A Bicycle Trip down the C&O Canal Towpath, Spring 2003
Updated 18 June 2003
In Spring 2003 my father and I spent six days touring the C&O Canal
Towpath. This page contains an account of the trip, links to pictures,
links to information about the towpath, and advice for other riders who may want to ride the towpath.
(Click here to
see a Word document with a small sample of pictures.)
General comments on the trip
The towpath is beautiful. It is
miles and miles and hours and hours of a tree-lined 2-track path with the
Potomac River on one side and a canal on the other. I would ride for a while and think how pretty the path was, ride
for another hour and realize that it was still just as pretty and that I had
days of the same beauty before or after me.
The weather cooperated nicely.
Every day started off overcast with a threat of rain and rain fell as we
rode in vans to breakfast, dinner, and while we were in hotels. Rain did not fall as we rode and the skies
cleared to partly cloudy or sunny each afternoon.
Click here to see some pictures showing the
riders and some scenery.
Monday, 29 April
We left Richmond, VA and drove to Georgetown in Washington, D.C. We parked our car in a parking garage,
loaded our saddlebags onto our bikes. We sheepishly used a parking space for
handicapped people. Dad has a sticker
because of his knees; but we felt odd parking there while loading two bikes in
preparation for a 185-mile trip. The
attendant said that the spaces were rarely used, thereby relieving us of some
guilt.
We rode a few blocks to a Vietnamese restaurant for dinner. Our shuttle arrived while we ate and the
driver joined us. After dinner we
loaded the bikes onto the shuttle bus and drove to Paw Paw, WV, spending the
night in the Red Rooster Hostel.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Monday.
Tuesday, 30 April (Mileposts 184-157)
The shuttle arrived early in the morning and drove just past Cumberland
to an Italian restaurant for breakfast.
We purchased sandwiches to go for lunch. The shuttle then took us to the
terminus of the canal in Cumberland. We
unloaded the bikes and, after taking some pictures, began our tour. After about 1 mile my father’s bike suffered
a flat tire. We changed the tube and
continued on the rest of the day with no other mechanical failure.
Our day ended at Paw Paw, a distance of approximately 28 miles from
Cumberland. Our host (who also drove
the shuttle) had purchased salmon, scallions, squash, asparagus, for us, which
we cooked over charcoal on grills provided by the hostel. Italian Ices, a tour of Paw Paw, and a visit
to the hot tub completed our day.
A highlight of the day was a visit to the Toll Bridge near Oldtown. The
tollkeeper uses a tin cup attached to a long stick to collect tolls of
southbound traffic and a bright orange cup with a long handle to collect from
northbound traffic.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Tuesday.
Wednesday, 1 May (Mileposts 156-125)
We rode from Paw Paw to Hancock, MD, a distance of approximately 32
miles. Highlights were the passage through
the Paw Paw tunnel and lunch a Bill’s in Little Orleans. While eating at Bill’s, a pair of hunters
brought in a turkey to be tagged. I noticed that the freewheel on my bike was
noisy, wobbly, and loose. I pushed the
freewheel towards the center of the bike.
This fixed the noise and wobble but created that impression that a
mechanical problem might follow quickly.
The river bends back and forth along this stretch, providing many fine
views.
In Hancock, we purchased a t-shirt and a long-sleeve flannel shirt from
the Dollar General Store near our lodging, a Super 8 Motel. We ate at Weaver’s, a restaurant suggested
by our host in Paw Paw, who recommended the brown sugar pie.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Wednesday.
Thursday, 2 May (Mileposts 124-100)
This was a short day of riding.
We left Hancock and went approximately 25 miles to Williamsport,
MD. The trip was even easier because
the first 10 miles or so was on a Rails-to-Trails path that runs parallel to
the towpath. We stayed in a Day’s Inn and used the laundry there to clean
clothes for the second half of our trip.
Dad splurged for a shuttle to take us to Hagerstown about 12 miles up
the road for a dinner at a nice German restaurant.
Williamsport has a nice information center for the towpath. We spend time there looking at a movie taken
by a canal keeper who rode a barge up and down the canal. Dad engaged the hostess in much
conversation. The Center has markings
showing how high the water rose during different floods.
A highlight of the day was a visit to Fort Frederick State Park and a
store there. We relaxed and bought
snacks. Dad again engaged a shopkeeper
in extended conversation.
On the ride, the noise on my freewheel increased. Our 5-year old guidebook promised a good
bike shop in Williamsport. However, we
learned that it closed a few years ago.
The locals to whom we spoke did not know of another shop nearby.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Thursday.
Friday, 3 May (Mileposts 99-61)
This was our longest day of riding.
We left Williamsport and rode approximately 42 miles until we reached
Harper’s Ferry. The trip is longer than indicated by the mileposts because of a
detour near milepost 85. The detour
uses hilly country roads to avoid a section of the towpath destroyed by
flood.
My freewheel was getting noisier and looser. I vowed either to find a bike shop in Harper’s Ferry or to
attempt a repair myself. After climbing
the stairs to the pedestrian walkway and riding/walking to Harper’s Ferry, I
asked a park guide about a repair shop. She said one was just up the hill on
High Street. That hill is very steep
and long. I rode to the shop and Dad
walked all the way up the hill to the Hilltop Hotel.
Once at the shop, I learned that the store rented bikes and sold
outdoor equipment but did not repair bikes.
The shopkeeper said her husband could help if he was available. Therefore, with some assistance from her, I
removed the rear tire from my bike.
When I pulled on the freewheel it came off of the axel easily and many
small ball bearing began falling out. I
realized that I did not know what I was doing and had neither tools nor parts
suitable for the task. I gathered all the bearings I could find and put the
assembly back together as best I could.
Leaving the store I found that the freewheel was quiet and secure and
that the freewheel no longer operated.
This meant that I had to peddle whenever the wheels were turning.
Our highlight that day was sitting on the porch at the Hilltop Hotel. We were tired and the view is
spectacular. We made friends with some
Baptist deacons on retreat. Dad got
their attention by telling them that the Baptists in Newport News had gotten
very liberal. When asked why, he said
that they now speak to each other when they see each other in the liquor
store. Our new friends on retreat then
told us how to keep a Baptist from drinking your beer on a fishing trip –
invite two. Later two of Dad’s friends joined us for conversation and
dinner. We arraigned to meet them the
next day for a tour of a lockhouse that had been restored near their house and
some biking.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Friday.
Saturday, 4 May (Mileposts 60-36)
This was a short day of riding.
We went from Harper’s Ferry to White’s Ferry, a distance of
approximately 25 miles.
A highlight of the day was a tour of Lockhouse 29. Dad’s friends had helped organize the repair
and restoration of the lockhouse. They
met us their and brought a friend who had championed the cause and knew much
about the restoration.
Dad’s friends brought some silicone spray that I applied to my
bike. After that, the freewheel worked
perfectly – for about 10 minutes. Then
the noise and wobble returned.
At While’s Ferry, we rode the ferry across the river where a van from
the Ramada Inn picked us up and took us to Leesburg. We explained to the driver that I was interested in finding a
bike shop. He took us to one about 2
miles from the hotel. I received
assurances from the owner of the shop that someone could help me. Dad and the
driver returned to the hotel and I stayed in the shop. The owner removed the freewheel and cone and
put on a new one. I was happy and rode back the hotel.
A daughter of the sister of my grandmother lives in Leesburg. She provided transportation to a nice
restaurant and joined us for dinner.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Saturday
Sunday, 4 May (Mileposts 35-0)
The van took us back to White’s Ferry. After re-crossing the river, we
followed the towpath to its end in Georgetown approximately 35 miles away.
Civilization is much more apparent on this stretch of the path. We saw many bikers, walkers, and
birders. We stopped to read several
bulletin boards with information about the canal. We stopped for a snack at the Great Fall Tavern near milepost 14
and visited the information center there.
Lock 20 at the Tavern is a working lock. The Canal Clipper, now
grounded, used to give rides. We
stopped again at Fletcher’s boathouse near milepost 3. The Capital Crescent Trail intersects the
towpath there. Most passers-by
recommended that we follow the Trail for the remainder of our trip. We decided to remain on the towpath and are
glad that we did. As we rode through
Georgetown, we saw two mules pulling a canal boat filled with passengers.
The highlights of our day included seeing the working canal boat and
seeing milepost 0.
Having reached the end of our journey, we rode along the river in the
general direction of our car. Two right
turns and a left put us in front of a parking garage that looked just like the
one we had used on Monday. However,
this garage had a sign that said closed.
Dad and I both feared that our car was locked up until Monday. We rode east about two blocks and found
another garage that was open and found our car there. I was very happy when I actually saw the car.
We packed up, paid and left the lot.
The attendant’s directions were perfect and we were soon on the
interstate heading back to Richmond.
Click here
to see pictures taken on Sunday.
Click on the links in the following table to see pictures.
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Pictures taken Thursday |
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Scenery and Sights, Misc. days |
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Here are links with more
information about the towpath.
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