71.1 miles today, 3427 miles total so far.
We are closing in on Pittsburgh, and with that comes the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) bike path. In our desire to get within one day’s travel distance of the GAP , we charted a course of about 70 miles, knowing the first half would be hilly, and the second half flat.
What we did not know was that the day would include:
> a fair amount of loose gravel and rocks
> a long, steep decent down a steep, rocky, washed-out “road”
> an even steeper 475 foot climb, locally called Dawson Climb, that summits at a grave yard where one cyclist was reported to just stay and camp after the climb (hopefully not permanently)
> an impromptu front porch party with some locals that was entirely too short, which included some of the best lasagna I have ever had
> a welcome beer in West Virginia
> a very welcome beer in Pennsylvania
> three flat tires for Colin
> 3678 feet of climbing
> extended and confused pathfinding at the junction between the Panhandle bike trail and the Montour bike trail
The host for the lasagna party recently lost a favorite pet. He shared photos, and I have included two of them here. His convenience store bares the bear’s name.
This was the first time that we arrived at camp well after dark, and we arrived safe, very tired, though in good spirits. The root cause of two flats remains unknown, so we shall see what the next day brings.
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