Inaugural Gravel Ride 1 – Final Day and Epilogue

The final day of the ride consisted of a quick jaunt to the post office to mail home tools and then we dropped off the bicycles at Thick Bikes in Pittsburg and took a set of bus rides to the airport, and shuttle to the hotel.

The bike trip all on one sheet. Love it when a plan comes together.

Even though this was a very short trip, it was pertineer perfect!  Diane discovered that Rob is not always “such a liar” about route conditions and the like, plus she gained an even greater appreciation of his weather prediction skills.  Diane also discovered she could quite easily traverse the non-asphalt trails, and enjoyed successfully developing cycling skills on a new-to-her gravel bike.  She had been concerned that this trip would be all work, and little joy until the end of the day.  Not so!  Each day brought great delights and, as always, camaraderie. 

As a result, she is eager to try out other similar long distance non-asphalt trails, such as the Katy Trail State Park, one of America's longest rail-trail at nearly 238 miles of scenic trail built especially for walkers and cyclists, connecting the Missouri towns of Clinton (near Missouri’s western border at the Grand River and Harry S. Truman Reservoir)  and Machens (on the northern outskirts of St. Louis).  Yes, planning is underway!

One theme of this ride is the enduring effect of trains – their evolution and devolution – on modern day bicycling in America.

We learned that a train company helped to bring about the demise of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal as a transportation mode.  On July 4, 1828, after considerable fund raising efforts, construction  had begun on the canal. And on the same day,  construction of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad had begun.  The Canal operated for nearly 100 years, and throughout this time, competition between the B&O and the C&O persisted; ultimately the B&O prevailed.  For a more detailed history of the canal-train competition, including lawsuits, see here.

Fortunately, though, the remnants of the canal survived the automotive industry.  After demise of the canal, the canal right-of-way was sold to the federal government, and later Congress was considering construction of a multi-lane federal highway on the right-of-way.  Immediate and widespread public opposition was bolstered by the leadership of Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas – he publicized the scenic beauty of the canal by hiking its entire length in a 1954 hike.  Not only that, he challenged the Washington Post, which had published opinions supporting the Congressional plan, to join him.  The Post changed its stance, as did Congress, and by the end of 1954, the Department of the Interior decided to create the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park. 

In rock-scissors-paper style, however, the automotive industry ultimately bested the railroad as the major transportation mode, and many railroads throughout the nation went through the rail abandonment process.  As described by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (here),  “By the early 1980s, the struggling railroad industry was abandoning 4,000 to 8,000 miles of lines each year. In 1983, a group of walking and biking enthusiasts, railroad history buffs, conservation and parks groups, and active-transportation activists began to meet for monthly brown-bag lunches in Washington, D.C., to mobilize efforts to preserve rail corridors for public use. The group realized the need for an organization that focused specifically on this work, and on Feb. 7, 1986, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy opened its doors.”  

Railroad adornment ultimately led to creation of  the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) -- the longest rail-trail east of the Mississippi River.  The GAP’s 150 miles connect Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Cumberland, Maryland, thrilling the trail user with viaducts and tunnels, great rivers and mountain passes, beautiful scenery and wildlife.

To be sure, though, the railroad has survived.  Indeed, there are active tracks using the same river corridors as the GAP,  Every day of our ride on the GAP we could see and/or hear several passing trains.  And they continued through the night.  Two of the B&Bs we stayed at that were close to the tracks provide complimentary earplugs.  When we walked to our dinner destination, we were told to expect to wait for at least two trains, and we waited for one, and walking back, for another.  Coming into Homestead, we traversed the Steel Valley Trail section of the GAP which evidences a thriving industry supported by rail.

There is so much more that can be said about this fun trip, but it is time to end this epilogue.  We would enjoy answering your questions and we leave you with a movie from C&O Trail.   – Diane and Rob