Day #5 (5/11/24) – Bike Across America

I woke up at 5:00, did my morning routine, and got breakfast at the diner that is attached to the hotel. I also asked them to make me a sandwich to go to eat later on the trail. I finished packing up my gear and was on the trail by 7:00.

It was a cold morning (46 degrees) but it was dry. I had put several layers on to stay warm. But, I started taking layers off a mile down the trail and found that shorts and a long sleeve shirt were sufficient. I wasn’t cold, but I wasn’t sweating either.

I was biking in a tree tunnel most of the day. Several good views of the Potomac River during the day. As I neared Harper’s Ferry, the Appalachian Trail shared the C&O trail that I was on and they had placed stakes on the side of the trail with the white blaze of the AT. I saw a few backpackers as well.

Made it to Harper’s Ferry, but didn’t cross the bridge into the town. A couple of years ago when me and my friend John bike toured the C&O trail, we stopped to take in the history. We spent half a day in Harper’s Ferry and another half day touring the Civil War battlefields at Antietam. I’m not taking the extra time on this trip, but I hope to come back again and take in some more of the history of this area.

Besides lots of views of the Potomac, there were some beautiful cliffs on the far side of the canal for a good portion of the day. Here are a few pictures, but they don’t do them justice.

Went by a couple of dams in the river. Creatively named “Dam 4” and “Dam 5”.

It was cool to see a “working “ aqueduct. This is the only one so far that is restored like this.

There was a really neat part of the trail where the trail is actually a viaduct with the river on the left and tall cliffs on the right. Hard to explain, but I took a video of it. You can watch it at this link: https://youtu.be/mj0LjZCIYZQ?si=nCFVpVFyryy-zjo2

I stopped in Williamsport just before Noon and ate my sandwich. Had a chance to chat with a few people. The temperature had warmed up to about 60 and the sun came out.

Shortly after getting back on the trail, I came upon a large tree that had fallen across the trail. There was no way around it, so I had to wrestle my heavy bike over it. Right after I got my bike over, a bikepacker came up the trail. Too late to help me, but I did help him over the tree. We stood around and talked bike tour stuff for a while.

It was nice having the sun out for a while. It brightened up the trail and even brought out some turtles to warm up on some of the logs in the canal.

I was going easy today and had some luck, or blessings, at the end. At 2:50, after 70 miles, I came into the town of Hancock, MD. I decided to call it a day. I was getting tired and I could see rain clouds in the sky. I went to the local bike shop not realizing that they close at 3:00 on Saturdays, so I just made it! I booked a spot in their bunkhouse for the night for $15. Not two minutes after putting my bike in the covered shelter and getting into the bunkhouse, it started to rain. Perfect timing.

I’ve never stayed in bunkhouse style lodging before. It’s kind of like sleeping in a screened in porch. I was able to take a hot shower and put on some clean clothes. There are two other people that booked spots in the bunkhouse tonight, but as I write this, they are not here. It’s been raining pretty hard for a couple of hours now, so not sure if they will make it. Hopefully, I’ll make a couple of friends later.

The rain is supposed to let up around 6:30, and then I’ll go to a local restaurant for dinner. Then to sleep early…again.

For the day, it was 72 miles and 300 feet of climbing (that’s very flat!). Tomorrow is looking like 60 miles into Cumberland, MD, and where the trail switches from the C&O to the GAP.