Friday, Aug. 31 – Monday, Sept. 3

And away we go!

We set out from Pittsburgh at a relaxed pace with the goal of covering the 150+ mile Great Allegheny Passage trail in four days of riding (not bad eh Roger?). The rail trail is only a few years old and has a good crushed limestone surface. It’s one of the best, and from west to east, easiest rail trails I’ve been on. It climbs almost imperceptibly to the Eastern Continental Divide and then declines gently and continually down through Frostburg to Cumberland.

As Rachael did not have the opportunity to ride as many miles this summer as I did, we limited our first day’s ride to 41 miles. The trail began as a nice ride into a faded past along the “Mon”

Befitting a Labor Day weekend ride, we stopped at the site of the Homestead Strike where Frick used the Pinkertons to successfully but temporarily crush the steelworkers union in a bloody battle back in 1892.

For a more anodyne view of the past, here’s a picture of Rachael on the same site standing in an old blast furnace bell:

We followed the river upstream across bridges and through some lovely countryside

We passed under this roadway that disappeared into a tiny tunnel

In an infelicitous choice, we ended up that first night a couple miles off the trail at a motel near an interchange because I couldn’t find a place in West Newton. The motel was fine, but there was very little around it so Rachael and I hiked along a very busy road down to the closest non-fast food joint. It was her introduction to the trash-strewn and carrion-dotted shoulders of state routes that are all too noticeable when you’re not traveling at 60 mph. We should have biked down the two miles to the restaurant as it was quite dark by the time we finished dinner. While I strolled around the bar area asking likely folks whether we could get a ride back with them (by now, I’ll ask anyone just about anything), Meagan, our bartender, was hatching a scheme with her coworker Sean to drive us home. Happily for us, she got the green light from management and we were soon home safe and sound – thanks to the both of them!

The next day, we made our way along the Youghiogheny River toward Confluence, Pa.

As we got closer to Ohiopyle, we began seeing kayakers along the fast-flowing river

Though I neglected (yet again!) to get a picture, we met a great couple from Pittsburgh at the B&B we all stayed at in Confluence. John and Debbie have logged some good miles along the trails connecting their city and ours and had some good advice for us – especially about the (paved) Western Maryland Rail Trail that saves you 12 miles off the towpath into Hancock. I hope we see them out there again soon.

The next day was full of more easy riding and nice scenery and even a snake!

No, that’s not the snake; this is

And then we were in Meyersdale, Pa., an old coal-mining town that in its heyday had 13 bars and 13 churches and remains the maple syrup capital of the state.
We met a nice guy named Philip in the local pizza joint who was intrigued with the finer details of my trip (“how many pairs of underwear do you have?”) and who told us about his town.
This is “Catholic hill

Here’s an old ad for the local beer:

There’s an interesting mural downtown that celebrates local residents:

We had dinner in a grand old building that joined the morgue and hardware store and coined the name “Morguen Tool.”

We spent the night in Helen Yoder’s very David Lynch-esque motel (see Rachael’s FB post about the guy with the bear claw slippers) and then set off to conquer the Eastern Continental Divide:

Um, oh freakin’ hum; hope you can see the details on this:

Once over the “hump,” it was all downhill to Cumberland. Unfortunately we missed out on all the good views as it was cloudy and drizzly all day. The coasting was so easy, it was almost dull.

This is out of sequence (it was west of the Eastern Continental Divide) but what the hell, we remain juvenile enough to have gotten a chuckle out of this:

Next up: Cumberland – more interesting than you knew!
(After a special bonus surprise video)

I’ve already thanked Chris, who took me through Pittsburgh to my motel, but I forgot to mention probably his greatest help to me. Before we parted, Chris gave me meticulous directions about how to get from the end of the river trail to the beginning of the Great Allegheny Passage Trail, which runs from just outside the city to Cumberland, Md. The connection from one to another is not obvious as it requires walking alongside the railroad tracks for a few hundred yards and passing through a gate that appears locked and which has a sign about trespassers being prosecuted. Our journey was greatly assisted by Chris’ thorough guidance and advice.

Do unto bikers as you would have them do unto you…

More accurately, this post is in tribute to a “not-so-random” act of kindness for which I am indebted to Brian at HubBub Custom Bicycles, which is where Thomas got his Salsa Casseroll a couple years back. Anyway, Thomas took me and my bike over to the shop so Brian could give it a look before I got back out on the road. Brian adjusted the brakes and tweaked the front rotor and made sure everything was working properly all while declining to accept any payment from me. When (if?) the time comes for me to get a custom-built bike, I know where I want to go; thanks Brian!

With a free afternoon last Wednesday, I wandered about the South Side Flats in Pittsburgh taking in the architectural contrast between the older, eclectic section full of bars, restaurants and tattoo parlors:

and the newer stretch anchored by American Eagle Outfitters’ corporate campus and home to the national chains synonymous with upscale affordability:

But in addition to the rather inviting wine bar where I ended up, my real destination was the old Hot Metal Bridge built to carry molten steel from the blast furnaces on one side of the Monongahela River to the steel mills on the other side.

Rachael flew into town the next day, and we went over to Ted’s Excellent Bike Repair where we played with Ted’s excellent dog, Bob, while Ted outfitted Rachael’s bike with new tires for the 330 miles of bike trail that lay between us and home. Ted is a sardonic pessimist, which meant we liked him a lot, and he’s also given to a bit of ironic flamboyance:

Together, Rachael and I continued with a bit of flaneuring; here she is tempted by the prospect of consuming more of her summer staple foodstuff:

but we ended up elsewhere. In our travels we happened upon an excellent-looking old bathhouse that was built out of paternalistic regard for the needs of local workers. Unfortunately, it was closed for the summer.

Befitting the city’s history, there is a fine looking Carnegie Library on the south side:

And an excellent Ukranian church:

and of course the de rigeur bank-turned-into-a-bar:

We had a great afternoon wandering about and then ended up meeting one of Rachael’s old college friends for dinner. As I’ve come to know Jen Carroll a bit better, I remain entertained by her characteristically antic volubility (which overwhelmed my sporadic forays into the contested conversational arena) but have also come to better appreciate the interesting and thoughtful person she is. With apologies to her, this is the only halfway decent shot I was able to get that evening (I share her reluctance about having a photo taken)

Hopefully we’ll see her and her boys in DC sometime soon, but I’m pretty sure we’ll be back in Pittsburgh before too long.

The ride from Cleveland to Columbiana, outside of Youngstown and home to Harvey Firestone, was a nice mix of mostly empty country roads and near-deserted bike trails. My stay in Cleveland, because of the rain day, was the longest I had been off the bike since Minneapolis, and even though I was still riding solo, I had a delightful time.
And here are some pictures to help illustrate the point:

In addition to the Firestones, it seems the Ushers once lived in the vicinity:

I chanced upon this shrine:

and was amused by this sign at a UAW hall:

I stayed at the B&B in this lovely old house which had been renovated by Paul and Susie. It only has three bedrooms upstairs and they are quite spacious and comfortable. Not sure I’ll ever be back in town (unless Rachael and I decide to bike to Cleveland – perhaps after the ferry over to Canada gets going?), but I definitely recommend the place.

Since there wasn’t anything happening at the local theater (how’s that for a season?):

I wandered down Main Street and though I was intrigued by this:

I ended up in the town’s sole bar where I chatted with Lexa:

She was quite friendly and seemed a bit out of place serving in the small town bar that time forgot. She’s another single mom with a child, but she’s in school and has some family helping her out so good luck to her – I hope things work out for her.

After a fine breakfast jointly prepared by my innkeepers, I took a very non-Roger fast and direct route toward Pittsburgh that took me past this interesting Protestant church

Where it seemed that the influence of Catholicism had proved to be strong:

As I approached the city, the irresistible lure of panniers once again had their effect on a fellow would-be traveler who wanted to know where I was going (too soon I will be renumbered within the ranks of the wistful). After a brisk exchange of biking bona fides, I asked for advice in navigating the trail network across the other two rivers. My temporary companion instantly offered to become my guide and together we dodged and weaved along trails and roads across bridges and past a stadium right to my motel. In fairness, Chris deserves his own Random Act of Kindness shout-out, but here he is. Thanks Chris and congratulations to all on your daughter’s marriage!