Yesterday Mary and I saddled up at 5 a.m. in Cumberland, Md. to begin a long weekend centered around a visit to see my daughter in Pittsburgh.
She is off to Moscow in a few days as part of her Pitt summer Russian studies program. We figured a one-day ride there of 165 miles and then returning over two days would be a good training block (combined with our hard ride last Saturday).
Our route took us west to the Savage River for a long climbing segment to the high point at Grantsville, Md. in Garrett County. Gravel roads, starting with the infamously steep Resh Road led to Confluence, Pa. where we joined the GAP trail for 90 miles to Pittsburgh.
The weather was spectacular, though hot on the trail. We carried two small panniers on a rear rack which added a little front steering input but nothing bad.
Sunday we ride to Connellsville for an overnight, then Monday back to Cumberland, all the way on the GAP. The trail is lovely and generally smooth but kind of monotonous after a few hours. I think I’ll be all set for trail riding after that.
The ride was long but getting there under our own power was neat; we have always driven to Pittsburgh.
Thanks for reading. More to come after our return to D.C.
