, rode down a little ways, and found our motel. It was kind of strange riding through country for all of the trip, and then to suddenly be in the city. But we were both very glad to have made it that far. It took a while to clean all the mud off our bikes that had built up from the first half of the day, but we finally got them clean enough to take into the room. We then relaxed for the rest of the evening, glad that we'd also be off the bikes the following day, and have the chance to see Washington D.C.
Off Day — Washington D.C.
We spent the day touring the National Mall in Washington. We left the hotel around 8am or so and walked the few miles to the Mall. My brother, who lives in Maryland, was going to meet us at the World War II Memorial around 10am. Dad and I stopped at the Lincoln Memorial first, and then at the Korean War Memorial, and then we made our way to the WWII Memorial to meet my brother. The three of us looked around for a bit, then headed back to the Lincoln Memorial so Josh could see it too. Then we went to the National Air and Space Museum to look around for a few hours. I really enjoyed the time we spent in the air and space museum. We could've taken several days in there, just viewing all the displays and trying to learn as much as possible, but we only had a few hours. We spent some of that time watching an Imax movie about fighter pilots, which was pretty good. After the movie we left the museum and started walking down the Mall. Josh had to get going and headed back to the Metro. We said goodbye, and then Dad and I headed west along the Mall, and over the Arlington Memorial Bridge. After we crossed the bridge, we noticed a bike path heading along the river towards downtown Arlington. So we walked down over the highway that went under the Arlington Bridge and got on the path. It was then that a helicopter flew overhead, and as it turned out it was an Air Force One helicopter! That was pretty neat! We really seemed to have good timing on the trip!
Both my Dad and I were pretty sore by that point. We figured we walked about 7 or 8 miles that day. I had really started to notice the soreness on the walk into Washington that morning, and by the time we were at the Air and Space Museum it was pretty substantial. Dad was also feeling the same way. When we finally got back to the motel, we still had a little more to do. We grabbed our bikes and rode about a mile up to a local bike shop. My Dad had lost his gloves on our second day, having left them when we took a break after the road detour. We would look for them on the way back, but he wanted to get a new pair just in case, and he also wanted to get some bike shoes since his feet were bothering him a little. The clerk who waited on my Dad was surprised to hear the length of our trip! After getting his gear, and a few extra inner tubes just in case, we left the shop and rode back to the motel. We went out to dinner and then took it easy for the rest of the evening before going to sleep early. One of the things I noticed about Washington and Arlington was the amount of people that were either biking or jogging. I wondered if there were always that many people on bikes, or was it the rising gas prices that were forcing people to ride a little more. Either way, there were joggers and bikers all throughout the city. As we returned to our hotel, the day was winding down, and both Dad and I were eager to begin our return trip. The day of rest had been good, and doing some sightseeing in the Washington area was a great idea. We both had a wonderful time, and it was neat to see Washington, D.C. for the first time in many years!
Day 4 — Washington D.C. to Williamsport (MD)
It was time to get back. Like my Dad and I had been saying to each other for the past few weeks: "If you can ride there, then you can ride back!" Well, for us it was time to prove ourselves right! The soreness in both my legs, and my Dad's, was pretty much gone. The walking must've helped to take it away. We left the motel around 5:45am, and headed down through Arlington. It was surprising to see the amount of people that were already up and about. I guess in a busy metro area there is always a lot of activity, though. We rode back over the Francis Scott Key Bridge and then back onto the Towpath. No matter where I ride, or for how long, the way back always seems faster than the way there. This would prove to be true for our return trip. I think that both Dad and I were eager to get some miles behind us, so we pedaled on and on. We rode back under the Beltway, then through Great Falls Park, and then back into some more remote areas. We didn't take our first break until we were 30 miles into our ride.
We were very, very relieved to see that the Towpath had dried out considerably in the previous two days! The mudholes and puddles were still there, but they were a lot smaller. There was almost always enough space to ride around them and not splash up any mud or water at all. Even though we probably could've made better time, we rode at a slower pace and enjoyed the scenery and the beautiful day. At one point a fox ran out of the woods, then proceeded up the trail for maybe 40 yards before turning down into the dry canal bed and then up the hill on the other side. We didn't see much more wildlife for the rest of the day, however. Our return trip led us past the Kayak training center and the power plant, through Brunswick, MD, and then again to Harper's Ferry, WV. We noticed the tree we had moved on the way down, but the path was now in much better condition. Beyond Harper's Ferry, some people riding in the opposite direction warned us of a possible rabid fox on the Towpath! We kept a lookout for it, but it must have wandered off the path by the time we passed it.
The trail remained in good condition for the next few miles. At one of the locks past Harper's Ferry we took a break. While we were there, a couple from North Carolina stopped by to rest as well. They wanted to get to Harper's Ferry and find a bike shop and/or someone to take them to D.C. They had started in Cumberland a few days before, and I guess weren't making that good of time. The man said that he had thought about riding the Towpath for 7 or 8 years, and they had finally decided to go this year! I guess that Dad and I had talked about riding to D.C. for that long too, although last year was the first time the talks actually turned serious. We said goodbye to the couple and continued our journey back. Before long we were passing under the bridge that led to Shepherdstown, and 12 or so miles later we came to the spot where the detour was. We looked around for a few minutes, but we couldn't find Dad's gloves at all. A father and son had just ridden down the hill, and we talked to them for a little bit. After getting a few more minutes of rest, we set out up the hill. It really wasn't too bad though, and before long we were making our way back along the country roads of the detour. The weather and the countryside were very beautiful! In a half hour or so we were heading downhill and back towards the Towpath. Day 4 of our journey had been excellent up to that point, and the last several miles were no different. We made it to the town of Williamsport, MD in excellent time, and rode up the street towards our hotel.
As Dad checked in, I spent a few minutes talking to a trucker. He, like most of the other people we met, was very curious about where we had come from and what our trip was like. He was unfamiliar with the Towpath though, and was surprised to hear that a bike trail went all the way from Washington D.C. to almost Pittsburgh. Dad came out then and we went to our room. A man next to us had his motorcycle parked in front of the room, and we said hello and talked briefly. After getting our things settled we went to get dinner and then came back to the room. There was only one bed this time, so Dad got that and I slept on the floor. I think both of us were probably sleeping by 8:45pm or 9 at the latest. I guess we were more tired than we realized. Day 4 had been another wonderful day on the trail!
Day 5 — Williamsport (MD) to Cumberland (MD)
This would be the shortest day of the return trip, covering about 84 miles. Before we even checked out of the hotel we went to the nearby Waffle House to have breakfast. The man with the motorcycle from our hotel walked in a few minutes later, and my Dad invited him to sit with us. It was a good thing too! We found out that his name was Bob and that he was traveling from Boston to see his daughter in Tennessee. We had a good time talking and asking questions. One of the great things about the trip was the opportunity to meet and talk with people from different parts of the country. Even though Bob was making a different kind of journey than we were, it was good to be able to share our experiences. Bob had been through some tough times with a previous motorcycle accident and his current shoulder problems. His daughter had moved to Tennessee and he hadn't seen her in awhile. I know I speak for my Dad as well when I say how good a time we had at breakfast that day. But our meal was finished soon, and we all had to head back to the hotel to get ready to leave. Dad and I got our bikes ready while Bob got his bike ready. We checked out and said goodbye to Bob, wished him a good journey, and headed back down the road towards the Towpath.
We started out at a pretty good pace, and before long we arrived at Fort Frederick. We rode the Towpath for a couple more miles, and then decided again to "cheat" and take the Western Maryland Rail Trail for the next 22 miles. Even though the Towpath had been pretty good, we wanted to make a little better time just in case conditions got worse later. At Hancock we took a quick break, and then continued our westward course. Around the Round Top area, as we were climbing slightly and riding along a very steep hillside, a bald eagle flew out from the cliff and over the trail in front of us! He was maybe 20 yards in front of us, and maybe 40 yards high. He flew out towards the river, but we lost sight of him in the trees. It was a magnificent sight! I guess too that it was reason enough to justify "cheating" by taking the paved trail! The next several miles passed by quickly, and before we knew it the Western Maryland Rail Trail ended and we rode back down to the Towpath. We took a break for a few minutes before continuing on. The trail got a bit worse for awhile. Perhaps there had been rain on that section more recently, but either way the puddles and mudholes hadn't dried out as much and they became a little more difficult to dodge.
After many more miles of this, we came again to the Paw Paw Tunnel. We took a break again before entering the tunnel. This time Dad took the lead with the flashlight, and this time we both walked our bikes right from the start! At the other side of the tunnel we met a group of 3 guys who also had questions for us! We only talked for a minute or two before continuing on. Several sections of the canal were filled with water and covered with a thick green algae. All throughout these sections of the canal, every time there was a log or something in the sun, there were turtles sitting on it sunning themselves. A little later, in a wooded section, I almost hit what I assume was a mink. It was sitting on the path when we came up to it, and it ran into the weeds on the side, not seeming too afraid. I tried to grab the camera but by that time it had walked further into the brush and I lost sight of it. So Dad and I rode on, and a little bit later we came upon the Oldtown Locks again, where we took a break. A few minutes later we set off on the last leg of our 5th day's journey. The trail on this stretch wasn't in too bad shape. As you approach Cumberland from the south and east, the trail passes through a lot of farmland and residential areas. This is a change of scenery from riding through mostly forests. About 7 miles from Cumberland the wind really picked up, slowing us down to about 7mph. It didn't last for too long though. I think it died down somewhat and the direction of the Towpath also changed. It was around then that my Dad noticed a wobble in his back tire. I could tell riding behind him that something was wrong, but the tire didn't seem to be flat. We stopped to look at it, and he discovered several large bubbles in the tire. The tire must've been wearing out, but the inner tube still seemed to be fine. He decided that we would try to make it back to Cumberland, go to the bike shop, and get some new tires.
We only had a few more miles to go at this point. We took our time and ended up making it to Cumberland with no problems, stopping for a few minutes to take some pictures of the city. Soon we left the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath behind us. There was a bike shop among all the shops at the trailhead(s), underneath Interstate 68. I waited outside while Dad purchased the tires. From there we rode over to the hotel room, checked in, and began to change the tires in the room. This didn't take too long, and after we were finished Dad's bike looked to be in excellent shape. We went back down to where Towpath ends and the Great Allegheny Passage begins, and had dinner at the same restaurant where we'd eaten on Sunday. Then it was back to the hotel to get some rest before our last day of the trip!
Day 6 — Cumberland (MD) to Connellsville (PA)
Once again we woke up early, checked out of the hotel, had breakfast, and were on our way by about 5:45. As there had been on our trip back from Cumberland last year, a fog hung all around the city and the valley, obscuring the many surrounding hills. We rode through the pedestrian walkway that runs east-west through downtown. It was very quiet with all the fog, and not too many people were up and about. From there we returned again to the Great Allegheny Passage trail and headed northwest. After a few miles we began to leave the outskirts of Cumberland behind, and the trail started its ascent up to Frostburg and eventually to the Continental Divide. This is the steepest section of the trail. Just 6 days before we were cruising down this hill comfortably, and now we were climbing at a pretty slow pace. We were doing around 7-8.5 mph, which was comfortable. Although there is a noticeable slope here, if you take it easy it really isn't difficult at all. Sure, it was going to take a bit longer to get to the top, but we were going to have a lot more energy for the rest of the day's ride.
We continued our ascent, climbing above the fog about 8 or 9 miles outside of Cumberland. There we stopped to take a break and also to take a few pictures. We looked up at the Big Savage Mountain, our destination, in an effort to find the location of the Big Savage Tunnel. We were pretty sure we found the location, judging that the clearcut we could see in the trees up there was the one that ran right above the tunnel. There was also a much larger clearcut to the left of the tunnel, which we remembered riding by on the way down. After the break, we continued our easy pace and made it to Frostburg in another hour. There we stopped for another quick break again. From there it was only about 5 miles to the Big Savage Tunnel and 9 miles to the Continental Divide. Our next stop after a few miles was the Mason-Dixon Line, where we took a few quick pictures before continuing on to the Big Savage Tunnel. At the overlook there, we rested for several minutes, looking out at the terrain that we had just ridden through. There was still a bit of fog right between the hills leading to Cumberland, but the rest of the sky was clear. It looked like another good day was shaping up. We continued on through the tunnel and then to the divide. There we took another quick break before starting the long, gradual descent back to Connellsville.
From the Continental Divide we started out slowly west, but we were moving along more comfortably now. We made another stop in Meyersdale, at the train station visitors center, and spent several minutes looking around at both the train displays, pictures, and the area history. After leaving the center, our pace quickened, and we made excellent time until our next stop at the Wymps Gap Fossil Quarry. I did end up finding a fossil of some shells, and thought I had put the rock in my tow securely enough, only to discover later that it must have fallen out. Oh well, we can always take a trip up there later to look for another one. Anyway, from there we rode in quickly to Rockwood, took a short break there, and then continued on towards Confluence. The section from a few miles west of Rockwood to the Pinkerton Bridges is where the trail usually slows you down, at least traveling east. On our return though, we really made good time. Before we knew it we were passing through Markelton, and then over the first of the Pinkerton bridges and around the bend in the river to the second bridge. Neither of us felt like stopping at all, and we continued on through Fort Hill and down into Harnedsville at a pretty good speed. We slowed down a little after that, and took our time going into Confluence. We pedaled over the Youghiogheny River bridge and then up the trail along the Yough River. We stopped at the George Washington campsite overlooking the rivers, and took a brief rest.
Even right there in Confluence, we could tell that things were going to get a lot more crowded. We had passed several people between Meyersdale and our current location, but now that it was later a lot more people had come out to ride. Not to mention that the section between Confluence and Ohiopyle seems to be the most heavily-used of the trail. We figured we were in for a lot of traffic there, and that proved to be true. It might not be exaggerating to say that we encountered more people on the 10 miles from Confluence to Ohiopyle than we did on the entire rest of the trip. We were constantly either passing people or having people ride by us in the opposite direction. It wasn't even worth trying to ride side by side, so I stayed behind Dad for just about all of this section. Despite the amount of bikers out though, we were still able to keep up a pretty fast pace, and made it Ohiopyle around 1:30pm. We took a quick break there at the visitor's center, and my Dad called my Mom to let her know that we'd be arriving back in Connellsville around 3pm. Then we set off on the last leg of our journey, the section of the trail that we were most familiar with, partly eager to return home and partly sad that the trip would be over.
For most of the 16.5 miles between Connellsville and Ohiopyle we kept up a good pace, slowing down occassionally to get a drink from our water bottles or to look at something. We didn't stop at the Gas Line overlook again since there were people already there, and since both of us felt pretty good we rode all the way back to Connellsville without a break. At least I can't remember taking one anyway. We were very used to this section, so it was more a matter of just getting back to Connellsville and being able to say that we had accomplished our goal of biking to Washington D.C. and back! As we approached town, we saw all the familiar sights that let you know you're getting closer and closer to Connellsville: Mile marker 83, where over the river and about 1000 feet higher is the location known as "Lookout Point", which offers a magnificent view of the river and the surrounding mountains; Mile marker 84, which is located in a huge bend in the river; the South Connellsville Rod and Gun Club; the waterfall; the water station; the acid mine drainage creek; the 2 bridges; the long straightaway; the Allegheny Power station right along the trail; and finally the last downhill stretch, opening up to the two merging streets, with the trail on the left, and St. Rita's church in between the streets. We were back! My Mom and my sister pulled up and Dad and I were greeted and congratulated. We didn't pose for a victory photo or even tell each other congratulations yet. We hurried up and loaded the bikes on the car and drove back to Mom and Dad's. There were things we had to do. On the way home we started to fill my Mom and sister in on some of the details of the trip, but there was a lot to tell and not much time to say it. In about ten minutes we were back at my parents' house. There we unloaded the bikes, shook hands and congratulated each other on a great trip! Like I said, we both had things to do right away. Dad had about half an hour to get ready and go to Mass, since he had to start work the next morning at 7am. And I needed to get up to my Grandparent's and get their grass cut, and then go get some groceries. I guess there wasn't time to rest just yet, but it would come soon enough. The way I felt though, the rest could wait. The trip seemed too good to stop. But then again, I was tired and I know my Dad was too, and maybe the opportunity to make the trip again will come up soon. We both hope so!
Trip Summary/ Physical Aspects:
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath
Bike Washington
Great Allegheny Passage
I would highly recommend making either this trip or one similar, on either the Great Allegheny Passage, Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath, or both. You could make the full trip, go one way, or just do part of the way down and back. Forget all the physical aspects of the riding — the experience is well worth it, and worth any soreness or discomfort that you may experience! With some training and time, most people in decent physical condition, who are able to ride a bike for several miles comfortably already, should be able to make a long trip. As we did, I would plan on beginning your training about 6 months in advance, if not further away from the trip than that. The longer the trip you plan to make, the longer you need to train for it. Start with some comfortable, light rides, and just work on increasing your distances slowly. As you will see when viewing the Calorie/Food Conumption Chart, you need to eat! I ate an average of 5164 calories per day, while keeping an average heartrate of 105, including our breaks. Had my average heartrate been higher, my calorie consumption would've had to go up as well. One of the problems was protein — I didn't get enough of it! I think I did get tired of the protein bars after awhile, but I should've had more of them. My Dad and I did not stop for food throughout the day. So, we had to eat what we carried with us, which was a lot of protein bars, energy bars, some fruit, and other things. Compared with my carbohydrates and fats, my protein should've been higher. In the future I may bring some protein powder and just mix that with the water and/or gatorade.
The day we left, June 15th, I weighed in at 169 lbs. and my body fat, according to the digital body fat analyzer, was 10.8%. Based on that number and my weight, my fat weight was 18.25lbs. and my lean weight was 150.75lbs.
On Monday, June 23rd, I weighed in at 168lbs. and my body fat was 9.8%. Based on that number and my weight, my fat weight was 16.46lbs. and my lean weight was 151.54lbs.
So, according to those numbers, I lost one pound overall, I lost approximately 1.75lbs. of fat, and I gained approximately 0.75lbs. of muscle. However, due to the margin of error with the digital body fat analyzer, I can't say with any certainty that I lost any body fat or gained any muscle. I may have, I may not have, who knows?
One of the things that I really noticed was how fast my body adapted to the demands of the trip. Specifically my heartrate. As the trip went on, I could just tell that my heart wasn't working as hard. This was really evident on the way back, and I found myself thinking how easy it was to keep up the approximately 10 mph pace. Looking at the data of my heartrate, it did follow a downward trend, especially compared with the average speed. The first day I averaged 114 beats per minute, while keeping a pace of 10.5 mph. By the last day, my average heartrate was 100, while keeping up a speed of 10.6 mph. I can't put too much faith in the data though, because these averges did include breaks, and the trail was different on each day. I didn't go through the trouble of calculating my average heartrate during riding time only, which would've been helpful. So, the numbers could be off. Overall though, we seemed to take more breaks on the way down than on the way back. This was more for picture taking than just because we needed a rest. The first and last day also included the greatest elevation changes, while the 4 middle days on the Towpath were relatively flat considering the distances we rode.
One thing I forgot to do was weigh my tow. I got the tow around May 27th, and for most (if not all) of my longer rides after that, I used this to simulate what it would be like riding with extra weight. Initially I put a few things in that we'd be taking on the trip, but the weight wasn't much. On one of the rides to Ohiopyle and back, I put a 25lb. weight in. And for the trip, it was pretty full. The load included a spare tire, a gallon jug of water, two 32oz. Gatorade bottles, my backpack and a few pairs of clothes, food, inner tubes and bike supplies, my camera, and a few more odds and ends. I wish I would've weighed it though. As we continued on, the weight went down as we ate more and more of the food. And on the way back I started to use some of the water in the gallon jug. I think on the last day I just emptied this, so that was 8lbs. less right there. My Dad was also carrying some extra weight. He had his clothes, some inner tubes and other bike supplies, tools, a little food, a small pump, and a few other things.
Here are some notes/tips on the trip:
Please click on the following link to see the data from the trip:
