C&O Canal Towpath Solo Tour Report

[emily_in_nc]

Thanks for the tour report! I rode just a small section of it during Bike Virginia in 2004, and I thought it would be such fun to go back and tour on it. I was on a skinny-tired road bike, which did not work well at all, since there had been a lot of rain in days prior, and the towpath was muddy. What kind of bike did you ride?

[divingbiker]

I'm glad you missed most of the rain. Sounds like a great time!

[owlice]

The trip was fun! It was great to meet Zen and ride with her. And we had cookies, too!!!!

Zen, sounding organized is different from being organized. I felt pretty organized for this, though, indeed; doesn't always happen that way!

divingbiker, I had some rain four out of the five riding days, but only one day, Thursday, when it required I take protection against it, so overall, it was okay. No rain yesterday; it just looked as though it was going to rain all day!!

The day I was sick, the forecast had been for rain, but it was gorgeous, gorgeous out, of course!!

It was a great time; I'm very glad I did this!

emily, I ride a Giant Sedona, tank model. It's a heavy bike, a hybrid (or "comfort bike," as Giant calls it): upright position, fat tires. It's here:

It's like a Timex -- takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'. It's done better by me than I have by it, but I'm trying to be a better owner now!

And you are right about skinny tires on the C&O. I do see road bikes on the towpath sometimes, but that'd be downright dangerous, I should think, in some areas, such as the portion of the trail I rode yesterday. It was very rocky and a rough ride on any bike.

tulip, thanks! I have my eye on the GAP now -- Pittsburgh to Cumberland. Maybe that will be my next one! There are also a couple of good trails in the area that would work for an overnight on a weekend.

Tri Girl, the C&O is great for touring. There are free campsites along it for those who want to camp and lodging and food available at convenient intervals along the way. There's a good bit of history along the way, interesting buildings, and all that nature, too!

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I stopped by my next door neighbors' house this evening to give them cookies and a thank you note -- the husband fed the feral cats for me while I was gone -- and his wife told me her husband worried about me the whole time I was gone, especially when I didn't return home on Friday as planned. Had I been another day late, I'd have called them, but didn't for the one day. They were both concerned about the feral beasties, too, who didn't get fed yesterday until I got home. I feel bad now that I didn't call; I never dreamed he'd worry.

[channlluv]

What a superb report. I love your detailed descriptions of everything in your bags! Congratulations on your first tour. Really, really well done all around, although I'm sorry you got sick. I've had vertigo before, though not in a long time. I'm glad you had a safe place to hang out and that the medication worked.

I can't wait to hear about your Gap tour.

Roxy

[owlice]

Thanks, Roxy! We'll see what the next tour might be, but I have to admit the GAP sounds like a good possibility! And I got to ride a few feet of it, as the hotel in Cumberland backs right up to it and the towpath! (How convenient is that?! It was great!)



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I left out some other stats I meant to post, so....
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MORE STATS
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Number of bruises resulting from trip: Too many to count
My legs are covered with bruises. Many many bruises, some little, some big, some painful, some not. Bruises on bruises and bruises running into bruises. Most I do not remember getting.

Percentage of spider webs at height of my upper lip: at least 98.9%
Apparently, the average C&O Canal Towpath spider which drapes a web line across the towpath likes a certain height, because 98.9% (or more!) of the spider webs I rode through hit me in the upper lip. It was uncanny. Not the chin, not the lower lip, not across the nose, nor on my bare arms.... nearly every spider web I know I rode through hit me in the space between my upper lip and my nose.

(We will not think about where the spiders who made those webs might have been when I rode through the webs!!!)

[sfa]

Great tour report! I'm glad you made it through and had a good time (in spite of illness--I'm so sorry that happened!). Reading about your trip makes me want to do the same trip even more. Sigh. Thanks for taking the time to write this up!

The space between your upper lip and your nose is called the philtrum. Don't ask me why I hold on to that bit of trivial knowledge, but now you know where the spiders like to hit you.

Sarah

[Biketouringrook]

Very, very nice.....love it! I can hardly wait to do mine.