C&O / GAP Forum

Does anyone have details about the CSX trail from Paw Paw to Hancock along the West Virginia side of the river?

It's an asphalt paved trail that runs parallel to the C&O trail. There's a website for the CSX (aka Western Maryland Rail Trail), but it hasn't been updated in a few years. I believe they've extended the trail from its original 21-mile length. There's no camping areas along it. It's mostly a day-trail.

Coming from Cumberland, the exact mile marker is C&O 136.3. That takes you to the western end of the WMRT (Mile 22.5). As you head east, pass through Hancock, and head towards WMRT Mile 0, the last chance to get back onto the C&O is at WMRT Mile 0.75 (about 3/4 of a mile from Mile 0 and the eastern terminus of the WMRT). Basically once you pass WMRT Mile 1, keep an eye out for your turn off. When reentering the C&O, you be at C&O Mile 114.5.

The WMRT trail is on the Maryland side of the Potomac.

I believe that Charlie is asking about a CSX trail that would follow along the CSX tracks on the West Virginia side of the river between Hancock and Paw Paw.

Just over the 522 bridge at Hancock near the Hancock Airport is a listing for a CSX trail.
This continues along the CSX tracks to Doe Gully.

Then possibly use Low Line road to Paw Paw if you cant continue along CSX right of way.

Looking at Google Maps, after crossing route 51 in Paw Paw Low Line Road becomes Waterpump Road to Nose Hollow. At Nose Hollow it might be possible to ride along CSX right of way until Greenspring, where you can cross the Potomac on the Old Town Toll Bridge (no charge for bicycles).

Are there any reports of anyone taking that route?

You're correct Willy. That is the trail I am interested in.

The final day to bike through the Big Savage tunnel will be Dec 1st as the local volunteers are planning to close for the season the Big savage tunnel 3300 ft long) on December 2nd. The tunnel begins near mm 21.5 from Cumberland. check Official GAP Facebook page for more details when they are available. www.facebook.com/GAPtrail

UPDATE: THE BIG SAVAGE TUNNEL WILL BE CLOSED ON DECEMBER 9, 2016. IT WILL REOPEN THE FIRST WEEK IN APRIL 2017.

Just wondering, is the thought of extending the Western Maryland Rail Trail to Paw Paw still dead in the water?

It appears to be dead and likely will be for a long long time. The big reason is bats colonies that are nesting in three tunnels that go from Pearre to Paw Paw. They will extend the WMRT 4.5 miles to Little Orleans only. Even that stops short at the Indigo Tunnel and detours to the dirt and grass C&O Canal to get to Little Orleans. News articles said it was to begin this past July but I didn't ride it this year so I can't be certain. Check out this blog post for more details (second story on the page): http://www.thewashcycle.com/western-maryland-rail-trail-wmrt/

My apologies - for the past few days there was a bug which prevented adding new posts to the forum. This issue is now fixed.

Happy trails!

Just finished riding the C&O Canal yesterday. I have a blog site with video recaps of each day.
candocanalbiker . blogspot . com
A few thoughts:
- If possible, be flexible with your dates and try to ride when the weather is good. I postponed a week to avoid rain and had 2 beautiful days of riding. Unfortunately, my last day was rainy, muddy and therefore miserable at times. But since it was my final day, it was still enjoyable.
- Hancock and Harper's Ferry are great stopping points.
- The hotels where I stayed were all biker friendly:
Cumberland-Fairfield Inn, Hancock-Super8, Harper's-Econolodge.
- When crossing to Harper's, you'll need to carry your bike up a spiral staircase. So try to have some easily detachable paniers. I made two trips, one with my stuff and another with my bike.
- Good places to stop for lunch: Bills Place in Little Orleans (mile 141) and Whites Ferry Grill (mile 35). Both are right on the trail.
- The WMRT from mile 136 to mile 114 is well worth it. A beautiful paved trail that goes through Hancock.
- Check your rack bolts, screws, and your gears, chain, and brakes each night. Clean and oil your chain each day. Lots of vibration and mud.
- Take lots of small easily accessible high carb snacks and eat every 30 minutes. This will make a huge difference.
- Bring a bright light for the PawPaw Tunnel.
- Enjoy the history. Lots of cool locks, houses, aqueducts, and scenery. Take photos and videos.
- The people you'll meet on the C&O are really nice folks!

I rode it right behind you, starting out of Cumberland the evening of Friday the 7th and finishing in Georgetown the morning of Monday the 10th.

Rained on me all night Friday and most of Saturday - trail was wet and muddy. That day gave me by far the seventy longest miles I've ridden. I knew a cold front was on the way to dry things out, though, so I kept going and had a nice little fire and strung up a clothesline at camp Saturday night and had a fantastic time. The C&O campsites are typically beautiful and peaceful, and terrific for even a night's getaway.

The campsite at Lock 68 is nothing short of gorgeous, and feels quite remote. I didn't see anybody else on the train Friday night, until midmorning Saturday. Aside from the rare train, the only sounds at Lock 68 were crickets, katydids, frogs, the occasional splash in the canal, and the steady rain.

Did the same trip as you in late July. Even stayed in the same hotels! Would use them all again. Especially pleased with the Fairfield in Cumberland. Came in off the trail covered with mud and was thrilled to find their bike wash station. Incredibly helpful and bike friendly...and super close to a restaurant that I really enjoyed....the Crabby Pig.

Awesome video blog!!!!

Thank you for sharing tjat!

Thank you for sharing that!

Is there a trail to get to the Ohiopyle SP Campground from the GAP? Google map shows going on roads to get there but the satellite map view shows that the campground is very close to the trail. I was wondering if there is a shortcut :) ?
Thanks!

I found the answer to my own question from the State Park Recreational Guide, http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/cs/groups/public/documents/document/dcnr_003523.pdf

"CAMPGROUND CONNECTOR:
0.5 mile, unblazed, more difficult
hiking This emergency access road
begins off the Great Allegheny Passage
paralleling Beech Trail and then uphill to
connect with the back of Fir Road in the
campground. Bicyclists traveling between
the campground and the Great Allegheny
Passage should walk their bicycles up and
down this hill due to the steep grade."

You might check this out a little further. I have used this trail before and would never go up it again. You would spend less energy riding to the next campsite. When you get to the top there is still more uphill to get to entrance of park to register. For reference I am 67 years old so maybe for a younger person more doable. There are many reviews of this trail on this website be sure and read them before going.

I just finished a ride from DC to Pittsburgh earlier this week. The trip took about 4 and a half days. I have posted details about the first couple of days of the trip in my blog. Please check it out.

http://mundanemuses.blogspot.com/2016/10/washington-dc-to-pittsburg-bike-trip-on_27.html

Just curious what type of lock did you carry for bike security when you weren't around it. I am planning on going into alot of towns when I do my trip.

I carry a medium weight cable with a combo lock. It's lighter than a U-lock and you don't need to keep track of a key. We never felt we were in a bad area on our bike trip, but if we were, I'd be more concerned about the bags/contents walking away.

My wife and I are headed down this weekend for a 2 day Cumberland to Pitt trip. I currently have both bikes setup with full fenders - they were a huge asset during a Pitt to DC trip I did back in May, which involved more rain and lots of mud on C&O. If I remember the GAP correctly, it all drains very well. Weather right now looks like a bit of rain Thursday, maybe Friday morning, but Sat/Sun will be dry. Is there any need for the fenders? I only ask because leaves occasionally get pulled up and stuck between the fender and tire, making for an annoying noise. If they are needed functionally, I'll put up with picking a leaf out every now and then. If not, I'd rather remove them before the trip. Thoughts?

I don't think I've ever wanted to take off fenders before. Usually I've been wishing I had them. That said, I'd probably leave them on and pick a leaf out every now and then, While the GAP does seem to drain very well, tires throw sand and silt onto a bottom bracket, chain or legs if there aren't any fenders.
Also, forecasts (especially 5-day outlooks) are generally worth what you paid for them.

"Also, forecasts (especially 5-day outlooks) are generally worth what you paid for them."

Yep - that's a good point.

No need for fenders. The trail from Cumberland to Pgh is in pretty good shape for the most part. Not as much mud as from DC to Cumberland. You will have the usual "spray" of dust/light dirt from the crushed limestone.

keep your fenders on, it will keep you and your bike drivetrain clean and working properly (;

Fenders are completely optional. trail is dry so I'd prefer without any extra equipt or items to get in the way...
check www.GAPtrail.org for interactive map. Big Savage tunnel closes Dec 2nd this year. FYI

Small town, hometown atmosphere. Terrific pizza! Friendly staff. Great beer selection. A pleasant experience. Will return!

What recommendations would you have for where to stay in Confluence? I am more a motel/hotel person than a B&B but am open to best options...close to the trail.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

Stayed at the Parker House in July, was very good, clean, locked storage shed for bikes, check their web page. Ate at Rivers Edge for dinner, Sisters Cafe for breakfast the next morning. All great choices.

In August we stayed at the Parker House and loved it. It is a B, not a B&B (no breakfast) so very reasonably priced, grocery store a short walk away, full kitchen, TV room, shed to store bikes, close to the trail, etc.

Very helpful! Thank you.

How hard is riding the incline from Connellsville to Frostburg in one day? Looking at a 5-day ride from Pitt to DC next year including these two GAP overnights. THANKS!

The elevation change from Connellsville to Deal (the highest point on the gap at around mile 23)is just over 1500 feet over 65 miles. That is an average of about 25 feet elevation change every mile.

That isn't too bad, that is less than the 1.75 percent grade going from Cumberland to Deal.

If you can do 78 miles a day without worrying about the distance you will be fine.

You go down around 500 feet in the last 7 or 8 miles to Frostburg.

In August, I did Confluence to Cumberland in an easy 62 mile day. You would be adding 28 easy miles from Connelsville to Confluence and subtracting 16 really, really easy downhill miles from Frostburg to Cumberland - very doable.

My wife and I have biked from Ohiopyle to Cumberland 75 miles in appx. 7 hours including lunch in Connelsville. Wasn't difficult at all. Had a bit of rain the last 8 miles or so. It was mid Oct. so we finished just about dark. I was 59 at the time she was 64 but we bike a lot.

Back in August, four of us did the GAP from West Newton to Cumberland in two days. A blog write up here: http://security.typepad.com/internet_security_be_care/2016/08/john-carole-chris-june-their-excellent-adventures.html

One of the riders, Chris, enjoyed it so much, a few weeks later he went back and parked his car in Cumberland, biked in 3 days to Pittsburgh, and took Amtrak back to his car. Blog post here: http://security.typepad.com/internet_security_be_care/2016/10/guest-blogger-chris-does-the-entire-great-allegheny-passage-trail.html

In another post in the blog, I've detailed my wife and I doing the 34 mile Virginia Creeper trail.

Curious if anyone had any encounters with bears, venomous snakes, or other potentially dangerous wildlife along the C&O towpath ?

No bears or snakes 2 weeks ago, plenty of deer and turkeys.

Nothing dangerous the last week of July...unless you count deer who seemingly had no fear or me/my bike whatsoever and just stood there and watched a few feet away as I SLOWLY moved past (not confident in their potential movements). It was awesome!

I've never encountered any bears or snakes. Probably more blue herons and raccoons!

There are poisonous snakes along the route as well as bear. But you'd be lucky to see one. We saw a Copperhead just east of Cumberland a few years ago. Got a neat video of a black snake stretched across the tracks on the Western Md. Rail Trail outside Frostburg. And I saw the Granddaddy of all blacksnakes several years ago near White's Ferry at a campsite. The sucker had to be 10' long! He was eye level with me, his body went to the base of the tree, into a hollow in the tree, came out the other side, then curled around and was almost touching his body where it first entered the tree. No joke. The most remote section of the C&O is between Old Town and just east of Paw Paw before you get to Hancock. There are bear along that stretch but you'd be lucky to see one.

In Sept of 2014, I spotted a rather large copperhead crossing the path about 8 miles from Georgetown on the C&O. It was strange because as many of you know, that's right where the trail starts getting pretty congested with all sorts of DC metro area recreational users. I stayed to make sure he crossed safely, and told a few users up ahead to keep an eye out.

I've the c&o / gap several times. The biggest problem with wildlife I've had is raccoons. They will raid your camp site. They are smart, sneaky, and persistent. They may be cute in the cartoons but they are nasty in the middle of the night. Coyotes can be creepy to hear at night but have never come close.

Most dangerous animal I have encountered is the kind you see in the mirror. Just because you are away from large metro areas most of the trip does not mean there are not predators out there. Generally, though, those types are too lazy to leave the city...Take the usual precautions.

I did the entire C&O by myself this past summer. I went in July. I never saw any bears or poison snakes. The worst part for me was near places that rent bicycles for trail use by familes. Most young kids do not know to ride single file when approaching another rider!? I was nearly run over several times. I am hoping parents will do a better job teaching their children how to use/ride the trail.

My son and I rode the C&O in June. We saw quite a bit of wildlife - no bears or rattlesnakes, but there was a goat that was very reluctant to let us get by.

Porcupine that had no intention of moving on the hill up to Savage tunnel, turtles, snakes, too many deer to count, no bear though.

Any reviews/comments on the Rockwood Trail House? Thanks.

Stayed at Hostel on Main, clean, full kitchen, AC, Cable TV, washer/dryer, $30, Basically a four star bunkhouse, although I had the whole place to myself mid August, 2016.

I second Steve's recommendation. I've stayed at The Hostel on Main many times and never been disappointed.

The first time my entire family did the GAP, we stayed at the Hostel on Main. We had the back room and when we got there, it seemed great. But about 11:00pm, the tenant upstairs came home, apparently drunk and was screaming and yelling and seemingly trying to bust through the floor. This went on for hours and we eventually had to go to the front room and sleep on the floor.

My son and I rode the trail in June 2016 and stayed at the Hostel on Main. The accomodations were fine, the hosts were very friendly, and the price was right. And the food at the Rockwood Mill Shoppes was very good.