In the Georgetown section of Washington, D.C., it was the kind of Saturday when everyone seemed to want to be outside—sunny, warm but not hot. A few blocks over, a canal boat was snugged up beside the bank of the C&O Canal, a man and woman in 19th-century homespun on deck. At the end of Water Street in-line skaters, joggers and cyclists streamed past, heading for a paved path along the Potomac. Meanwhile, Greenway Sojourn staffers, myself among them, set up registration for the eight-day, 335-mile bicycle tour bringing almost 500 cyclists to Washington from 33 states.
By noon early arrivals were picking up luggage tags and loading duffel onto a truck that would carry it to the first night’s campsite on the C&O Canal. One man, Ray Klein, a wiry 68, particularly spoke to my sense of adventure: he pulled up with full panniers on his touring bicycle, having ridden it all the way from the Finger Lakes in New York since Monday morning. A rail-trail fan (as well as cross-country cyclist), he was drawn by the chance to help celebrate the opening of a D.C. to Pittsburgh trail, now the longest multi-purpose trail in the country.
By noon early arrivals were picking up luggage tags and loading duffel onto a truck that would carry it to the first night’s campsite on the C&O Canal. One man, Ray Klein, a wiry 68, particularly spoke to my sense of adventure: he pulled up with full panniers on his touring bicycle, having ridden it all the way from the Finger Lakes in New York since Monday morning. A rail-trail fan (as well as cross-country cyclist), he was drawn by the chance to help celebrate the opening of a D.C. to Pittsburgh trail, now the longest multi-purpose trail in the country.
The Greenway Sojourn, organized by the Northeast Office of Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and now in its sixth year, travels a different route each time. This one will follow the C&O Canal Towpath for its full 184 miles and, from its terminus in Cumberland, Md., pick up the 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage—a connection completed only last December by the Allegheny Trail Alliance, our partner in planning this tour. The beauty of the two trails and their epic length have attracted our largest group yet.
Most of them were coming on eight shuttle buses that had started from our destination, Pittsburgh. So they had a five-hour bus ride and we had a wait. But at last the first two buses arrived and unloaded. Then we ALL waited until finally the first 18-wheeler full of bicycles backed slowly down Water Street, and ride staff began wheeling bikes down the ramp, their freewheels ticking.
Finally it felt like a mass ride. Sojourners in bright jerseys claimed bikes of all descriptions, donned helmets, and headed for a long flight of steps that led to the towpath.
Then they set off on arguably the most picturesque portion of the C&O, where the canal is watered and travelers pass many locks and lockhouses. Turtles swim in the shaded canal and bask on logs extending over the water. And at dramatic Great Falls the Potomac narrows to a tenth of its width, with cascading rapids and waterfalls, and the walkway to cross the Mather Gorge and to see these amazing cataracts is worth the brief detour off the path.
Overall, this first 22-mile section to the campground at Riley’s Lock is a sweet stretch of trail to begin the Greenway Sojourn.
Susan Weaver
Photo of banner by Linda YoungPhoto of Great Falls by Linda Young
Photo of camper at Riley's Lock by Linda Young
