GAP/C&O-Day 6-The Need for Speed

As we went to bed last night, we checked the weather report for today. We’d seen earlier in the week that there was a pretty good chance of rain. As we got more information about exactly what was expected, I became more and more concerned.

The C&O towpath is a dirt/packed gravel surface, but can go from navigable to impassable if affected adversely by the weather conditions. There were already some muddy sections, and the possibility of a torrential downpour would not help the trail conditions.

The weather forecast looked ominous. The forecast called for thunderstorms, heavy downpours, damaging winds and flash flooding. Nope, nope, nope, and nope. Now to convince Jimmy.

I said to him, “what do you think we need to do about tomorrow’s forecast?

Him, “we’re probably gonna get wet”

Me, “I don’t mind wet, but I do mind dead”

Him, “it’ll be fine.”

Me, “but seriously, what would we do if a terrible storm came through with damaging winds, flash flooding and trees blowing down over the trail and stuff like that?”

Him, “we’d pull off and wait it out”

Me, “but where? The worst place to be in a thunderstorm with lightning is under a tree and we are riding through a forest! We can’t avoid the trees.”

Him, “we will check the radar periodically, and when it looks like something is blowing up, we’ll get off the trail and take shelter.”

Me: “BUT, we’ll have no cell reception to check the radar, we are going into one big dead zone (as we’d been told all week long, by fellow bikers who’ve done this before) We’ve heard time and time again, get ready, you won’t have cell service for 2 days. Make sure you download offline maps, you won’t have cell service, etc.

Him: “If it gets bad, we’ll take shelter in a Porta Potty (with a smile) or along one of the canal walls”

Me: two things wrong with that thinking, One: He has seen me avoid the Porta Potties all week long because they have not been serviced. I will use a Porta Potty in an extreme emergency, but there’s not many emergencies that will make me use a Porta Potty when you can see the contents before you even step inside. Let’s just leave it at that… 

The second suggestion about the canal, I did respond to; “I don’t think we can take shelter from a flash flood by laying in a CANAL! Canals carry water, water is the main component of a flash flood, so I don’t think that is an option.” (Of course I knew he wasn’t actually suggesting laying in the canal, just hunkering down beside the stone canal wall, but I was trying to win him over to my way of thinking and I needed to make a point!)

Him: “I don’t see that we have any other choice than to press on. It could be a bad day but we have to muscle through it.”

Me: “How about we call Nigel and see if he will let us throw our bikes in the back of his truck and run us to Paw Paw, WV. We could pay him!” (Nigel is the new friend  we met the previous night, see Day 5 for that interesting story)

Him: “We’re not calling Nigel”

Me: “Well, let’s check the radar when we get up in the morning and make our decision then.”

Him: “I’m going to sleep now.”

Jimmy is so calm and level-headed. He’s not easily flustered.  It’s really hard to get him shook up about something, he has a knack for not worrying. I on the other hand, can let my imagination get the best of me at times.  He laid down and was out like a light. I had a hard time going to sleep and when I heard a weather siren at 11:30 pm, I tried to wake him up so he could worry about it with me, but he just kept sleeping. So I prayed the Lord would protect us and give us wisdom to make the right decision when morning came and finally fell asleep.

When we woke up, the weather reports were about the same, same dire predictions, but the arrival time for the storms was pushed back to after lunch. So the decision was made to get on the bikes as early as possible to try to beat the storm. 

We had a quick breakfast with the other 6 bikers that were staying at the same B&B, and enjoyed talking to them and hearing about some of their adventures. We loaded our gear and set off for the north. I was determined to make good time and to beat the storm, so I kept up a faster pace than usual, and hardly took any photos at all. The photos I did snap were taken on my bike while pedaling at a high rate of speed. (Probably more dangerous than any storm I’d ever face!) I stopped and read one or two historical markers, which should tell you how determined I was to not be caught in the storm, because usually, I read every word of every marker (my sweet husband is a saint! A saint I tell you!)

We’d been asked to text our host for tonight when we left Hancock, because that would be the last place we’d have cell reception. He said he’d meet us on the trail and ride in with us. He asked us what we’d be wearing and told us what he’d be wearing, so we would recognize each other when we met on the trail. I was anxious to meet this nice guy!

The first length of the trail was quick and easy because we continued on the Western Maryland Rail Trail (fully paved and smooth!) Once that trail ended and we had to rejoin the C&O, the riding was slower and the trail had quite a few muddy places that required slowing down and rolling through them carefully.

We encountered several deer today for some reason. We’ve really not seen many at all until today. Maybe because we are headed into the more remote regions of the trail. But the deer are not afraid of bicycles. They would stand in the path and wait until we were right on top of them before they’d saunter off of the trail. I wouldn’t approach them, I didn’t want to play a game of chicken with a wild animal, but Jimmy didn’t mind at all. I had a bad habit of stopping very quickly when I saw a deer in the path, and Jimmy was able to practice his expert bike maneuvering skills to avoid me when I stopped without warning. (I told you he was a saint)

We passed more locks, and some really lovely areas that I’d have probably photographed if I weren’t in a race against a storm. I did begin to relax as the mileage showed we were getting closer and closer to our destination. There was still no rain, no wind, no floods, and the skies had just begun to cloud over a bit. I was feeling better about our decision.

We rounded a corner, about 5 miles away from our destination and I heard a bike bell ringing, signalling that someone was approaching. The rider called out, “Ice cream for sale, Ice cream for sale, 10 cents a scoop!” I said, “10 cents a scoop? Give me all you have!” The rider said, “what’s your name?” I told him, and he turned to Jimmy and said, “and you must be Jim, I’m Dan.” This was our host! I didn’t realize he’d pedal out so far to meet us. He was a super nice guy and had a grin from ear to ear. He rode along with us, telling us all about the trail, about how he ended up in this area after retirement, etc. He’s a retired mail carrier and a big fisherman.  He and Jimmy talked about fishing for at least 4 miles as we rode along. It certainly made the time go by quickly and it was reassuring to have a fellow biker along who probably knew where all the sheltering places were when that storm hit, though it still wasn’t raining, or windy, or flooding. 

We rode on and I knew his home was not very far from the big Paw Paw tunnel. I had been looking forward to seeing the tunnel, I’d heard so much about it. It is by far the most photographed feature on the trail and it is impressive! When the canal was being built, the decision was made to take the canal through a mountain to save 5 miles of construction had they followed the river’s course. The tunnel is 3118 feet long and is fully lined with brick, 6 or 7 deep. It took 6 million bricks to build the tunnel. It still remains one of the world’s longest, narrowest canal tunnels and was one of the greatest engineering feats of its day. But it was dangerous to build. They used charges of black powder (not dynamite) to blast out sections of rock which workers had to break up  with picks and shovels. The original estimate of time to build the tunnel was 2 years, but it ended up taking 12, with cost overruns of 300 percent which nearly bankrupted the company. 

The bike path and the canal both go through the tunnel. Dan rode his bike through, but we opted to walk it, which is recommended. The path is narrow and extremely dark, even with the light on the front of Jimmy’s bike we had to really watch our footing because the path is rutted and uneven and there’s cold water dripping down your neck and back from the ceiling. The tunnel is very cool inside, and we actually felt the change in temperature well before we could even see the tunnel as we approached on our bikes.

We were about midway through the tunnel when we heard thunder for the first time, echoing through the long tunnel. When we came out on the other side, it had just begun to rain, but it was a gentle rain with no wind, no flooding, no downed trees. We decided to wait it out in the tunnel for a few minutes to see if it would move on, and it did. After about a 10 minute wait, the skies cleared and we were on our way to our lodging for the night, about a 10 minute ride from the tunnel. It was at that point that I realized two things; God had answered our prayers. He held back the storm until we’d made it safely to our destination. Secondly, I knew that my hubby had been right once again (darn it!). If we’d asked Nigel to bring us to Paw Paw, we would have missed a bunch of beautiful scenery and the magnificent Paw Paw tunnel. We would have also missed riding those last few miles with Dan, which was the most informative and entertaining portion of our ride.

After a short spur into Paw Paw, we arrived at our destination for the night. Dan opens his home up to bikers riding the trail. He has been doing this for years. He has one extra bedroom and the bathroom is shared (with him). It’s a simple, unassuming older home that is very lived in.

He helped us unload our bike gear and provided a hose for us to wash off our bikes and our legs if we wanted. We were in quite a bit of mud today. While Jimmy hosed off the bikes, I noticed a tree in the backyard and asked Dan about it. It was a paw paw tree full of fruit. I’d never seen one before, and learned that there are many in the area, thus the name of the town.

When we were done with the bikes, we came in through the laundry room in the back, through the kitchen and into the living room. As we passed through the laundry room he told us to feel free to use the washer and dryer, which we gladly accepted. He showed us our room, which has a double bed and a twin bed, and showed us how to set the window AC. He said the only thing he asked was that we not get in the bed all muddy. (He didn’t really have to say that, but I guess he gets all kinds, lol) He said we could get cleaned up in the shower, and hung a big sheet over the arched opening to the living room, where he was watching an old movie, and said that would give us more privacy as we went from bedroom to bathroom. 

It felt really good to get a hot shower and to wash all that mud and grime off! Staying here is like visiting a beloved uncle or cousin.  He’s such a nice, positive guy, you just enjoy being around him and are not focused on the stuff that doesn’t really matter anyway.  There’s no fluff here, no doilies for sure, but I’m not a big fan of doilies anyway. “He’s good people” as the saying goes. He lives a very simple life with his little dog and you can tell he has a passion for the bike trail, a passion for his little town, and a passion for people. He’s just the nicest guy you’d ever want to meet. We could all take a lesson from Dan.

Dining options in Paw Paw, WV are very limited. We asked our host about a place to eat, and he suggested Amanda’s Place. It’s actually the only place other than the gas station concession counter. Another option would be putting together a meal from items purchased at Dollar General. Before we left on our trip, I knew the prospects of finding food here might be a bit tricky, so I was prepared to eat at Dollar General if necessary. I was definitely glad to have another option. When I asked our host if Amanda’s was good, he said it was great, because it was owned and operated  by a West Virginia momma. We ate both lunch and dinner there, one door down from the home we are staying in. They were very nice and were delighted to see us for a return trip at dinner. They were just closing as we picked up our to go order (knowing it was close to their closing time, we’d called ahead) but they said we could eat our meal on their front porch, which we did.

I have had trouble getting a good WiFi connection in the B&B’s, so since we pedaled so fast to get here, we had some time to spare. We decided we’ve go to the public library to see if it would allow me to upload the pictures I’ve been trying to upload for 3 days. Our host offered to drive us there in his car, and said if we’d call, he’d come back and get us when we were done. That’s just how nice he is! I got some pictures uploaded and resized, but the library was closing and we didn’t want to delay that, so we decided to walk back to town rather than have our host come and get us. The rain had cooled things off and we enjoyed our walk with the view of the mountains that surround little Paw Paw, WV. 

We all turned in pretty early, with the promise of a good breakfast that Dan would prepare himself. He’s a great guy! Just the nicest guy you’d ever want to meet!