, 4 min, 681 words
Tags: adventuring biking
With some time off between kayaking and skiing, I decided almost on a whim to head out on a fabulous bikepacking trip from Pittsburgh to Washington, DC.
This route is one I've been aware of for several years now. It's a combination of the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) and the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath (C&O canal). All told, the 330 miles of travel are all bike friendly, and don't require riders to compete with cars. Plus, the GAP used to be a railroad, so it has a maximum grade of less than 2%, and canals are generally pretty flat too. All in all, a solid setting for my first ever bikepacking trip.
I used my standard hammock camping setup for this trip. I switched a down sleeping bag for my synthetic one, mostly because it looked awfully lonely after not being used all summer. And I've started using a trucker's hitch for tarp tie-outs instead of my old taut line hitch. It's fast, easy to adjust, easy to untie, and generally nice. Thanks to Alex and Sid for teaching me this lovely knot this summer in Seward.
On top of my usual camping setup, I camped with a stove for effectively the first time. Oh, I've used the pocket rocket a bunch, but never on solo trips. I've been just as happy with quick no-cook meals in the past. But it was cold on this trip, and I wanted to bring a stove at least for safety, so I ended up packing extra fuel and using it to cook as well. I am a big fan of this tiny alcohol burning stove.
One more thing I had to sort out: my bike setup! As mentioned above, this was my first bikepacking trip, so all of packing a bike was new to me. Out of a combination of "might as well try it" and laziness, I ended up using two giant rear saddlebags, a little under-seat pouch for a repair kit, and a couple elastic straps on my rear rack to keep other miscellany in place. Other than that, I spent a few hours tuning up my bike under the supervision of the pros - thank you to Ken Hartley and Ari for their help. It got my bike into tip top shape and ensured I'd remembered how to do repairs if I needed to in the field.
Traveling with a bike plus saddlebags can be a pain. I decided early on that this would be a ground transportation sort of trip. Between Amtrak and Bolt Bus, I found a way to make it work without having to box my bike. Hooray!
One note to anyone planning to bring a bike on Amtrak: go out of your way to get a luggage tag for it. On both legs, I didn't get one until the last minute (because I didn't realize I needed one), and it caused all sorts of confusion on board.
I spent a week on the trail. It was a unique and fulfilling experience in a lot of ways, and I'm really glad I did it. The sense of camaraderie on the trail and the random people I met were incredible. Camping in remote and beautiful areas is always a joy. And there's something very satisfying about looking at a map of the United States and saying "I biked from here all the way to there."
To be honest, though, I'm not sure long distance bike touring is for me. The monotony of long days on the trail with similar scenery started to wear on me, and fifty mile days with a fully loaded hybrid bike don't leave much time for enjoying the scenery. My strategy this time around was to listen to various podcasts after about mile 25 each day. In future, I think I'll plan to shorten my days or bike with a buddy.
The big takeaway was a satisfying one: I can really do it.