Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park

Canal place visitor center - closed for Covid-19 :(

Day 5 - Cumberland, MD to 15 mile creek campsite at mm 141

We wake up at the Ramada in Cumberland and Annie discovers her bike's rear tire is flat. She uses the spare she has and calls the bike shop to order a second spare in case she gets a flat later. This is a good shop to use if you are planning a GAP ride. They offer shuttles, and just about everything you could need for a successful trip. And, they are located right on the square at canal place.

We walk over to the famous M&M Bakery for donuts to fuel our morning on the path. M&M (named for Mary and Merl) is a small family owned business which has been cooking up donuts and pastries since 1966. It is open daily from 5:30 am 'til noon in case you want a sugar fix. Their apple fritters are top notch!

The towpath trail stretches before us for the next 184.5 miles

The towpath trail stretches before us for the next 184.5 miles. The surface is variable - sometimes smooth crushed stone, sometimes just a faint dirt trail. It follows the winding oxbows of the river. The NPS has restored some of the locks and lockhouses. There are historical markers along the way and lots of information on Civil War battles. The Park Service has considerably improved the surface since my last trip on this trail. But, it is still very easy to imagine the mules trudging the path and the lock keepers' wives hanging up laundry to dry while their children run around and get properly muddy. The birdsong-filled woods look much as they would have a century ago. Wrens, woodpeckers, song sparrows, and nuthatches provide a soundtrack as we ride along. The spring peepers and tree frogs join in the panoply of song. It's a good day.

regrouping after exiting the Paw Paw tunnel

At milepost 155.2 is the 3118 foot Paw Paw Tunnel. It took fourteen years to build the tunnel and it is a very long and dark ride on a bicycle.

Canal boats often experienced long wait times at this point in their journey

Our campsite is good except for the black flies which ignore everyone but me. Fortunately, I am prepared with a defensive head net.

Cook team Jeff and Tom made a substantial Thanksgiving dinner complete with stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy.

and salad by Chef Jeff

Day 6: Fifteen Mile Creek Campground to the Red Roof Inn, Williamsport, Maryland at mm 100

morning light on the aqueduct near our campsite

We made the wonderful discovery that the Western Maryland Rail Trail (WMRT) starts just about at our campsite. This is a 28 mile long smooth asphalt PAVED surface path. It parallels the C&O canal. The weather is clear but very windy as we fly along the asphalt at a much faster rate. The winds start to get stronger and big gusts are bringing down branches in the woods nearby. Kristel begins to fear for all of our lives. Fortunately we are wearing helmets to protect us from falling limbs. And, the sun is still shining!

Fort Frederick is our planned lunch stop and after eating in the (very windy) campground we take a quick trip up the hill to the restored fort. According to Maryland DNR, The stone fort built in 1776 protected Maryland's frontier settlers during the French and Indian war. The fort housed Red Coat prisoners during the Revolutionary War and Union soldiers protecting the canal during the Civil War. It is beautifully restored.

Forts are always up hills of course

The restored barracks are closed due to covid-19 but we looked in the windows

Kristel is still smiling despite the windy conditions and long miles

Click on the yellow text if you are near Big Pool, Maryland. Fort Frederick is worth a visit

By the time we reach mile marker 100, the wind event includes 50 mph gusts which are interesting to say the least. Tom checks the weather on his phone and reads, "rain starting in eight minutes." We have been spending the afternoon doing essential trail maintenance and riding as fast as we can.

wow! Some big trees are down

Jeff and Steve combine lots of trail clearing interspersed with some riding.

"To me, it doesn't matter whether it's raining or the sun is shining or whatever; as long as I'm riding a bike I know I'm the luckiest guy in the world." Mark Cavendish

Since the weather front is obviously blowing in, we quickly leave the canal path and cross over into the town of Williamsport. The women seek shelter under a very nice overhang on the lee side of the building. The guys are over in the wind. But, they do have a little roof over their heads. This is another NPS visitor center which is unfortunately closed (Damned Covid.)