Day 3- Rockwood to Frostburg

Sleep in new places can be difficult  Is the bed too hard or soft?  Do the pillows feel right?  Is the room too hot?  Is there a train blowing its horn 100 yards away?   And that doesn’t even consider the anti-snoring measures we are taking to make life without other equipment bearable haha   But we are doing ok   

Allergies are another thing we didn’t give a lot of thought to but should have   Things are blooming and dying at different times along the route so itchy eyes and tickling throats are the order of the day   We packed several allergy helps but didn’t think to bring Flonase.  That will be put on the list of things we should have brought and changes that need made to the itinerary.

Did some stretching and ate an amazing breakfast to get us on our way….homemade pumpkin syrup and magnolia ginger syrup that Josiah makes in his basement in Penn Hills.  Definitely recommend the Gingerbread House https://www.thegbhouse.com

Conversation around the breakfast table included Marcus Aurelius, Cubs pitchers and bike gearing-quite eclectic. The other house guests were a couple from Michigan who were attending a cubs game and two guys from NC who were riding the trail to Cumberland before heading back to NC. We waved everyone off, had Josiah take a picture next to his amazing Dahlias and headed to the Rockwood trailhead to do a once-over of the bikes before we headed out for the day. JB’s front brake got a little out of wack during the shuttle ride but it was easily fixed. 

What do you talk about for so many miles??  The conversation ranges, but one of the most interesting topics was the heirachy of cyclists on the GAPCO. There is definitely an unspoken scale of respect. 

Regular, unassisted pedal bike

UnsupportedEpic distance-camping

Unsupported Entire GAPCO-camping

Unsupported Entire GAPCO-glamping

Supported entire gapco – camping

Supported entire gapco– clamping 

Unsupported day trips

E-bikes (upper class is pedal assist only, lower class is throttle with turbo)  The same categories drop down for this group as the scene in the pedal bike group. The most difficult category to remedy is the E-biker who is also camping. Where do they charge their battery?

Today was to be a pretty short ride— 45 miles to Cumberland, Maryland and the end of the great Allegheny passage. The strange thing about the itinerary was that almost everything worth seeing was in the first 25 miles.   The scenery was beautiful, but began to feel monotonous. It did change a little bit from a wooded canopy to some open farm land and the wonderful aromas that are associated with that terrain.

We came across Meyers burial ground. Most of the graves were dated early-1800s.  Twenty-four of the 38 graves belonging to infants or children who died from sicknesses commonly curable today.  It is hard to imagine life outside the innovations and technology we have today. Riding along the trail, you can catch glimpses of how difficult life was when the first settlers were laying down the railroad track. 

The Salisbury viaduct is the longest on the trail. It crosses a major road, a railroad, a major highway, Casselman River and a bunch of cornfields. 

Bollman bridge- finally got a picture of JB riding. This bridge has been moved 3 times prior to it finally resting here.  Most of the bridges are dated 1911. 

The next major architectural structure was a curved viaduct. There are only so many pictures you can take of bridges, tunnels, and tree. We did not take a picture of this particular viaduct no pictures. 

One thing I was hoping to come across was a small fruit and vegetable stand. When we got to a road crossing in Larimer, we spotted just the right stand.  It happened to be an Amish farm. We got the most delicious Honeycrisp apples I have had. Everything seems to taste better after you eat dust for several hours.

What you were seeing here is a picture of what I affectionately termed “ The barren and horribleness”. After you’ve been climbing uphill for over 100 miles, You yearn for anything other than elevation gain. Unfortunately, as you get closer to the continental divide, the highest point on the trail, there is less tree cover, and more wind.  JB said that I was becoming cranky. I don’t know what the equivalent to “hangry” is in biking-uphill terms, but that’s what I was.

And then we were there — continental divide!!  This is where, if you put a rubber duck in the river on one side, it will flow to the Gulf of America. If you put it in the river on the other side, it will flow to the Atlantic Ocean. Even more beautiful than the artwork and arch was the downhill that followed.  The next pictures will be of some of the beautiful landscape we could see across the valley. 

The big savage tunnel was super impressive, being almost twice as long as the Salisbury viaduct and very dark.  If you are from Pittsburgh, you may have the urge to hold your breath as you enter the tunnel -don’t.  You won’t make.  

The big savage closes during the winter months. There are huge doors on either end.

It is a fully lit tunnel, unless you accidentally keep your sunglasses on. It is much more enjoyable to ride it if you remember to take them off. There were a couple lights that were not working, and those areas were extremely dark.

The Pennsylvania /Maryland line is also the Mason & Dixon Line. It was hard to get a good picture of the area. We had an interesting conversation with a local who is in the area looking for rattlesnakes. Apparently, someone moved the rattlesnakes about a mile down the road three years ago and they haven’t had any good rattlesnakes to watch since then. I have to say I was quite glad there were no rattlesnakes.

Day three lunch on the itinerary may be another thing that we need to reconsider. The original plan was to go to Mountain city coffee In Frostburg, but it closed at two and we did not get in until right around that time. We did find Gianni’s Pizza and wings was open and decided that would be a good place. Unfortunate part about Frostburg is the only way to get there is up. And I don’t mean just a little up. Take a look.

The metal art is quite amazing.  It is made of bicycle parts.  The problem is that the surface is deep, loose gravel and the grade is so steep, you have to push your bike (mine is weighing in at 50 pounds) up switchbacks.  And just when you think you are at the top 

and in the clear, there is 

another hill so steep they built stairs to climb.  We left out bikes locked at the bottom and started to walk.  At the top of the stairs….want to guess…more hill!!

Check out the art…

Bottom line, Gianni’s was worth the hike, but may not be something a non-adventure loving person would be happy doing. Another difficulty is trying to figure out what to do with leftovers. I can’t stand the thought of wasting.  But you don’t want to eat a heavy lunch

 

jump back on the bike.   Fortunately, we were able to pack the leftovers nicely in a pannier and took off downhill toward Cumberland. 

The speed limit said 15 mph, but the downhill ride was a little faster. We had to be careful of loose surface in several places.

Bone cave was to be at mile 4 but we weren’t sure if it was something we would be able to see. Apparently, several bones found in the cave are now in the Smithsonian. The rock strata was very interesting. 

The last 10 miles cross crossed the train tracks down into Cumberland.  Lover’s Leap is a beautiful line of rock with a sad story.  

We made it!!!  148.8 miles over 3 days.  The visitor center was closed because it is Monday…ugh everything is closed on Mondays.  

Monday also struck our dinner plans.  Baltimore Street Grille was opened but packed.  We were able to find Uncle Jack’s Pizza & Pub where we enjoyed a great Sicilian pizza. 

And by the way….there was a lot of dirt.