Hagerstown, MD to Paw Paw, WV
The beautiful thing about eating Taco Bell for lunch the previous day was the knowledge that I was able to eat Taco Bell for breakfast the following morning! After waking up in the Warmshowers house in Hagerstown, I rode my bike back to the canal trail and ate a large helping of burritos at the Taco Bell on the way. I knew that this was going to be one of my longest biking days, so I did not hold back! Despite it being a long ride, it was also a beautiful day, with much of the ride being paved. There were certain segments that looked just like something you would see out of a Studio Ghibli film, so I stopped and took pictures of the scenery a little more often than I probably should have done.
Right before reaching Paw Paw, West Virignia, I had the privlege of going through the Paw Paw Tunnel. It was long, unlit, and a bit spooky! I definitely soaked in the experience though. After reaching Paw Paw, I again went to a local pizza place and ate an entire pizza. This night I was staying in a bus that someone had converted into a guest house, so that was also quite exciting! The bus was comfortable and beautifully furnished, and before bed, I watched Will & Grace on the televison they had installed. At this point, I knew that I was more than halfway done with the ride!
Paw Paw, WV to Frostburg, MD
Waking up in Paw Paw, with the mists hovering over the West Virginia mountains, was a beautiful experience. I knew that I was going to finish the Canal Trail and move onto the Great Allegeheny Passage trail that morning, and I also knew that the GAP trail started out with a big uphill climb. I needed to mentally prepare, and the scenery certainly helped! After biking through the final leg of the canal trail, I stopped in Cumberland, MD and ate my fill of (you guessed it) Taco Bell. I was so happy that a Taco Bell existed right at the entrance of the GAP Trail! They must have put it there just for me!
The first 22 miles of the GAP Trail heading northbound are uphill. I knew this when I planned out this trip, but it was still quite an exhausting ride. I split the uphill section in half, with Frostburg, Maryland being about 15 miles up the GAP. This was a gruelling ride, and it started raining hard right before I got to Frostburg, but I was undeterred. My Warmshowers host ended up cancelling, so I had to spend some money on a bed & breakfast in Frostburg, but luckily for me, the B&B had an entire vegan menu! After taking in Frostburg, I went to sleep, prepared to conquer the rest of the uphill climb and enjoy the wind at my back after it switched to downhill!
Frostburg, MD to Confluence, PA
Frostburg, MD earned its name! It was quite cold there in the morning, but I woke up and rode early anyway because I wanted to finish the uphill climb and make it to the downhill section. Despite the gruelling nature of the ride, I noticed early on that the GAP trail was absolutely lovely in comparison to the Canal Trail. While the Canal Trail was dirt in many sections, with long sections with no bathroom or water, the GAP was paved the entire time, with clear signage and periodic bathrooms and water fountains spread all along the length of it. This was essentially bike luxury!
I passed the continental divide early in the morning, and there was a sign there that let me know that the rest of my trip to Pittsbrugh would be gently downhill. The rest of the ride was relaxing and beautiful. Confluence, PA was an interesting place. It had the most American flags per capita that I think I have ever seen. I ate at the local diner there upon arrival, and it may have been the only local food establishment outside of the gas stations. It was tasty! I checked in with my Warmshowers host after eating, and once again I would have an entire section of the house to myself. I enjoyed the privacy and went right to sleep.
Confluence, PA to Smithton, PA
Waking up in Confluence, I ate at the same diner, and their breakfast was just as delicious as their dinner! I knew that today was the day I was going to stop and see Fallingwater, the Frank Lloyd Wright house, and I couldn't hardly wait to get to Ohiopyle and make it happen! When I got to Ohiopyle, I noticed that Fallingwater actually stood quite far from the trail, and the only way to get there on bike would be to ride up a very dangerous highway road with no shoulder. I became somewhat dejected, but I noticed another cyclist on his phone talking to somebody about a "shuttle" that can take cyclists to Fallingwater. After he got off the phone, I asked him who he was speaking with, and he let me know that there was a shuttle service for throughway cyclists attempting to see Fallingwater. He told me that we could split the cost if I went with him, so we did! We got a shuttle and went up to Fallingwater together!
Fallingwater was stunning, absolutely gorgeous. I felt so lucky to see it! The tour was informative, and I learned so much about architecture and the history of the area. After the Fallingwater tour, we got back on the shuttle and returned to our bikes. The ride to Smithton was again relaxing and easy, since it was still downhill. In Smithton, I stayed at an AirBnB that was constructed in a treehouse adjacent to the host's property. It was beautiful! My final day before reaching Pittsburgh was an amazing time, and I was so excited to finish the ride the following day.
Smithton, PA to Pittsburgh, PA
The rest of the ride was me slowly entering a more urban environment on a downhill slope, grinning the whole way. The area surrounding Pittsburgh is filled with beautiful bridges, and I kept stopping to take pictures of them. I ate lunch at a Red Robin on the way, and I reached the big old fountain in Pittsburgh at around 4pm. I had done it! I made it all the way from Wilmington, DE to Pittsburgh, PA!
I stayed that evening with my friends Clarise and her boyfriend, who took me to an Irish pub that night for dinner. It was so wonderful to catch up with them! I took the train to Philadelphia the following day, and from there, I took the train home to Burlington. 419 miles in 9 days of cycling!
Bonus: Wawa v Sheetz
Okay so the entire ride to Pittsburgh was dominated by one particular convenience store called Sheetz. I knew that Sheetz was popular in Western PA, but I didn't realize how prolific it is. Sheetz has an ongoing rivalry with Wawa, the popular convenience store in Eastern PA (in the Philadelphia area). I knew that I was going to be stopping in Philadelphia on the way home, and I ate at quite a few Sheetz locations on the way to Pittsburgh, so I thought that this would be the perfect opportunity to directly compare the two. At Sheetz, I mostly ate fries, but I once bought one of their vegetarian breakfast muffin sandwhiches as well.
The Wawa I went to in Philadelphia is the largest Wawa in the world. I went in there with low expectations, since Sheetz was genuinely really good throughout my entire bike trip. I ordered a large fries and a sandwiches and waited for the inevitable crowning of Sheetz as the winnner. However, once I recieved my fries and tried one, I knew that Wawa was actually the winner. To be clear: Sheetz has really good french fries. That's how good the Wawa fries are. The sandwhich from Wawa was also delicious and warm, and the bread was freshly baked. So for those of you who are curious about an outsider's take on the Wawa v. Sheetz war, Wawa is the winner. I apologize to everyone from Pittsburgh.