It was a beautiful ride on the Allegheny Passage, which runs from the Pittsburgh area to Cumberland, MD. Most of the way, they rode on trails similar to the one above-- nicer surface than the C&O Towpath, but pretty much just as level. This trail used to be a railroad bed, so it was very even; and they crossed many bridges that were formerly railroad bridges.
The statue above was formed completely from railroad spikes.
This is the group that went-- they really had a lot of fun. Chad enjoyed getting to know a few new people. George Michael was the one who organized the trip-- he and Chad roomed together. You may notice Pastor Mark in the front corner-- he was on his study vacation. His wife, Gerri, did the bike ride while he studied and just met up with the riders in the evenings. He also hauled small bags for people so they didn't have to carry their overnight stuff on their bikes.
Above is one of the neat bridges they crossed; below you can see the view from one of the bridges. Yes, there are kayaks on the river.
This waterfall is a lot bigger than it looks. I first thought, from the pic, that it was just a couple feet drop; but, there are people in the top left of the pic-- it's more like a 30 foot drop.
The trip actually started in McKeesport, PA. The first night they stayed in a cheap motor inn in Connellsville, PA. The 2nd night they stayed in the bed and breakfast above- -in Rockwood, PA. Very nice little place with a great breakfast of blueberry french toast.
A fun sculpture outside the bed and breakfast. Bike wheels are the train's smoke - they all rotate with one long belt.
View from another bridge-- Chad had fun with the railroad stuff-- he's always wanted to be a train engineer. Maybe he can do that when he retires. :)
An old train station.
This is an elevation map of their trip. Even tho the trip was without a lot of ups and downs like some of Chad's other trips over mountains, this one really was not level. They started way on the right of the map and moved to the left. Boy, how satisfying when they got to the Eastern Continental Divide! Right before that, they had a long 25-mile stretch of gradual uphill. Once they hit the continental divide, it was a 15-mile continuous downhill. This map is a bit deceptive, tho, the downhill wasn't really that drastic-- they didn't have to keep their brakes on and they could even keep pedaling.
Another great view (which really was better in person). We sure live in a pretty part of the country!
The final mileage of the trip once they hit Cumberland, MD-- 143 miles over 3 days. Really a pretty tame trip for Chad compared to some he's done. A few of the riders went on to ride to Hancock or farther on the towpath, but we were ready for Chad to get home. :)
A cool fountain at the end of the ride.
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