The one where nothing much happens

9/27/17 - 10/4/17

As I was heading out of my C&O canal campsite, a couple biked past and warned me of tunnel maintenance up ahead. After a short ride I reached the tunnel and saw a sign indicating it was closed on the far side and there was a detour. The tunnel cut through a mountain and so I figured the detour would not be fun. I decided to ride through the tunnel and try and get by the construction work. It was dark and narrow inside with a thin wooden railing between me and the canal. The floor was very bumpy and I had to pull out my headlight. After a good 5 minute ride I reached the far side and a fence. It could easily have been moved but it prevented me from riding into the construction workers working on the cliff face just past the opening. I didn’t want to try my luck riding by them on the narrow wooden boardwalk so I made a cramped u-turn and headed back. When I finally exited the tunnel I found 4 people, including the couple from earlier, chatting about the closed route. I learned that the detour was a one and a half

mile walk on a narrow, loose path over the mountain. No one seemed in any hurry to start it so I took off, hoping to go my own pace. It was hot and hard to push my bike up the path over the protruding roots and rocks. The loose path meant that I kept slipping down as I tried to muscle the heavy bicycle over the mountain. By the time I finally started my descent I was dripping sweat all over my bike. I clung to the brakes as I jolted my way down the bumpy path a couple feet at a time. Silver lining: the unfortunately necessary but exhausting delay put me in some gorgeous Maryland woods.

My next stop was at a road crossing where the path jogged to the right. As I stood there trying to figure out where to go one of the bikers from earlier showed up. He told me that we were right next to the only food place for 15 miles and that convinced me to stop with him. We went into the confederate flag adorned bar and each got a decent burger. The folks there were kind but a little cold. We ran back into the couple from earlier but I chose to clear out instead of sticking to chat with them. A paved bike path runs parallel to the C&O canal for 20 miles. I hopped on it and flew onward. After lunch I had to switch back to the rough towpath trail, which was unfortunate, but I was in a great mood after the pavement.

I made it into WIlliamsport around 5 o’clock and planned to bike 15 more miles either to a Warmshowers home or a campsite depending if I ever heard back from the host. The campsite was a little sketchy however and I was worried it may not exist so I started looking for places to stay in the area. There was literally nothing except a $50 KOA. By this point I wasn’t even sure if I could make it to the campsite by dark and I had resigned myself to stealth camping on the side of the road. As I was leaving town I decided to stop by the Bed and Breakfast and just check their prices. The owner was coming outside as I pulled up and she told me it cost $65. After telling her about my situation however we agreed to $25. She then proceeded to store my bike, drop off a bag of snacks and feed me dinner. It was so kind. I had been camping the past couple nights and the warm bed and shower were very welcome.

That night we worked out an agreement for the next day. I got up earlier than I’m used to and ate breakfast with the other cycling guests. Then I helped with the dishes, bed making, laundry and trash. The owner was actually selling the place so I helped her pack up some belongings and then loaded up her van. In exchange she drove me to Dickinson college 60 miles away in Pennsylvania. We had a great chat on the ride up and she mentioned that she knew a lot of truckers. If I ever needed a ride anywhere I could tell her and she would post online and see if any truckers were headed that way. I couldn’t believe my good luck meeting such a generous and caring individual.

I arrived at Dickinson to meet my past biking partner Espoir. She showed me around and introduced me to all her friends. Then we set up a little room for me under her bed with a wall of my bike bags. I had a great time there hanging out, once again trying to catch up on this blog and exploring Carlisle and Dickinson. The night before I left was the start of the Jewish holy day Yom Kippur so I went to the college’s services. Living out of four bike bags meant that I was by far the most underdressed person there but it was a super welcoming atmosphere and so I didn’t feel too bad. It was a great visit and a great chance to reminisce about our bike ride and home with a good friend. Thanks Espoir!

The next day I had 35 miles to ride while choosing to fast for Yom Kippur as is tradition. I took the ride very slow, staying in low gears. I honestly did it pretty fast because I never had to stop to eat! When I finally arrived at my grandmother's house, however, I was very glad to be done. I took a nap and shower and then hung around the apartment with my Oma. When the sun set and I was able to eat we feasted on her delicious mashed potatoes, creamed spinach, parmesan chicken, salad and a dutch apple pie for dessert. It was so incredible, as always. I spent the next day with her as well, watching movies, chatting, eating, walking and looking at photos. My Oma also introduced me to the book of memories she wrote which I quickly finished. I left with a full stomach

(we almost finished the entire pie), many generous gifts, a huge bag of granola bars from a package from my parents and two massive chocolate bars. It was a lovely visit. I’m glad I got a chance to see her as well as meet many of her friends. Thanks again for everything!

Next stop was my Uncle Carl and Aunt Kara’s place. After a short ride, involving my first nerve wracking merge across 4 lanes of highway traffic into the left turn lane, I arrived at the quiet house. My uncle, the only one home, sleeps during the day to cope with his night work schedule so I was on my own for a bit. I helped myself to a shower and put in some more time on the blog. Eventually he woke up and my aunt and cousins came home. We had a great dinner and then I got a chance to hang with my cousins. I slept until 1 the next day and lazily tried to further my progress on the blog. My uncle tried riding my loaded bike which he decided was too easy for his fit vegan body. We then weighed it and I finally got to find out that my bike with all my gear is a little over 90 pounds. That’s terrifying. Everyone was around again at 5 and we had another great meal. I always love the conversations I have when I’m with them. I got to sleep in an incredibly comfy, cozy bed and it was hard to get out of it in the morning. Thank you so much for everything guys!

I rode my first long-ish day in a week headed 50 miles to stay with more family around DC. It was pretty hilly but I think I’m starting to get used to it. I don’t have any bread as I haven't really been making my own lunches for a couple days now and I don’t want to buy more for the same reason. That fact enabled me to treat myself to Chipotle for lunch, which was so good and has been much missed on my trip. I also finally found more pesto at a grocery store near by! The rest of the ride was more or less uneventful, or at least wouldn’t make a very interesting read. I did pass a street sign I liked. Anyway, so here I am now, sitting at a library in Bethesda finally catching up on my blog. I caught up before but didn’t post the writings and got behind again. So hurray! I somehow did it.

P.S. I’ve gotten lazy with proof reading so I picked up a trick from someone at Oberlin. I use text to speech to get the computer to read the posts to me so I can catch any errors. I just finished listening to this in a British accent and highly recommend it. It made me feel like I’d written something much more sophisticated!