Month: September 2020

Yesterday completed the first half of our journey. We traveled the entire length of the Great Allegheny Passage from Pittsburgh PA to Cumberland MD over three days. Today began part 2: to go back the way we came and return to Pittsburgh. We will be staying in different towns on the way back so that we see other places and people.

Today’s leg of our return was from Cumberland up to Confluence PA – about 63 miles plus a small detour into Frostburg.

When we last saw our hero’s trusty bike, it was left at the bike shop with a broken rear spoke on the drive side. They estimated that my bike would be ready around 9:30AM. That’s a bit later than we’d hoped, but I was just relieved that my bike could be repaired quickly and get us back underway.

We had a very long day ahead of us – about 65 miles, including a 23+ mile climb from Cumberland up to the Continental Divide. Given the distance and climb, we were going to get started as soon as my bike was ready. I called at 9:30 and they said it would be another hour. Again, I was just thankful it was going to be fixed. So about 10:30 we decided to just go over to the shop and wait there. When I walked in, the bike was ready to go. So I paid my $30 for the repair (a bargain, in my opinion) and got on the road.

The climb up out of Cumberland is really not as bad as it sounds or looks on the map. The first time I did this climb back in 2012 I was very intimidated by the length of the climb and the overall change in elevation. What I learned is that by just going down a gear or two and patiently chugging on, you can do it. Yes, it is ~1800 ft. of constant climb, but if you don’t think too hard, you can just press on. There’s no coincidence that after I reached the top, my average speed jumped dramatically.

Another great part of the climb is that you are treated to some wonderful views. We have been blessed with gorgeous weather all week!

A few miles from the top is Frostburg. There is a nice trailhead here with water. We stopped for a short break to get some calories for the rest of the climb and met some people here. Shortly after, we took the switchbacks up to the train station that serves the tourism train. Unfortunately, the train does not appear to be running. The tracks have a nice haze of rust on them. I’m assuming this is another temporary (?) impact of COVID-19.

A little ways further we crossed back from the South (Maryland) to the North (Pennsylvania). No more sweet tea, I guess.

As we stopped for a rest and a few pictures, a couple we met at the Frostburg trailhead came riding along. We talked a bit more and I took her picture with my ride mascot “Ms. Bug”.

Ms. Bug is a neat little crochet lady bug that my daughter made for me a few years ago. I used to travel with a different ride mascot, Mr. Hamster, but he’s away at Rose-Hulman getting his head stuffed with knowledge and keeping my Daughter company.

I decided to stop once again at my favorite lookout. This is the spot just south-east of the entrance to the Big Savage tunnel. I’ve been here several times, but it is still amazing each time. You can see the valley below, roughly the same elevation as Cumberland, I think.

And then we made it! Just a short distance after going through the Big Savage mountain via the long tunnel, we arrived at the first goal for the day: We reached the Eastern Continental Divide again.

Our second goal for the day was Meyersdale and lunch! We made very quick time towards Meyersdale. Without the climbing grade, we were plugging along between 18-20 miles per hour until we got there. We dropped into town at about 2:15PM, only to find out that the GI Dayroom was closing shop for the day. Ugh! It is a great place to eat, but missed it on both directions. I guess that means we just have to come back and ride the GAP again!

We had a quick lunch of chili dogs at ”Take 6” in downtown Meyersdale, and then climbed back up the street to the trail. Not a bad climb, but I felt it a little in the quads today.

Next up are the great bridges. Just NW of Meyersdale we crossed over the Salisbury Viaduct again. Pictures really don’t do it justice.

We pressed on at a good clip but decided to take a short stop at the trailhead in Rockwood. We sat in the shade and drank some much needed water. Too bad the bike shop wasn’t open.

Our last stop for the day is our AirBnB in Confluence. We arrived and got cleaned up. We called a couple of restaurants within walking distance, but nothing was open. The good news is that we’re all three pretty easy to feed. We walked over to the local supermarket and purchased some food we could easily heat up at the rental house. I would not say it was gourmet, but it did the trick. I had a beef pot-pie and some simulated fried rice. I’ve certainly had worse meals.

Tomorrow we head about 55-ish miles to West Newton. We’re going to do a simple breakfast here and then go in search of a really GOOD breakfast in Ohiopyle, about 15 miles down the road. Hopefully we’ll have more success this time.

Overall a great day of riding! Doesn’t get much better than good company, good riding, great weather, and making memories.

Until tomorrow, may the Lord bless you and keep you.

Peace.

The hostel we stayed in is about 30 feet from a major train line and about 25 feet from a railroad crossing. So every time a train would come through, the noise of the trains and the horn would be loud. However I was tired enough, plus earplugs, and I didn’t hear a single one of the trains last night. I usually sleep until 5-6AM. Today I woke up at 6:45. Needless to say, I felt great.

We had a simple breakfast of energy bars and some canned peaches. We decided that we would make our way to Meyersdale – about 14 miles away. Once again, the weather was picture perfect. Cool, crisp, dry, and blue skies.

This section of the GAP between Rockwood and Cumberland is probably my favorite part. There are patches of woods, interspersed with railroad bridges, tunnels, and tremendous views of the mountains.

My favorite bridge on any rail-trail I’ve done is the Salisbury Viaduct. This bridge is a converted train viaduct, stretching about 1800 feet long over the valley below. It crosses a major highway, the Casselman river, and some farm country. The views are great. You also get your first glimpses of the windmills that are high in the mountain ahead.

Once we arrived in Meyersdale, we rode down the hill into town and found a place to eat. We really wanted to eat at the GI Dayroom, but it was closed due to Labor Day. We wandered around and found a neat little place called Donges. The food was good and we enjoyed our time before climbing our way back up from downtown Meyersdale to the trail.

As we were sitting down during breakfast, we ran into Russ. There is something that happens so often during bike touring, I feel compelled to describe it. Some people call it “trail magic”. I see it more as “Godincidences”. These are the opportunities to run into people that you know, day after day. Yes, you’re riding the same direction, but each at your own pace, each choosing different places to eat, sleep and so on. Yet with all of these combinations and permutations, somehow you keep crossing paths. I have had this happen on every bike tour I’ve done in the past ten years.

With Russ, we “met” on facebook. He posted in a group of trail enthusiasts that he’d be riding the GAP. Without any planning whatsoever, I bumped into him outside of Pittsburgh and we introduced ourselves. Then we’ve crossed paths several times over the past 3 days. Pretty neat.

Back underway we made our trek towards the Eastern Continental Divide. A few more really neat bridges and tunnels. This bridge is a Bollman truss bridge. It was not originally part of the railroad here, but was moved here to span the road below for the bike trail. I think the cast iron ornamentals are interesting. You don’t see these kinds of details on modern bridges.

This is another of my favorite bridges. It was originally designed for two train widths. Only one side is used and was converted for the trail. This bridge is several hundred feet long and provides spectacular views of the valley to its left and right.

A few miles later, we finally made it to the Continental Divide. This is the high point that divides the eastern watershed from the central watershed. On the east side, water flows into the Atlantic Ocean. On the west side, water flows into the Gulf of Mexico.

On this map, we rode from Pittsburgh on the right side to the “you are here” marker. We continued today down the mountain into Cumberland later today. Tomorrow, we turn around and make the climb back up to the top!

The way down from the divide is always a fun ride. It is a gentle grade, but enough that it makes for a very easy ride. There are a couple of tunnels along the way, including the Big Savage tunnel. This tunnel is over 3200’ feet long. You take off the sunglasses, turn on the headlight, and enjoy the pleasant cool temperatures in the tunnel. Just wonderful!

After emerging from the tunnel you are immediately treated to one of the best views I’ve ever seen from my bike. From up here, you can see several layers of mountains in the distance.

Just before we went into the tunnel, JB noticed that my rear wheel had a slight wobble. I looked down, and sure enough, it had a wobble! That is not good. When we stopped, I checked and I had a broken spoke. It is not a common occurrence, but it needs to be taken seriously. I called ahead to the bike shop in Cumberland and made arrangements to have someone work on my bike.

Moving along, the next stop was the Mason & Dixon line separating Maryland from Pennsylvania. We took the requisite picture of us being in two states at the same time.

We decided not to stop anywhere else on the way down so that I could get to the bike shop and hopefully catch the mechanic today. We made really good time and found our way to the bike shop.

On the plus side, they did happen to have the right spoke size. That’s a blessing – there are many sizes and they happened to have the right one. On the down side, the mechanic was already gone so it won’t get fixed until tomorrow morning. That will delay our start tomorrow morning until I get my bike back. In the grand scheme of things, that’s not a problem. I’m thankful for the help!

We took our picture at the “Mile 0” marker for the Great Allegheny Passage and then went to the Fairfield Inn to get checked in and cleaned up.

We had some trouble finding a place open for dinner, but we eventually got pizza here. The food was decent but the service was … well … anyway the food was good.

So now I’m sitting at the Fairfield, finishing up our laundry and writing my blog. It has been a very good day.

Tomorrow we begin our return trip back to Pittsburgh. I designed our itinerary to stop in different towns on the way back. Tomorrow will be a long day. We have 63 miles from here to Confluence. That includes a 23 mile climb from Cumberland back up to the Continental Divide. Hopefully my bike is ready early so we can get underway.

Until tomorrow, may the Lord bless you and keep you.

Peace!

Our stay last night at the Comfort Inn was uneventful and pleasant. We found a way to fit three bikes and an air mattress in. It was a little like Tetris, but really not too bad.

Our breakfast was again a bit underwhelming due to COVID. The hotel provided a bag breakfast of a microwave sausage and egg sandwich, a granola bar, and and apple. It was enough to get us on the road. We decided we would eat a real breakfast in the next major town, Ohiopyle.

Leaving Connellsville you pass these neat grain (?) silos. The first time I saw them back in 2012, the paint was very vibrant. The art is still fun, but the murals are looking a bit worn down.

As we pedaled along, we were continuously treated to some fantastic scenery and views of the river. Here’s one example. As we stopped to get a snack, we met up with a couple of young ladies who were cycling their way to DC. We talked here for a few minutes and wished them well on their journey.

This part of the trail has several places where you can see the shale and coal in layers. I really enjoy the beautiful views as well as just being out in the middle of nowhere. The trail conditions have been fabulous.

As you get closer to the laurel highlands, the river starts to wind back and forth. So when the railroads went through, they would build bridges across the river instead of having to go far out of their way. These railroad bridges are now converted for cycling and pedestrian traffic. The views are wonderful. Today we were treated to great weather, blue skies, and cool temperatures.

We eventually made it to our first stop: Ohiopyle. This is a great little town. The first time I came through here back in 2012, it was a quaint town. In the mean time, the traffic has really increased. Ohiopyle is in a state park and people come from all over for the recreation. There is great whitewater rafting, biking, hiking, and so on. If you are into outdoorsy stuff, you should make a stop here.

We decided to have an early lunch in Ohiopyle. Not only is the traffic up, but so are the prices! I paid $13 for a grilled chicken salad. It was good … but not $13 good.

From Ohiopyle, we pushed on to our next stop: Confluence. Confluence is so named because it is the confluence of two major rivers and a creek. From the sky the intersection of these make the shape of a “turkey foot”. We will be staying overnight in Confluence on our way back, but we decided to check out the town a little bit today. We went in search of ice cream for JB and Billy.

After making a loop around the town square, the owner of Confluence Cycles told us about a good place called “Outflow”. We went over there and JB and Billy each got a wonderful looking cone. I can’t have dairy (booo!) so I got a cherry slush puppy. It was good, but the ice cream really looked much better.

Leaving Confluence we made our path to Rockwood – our destination for the day. Most of the path between the two looks much like this:

This tunnel is the Pinkerton tunnel. It was in total disrepair for many years after being abandoned by the railroad. You used to have to take a 1.5 mile bypass around the Pinkerton Horn to get around it. The GAP raised enough money to have the tunnel repaired and lined with corrugated steel to shore it up and make it safe.

Right after the tunnel (on the south-east side), you cross the Casselman river. The views are great!

We finally made it to Rockwood. My legs are unusually tired for a 50 mile ride. Hopefully a good evening of rest will help a bit. We have an easier ride tomorrow, too.

We are staying at the Hostel on Main in Rockwood. It’s clean and comfortable. Upon checking in, I saw this guy. I recognized his face – I have a great memory for faces. I asked him his name and sure enough, he is a friend of a friend of mine who lives in Pittsburgh! This is John. I met John last year when my friend Rich and I (and John) rode with a large group from Cincinnati to Xenia Ohio. It is a really small world.

Our timing for staying in Rockwood was a little less than ideal for dinner. Everything except the local gas station/bar/mini-mart was closed because it is Sunday. However, as we wandered around town, we found a small grocery store a block away from the hostel. We picked up some pasta and jarred sauce. When we got back to the hostel, I found a casserole cooking thingy. I filled it with water and boiled the pasta then poured the sauce on it. For a grand total of $5.49, the three of us ate till we were full and had leftovers. The sauce wasn’t the best, but it was a decent dinner!

Tomorrow we finish the eastbound trek. We will go from here up to the continental divide. Then we have a 22-ish mile descent down into Cumberland. Looking forward to some beautiful views along the way.

This next section of the GAP is my favorite. We’ll see several tunnels, bridges, and some fabulous vistas. Stay tuned!

Until tomorrow, may the Lord bless you and keep you!

Last night we stayed at the Hampton Inn in downtown Pittsburgh, right near the convention center. The room was really nice. As an added bonus, it was a large enough room to comfortably have 3 guys on separate beds and 3 bikes in the room. Breakfast was meager: due to COVID, there wasn’t any breakfast – just some instant oatmeal. I guess that’s good because I really wanted oatmeal anyway!

As we started, the weather was crisp and cool. Couldn’t have really wanted better weather. Blue skies, cool temps, and not much wind.

Leaving the hotel, we picked up a trail on the south-east side of the Allegheny and rode straight to The Point state park. The is the confluence of the three rivers in Pittsburgh.

After leaving the point, you have to go a few blocks down the Boulevard of the Allies before getting on the GAP trail. About half way, JB looked left and called over. We went back and found PPG Park. PPG is also known as Pittsburgh Plate Glass. When you see the skyline of Pittsburgh, there is a really neat skyscraper that looks like it has a castle rampart at the top. That’s the PPG building we saw. The complex of buildings surrounds a courtyard with a fountain. Each of the buildings is covered entirely with plate glass. Very appropriate for PPG. I’ve never seen it up close before. It was worth the diversion!

We made our way at a comfortable, yet quick, pace eastbound to the Hot Metal bridge. The Hot Metal bridge is named by its former function. It used to carry molten metal from one side of the river to the other during steel production. Now it carries cars, runners, and bikes. It has a separate bridge deck just for bike and pedestrian traffic. We stopped mid way and took pictures. It has a great view of downtown. You can see the PPG skyscraper off in the distance.

We pressed on and made our next stop in Homestead. This is the site of the violent clash between the Pinkerton strike-breakers and unionized steel workers. Several people were killed in these clashes. Ultimately the workers stayed fast and won the day. I found it to be an appropriate place to ponder as we enter this Labor Day weekend.

As you leave Pittsburgh, there are several really nice bridges that help the GAP go across the various train tracks and switch yards. They are fun to go up and over and back down, plus they give some neat views.

The last two bridges for a while took us into, and then out of, McKeesport. We stopped for a snack and pressed on.

Working our way westward, we passed through several small towns before stopping for lunch in West Newton. We stopped at “The Trailside”. I’ve been here before and it did not disappoint. I also put away about a quart of beverage. I had been drinking all along, but didn’t realize how thirsty I was!

After lunch we pressed on to our stop for the evening: Connellsville. We pulled into the Comfort Inn and got washed up. I was able to get quickly cleaned up and made it to mass at St. Rita’s.

After mass, I met JB and Billy at a local pub for a dozen wings and a Blue Moon. Mmmmmm…. a bit of a guilty pleasure. I don’t often have a beer or chicken wings – but today was a good day to have both.

Tomorrow we head to Rockwood. We’ve got some good sightseeing to do along the way.

Overall, today was a fabulous day of riding. Good weather, good trails, good friends, and not a single zoom or MS Teams call!

Today’s Stats: 62.35 miles, about a gallon of water, one hamburger, 12 tasty chicken wings, one beer, and a great time.

Until tomorrow, may the Lord bless you and keep you.