August 4 Washington to Confluence, PA 89.9 miles

Tonite is the first night on our trip that we haven’t  been able to get internet access. We’re camped in kind-of a hole here in Confluence and nobody has cell phone service so I’ll write this tonite and post tomorrow. Sorry about that, folks!!

We got up to a camp breakfast  and hit the road about 7:10am. The campground last night had some very sharp rocks and broken up refractory glass as paving that was really hard on our tires so most  folks walked their bikes to the road.

 The route today took us through some really hilly areas almost from the very beginning as we rode through Washington, PA.  The town made us think (because its so hilly) that we had somehow transmitted ourselves to San Francisco.  We did have a very nice view of a hot air balloon as we rode through.  Once through town, we made our way to Mingo Creek Park which was just lovely. We really enjoyed not having to  deal with many cars and we got to ride beside a lovely creek and admire 2 covered bridges. Unfortunately, my camera memory card got full about then so I had to wait until I got to Rite Aid to get another.  Rite Aid has been a real lifesaver to us on this trip. They carry tons of stuff and it seems that every little town has one and if not, there’s a Walgreens.

 I continued on and caught up with Janet, Samuel, and Diana just as we got to some very serious hills, with one being about 3 miles long and a grade of 12%! Whew, I was glad I didn’t know about that one in advance! We all managed to get over them and rolled into West Newton Station (that’s a town) for our lunch stop and our entry to the Youghiogheny River Trail. For the rest of the afternoon—that’s 50 miles– we rode on this lovely trail, enjoying the low grade and the lack of cars. It really was nice to be off the roads for a change. The trail is crushed, hardpacked limestone and its an old railway that’s been reworked for hiking and biking. Even though this was a Monday, we saw tons of people of all ages out riding bikes and hiking along. And the river was in use too by folks in canoes and rafts. At mile 61, we came to a rest stop that was sponsored by  Big Ride Alum Fred Husak. He did the ride in 2000 and ever since, he has supported the ride with a rest stop each year. Even though we all had lunch just 20 miles ago, we devoured the sub sandwiches and ice cream he had for us as though we hadn’t eaten in days.  He also had birch beer for us, which tastes like root beer but isn’t as sweet.

Leaving Fred’s rest stop, the trail crosses 2 old railway trestles, one of which is very scenic. Then it continues along the river, climbing so slowly you don’t even notice it. At about 15 miles out of camp, I met up with Rosie and we rode together  the rest of the way. It sure made the trip a lot easier having someone to talk to. We even saw a deer beside the road that was so used to people that it didn’t even dash off to the bushes when it saw us.

We’re camped tonite at  a campground  in Confluence right below the dam. There are train tracks nearby but the dam is letting out water due to the recent rains so it mostly drowns out the sound of the trains. Keep your fingers crossed for us that it doesn’t rain tonight because  tomorrow we want to ride the trail and not take the road option, which is quite difficult. We know from what folks said last year about the rain making the trail a huge muddy mess that if it does rain, it’s the road for us. Unfortunately, the road goes to the top of the highest point in PA and since we have a tough day on Wednesday getting into Gettysburg, only the young, the wild, and the crazy are currently planning on doing the road. Stay tuned…..