April 2015 - my sister Kitty invited me to ride on the famous
GAP (Great Allegheny Passage) bike trail. Kitty was preparing to go on a self-supporting bicycle ride along the Rhine in late summer, and she wanted to do a shakedown ride using her Bike Friday and all her travelling gear, including panniers.
The GAP trail is a crushed-rock and packed-dirt trail built along the right-of-way of the Western Maryland RR.
I met Kitty and her Rhine group (friends Susan, Mark, Chuck, Helen) near Pittsburgh. I rode with them for 3 days. They hauled all their clothing/personal gear on their bicycles, which created a 30 lb load for each rider.
Because I was supported by my wife Sherry and a vehicle, I only had to haul myself. (We drove from Olathe, KS to join the bike ride). While I was riding with Kitty, Sherry was able to do a bit of sightseeing (Falling Waters, Ft. Necessity).
Overnight stops were at
Ohiopyle and
Meyersdale in Pennsylvania, and
Cumberland in Maryland.
On the third day, I broke off from the shakedown group and rode ahead, biking across the
eastern Continental Divide and through the
Big Savage Tunnel riding NW to SE, then downhill to Cumberland, MD where I met up with Sherry.
On the downhill leg, I crossed the
Mason-Dixon Line, from Pennsylvania into Maryland. The M-D Line is beautifully marked on the bike trail.
- Art -
Topeka Zoo is a small zoo, located about 60 miles W of Olathe. We took grandaughters Lizzie (age 4) and Ainsley (age 3) on an exploratory trip. They had a great time. One of the exhibits was a hands-on parrot experience....feeding time!
