Pitts-DC through trip, Amtrak & trip ?'s

Greetings everyone!

I have found your comments to be great starting points for my planning in a trip my husband and I are intending to take this August (GAP + C&O).

I think that my best option, since we would like to travel west-east, is to drive to Pittsburgh and after the trip, take Amtrak back to Pittsburgh with the bikes in boxes. Things that I am unsure of are:

1)Will they let us park in the Amtrak lot in advance of our train journey (about 10 days or so)?
2)Are we restricted to 2 bike boxes or can we use an additional for a 1 wheel bike trailer?
3)What time do we need to be at the station to be able to make our departure?
...(basically any addition advice you may have for using the amtrak service since we have never done that before.)

Aside from the logistics of the parking/transportation, I am hoping that I can get some advice from trail enthusiasts regarding personal favorite sight seeing stops. We intend to take at least 3 leisurely days with minimal (or no) cycling to see some main points on the trail. I am sure we will make Harpers Ferry one of the stops, but I am undecided about the others.

Also, short sightseeing breaks are good to know, as well. My husband has a habit, when taking motorcycle trips, of getting off the bike every hour or 60 miles, whichever comes first, so that he doesn't get too tender in the seat. Since this has been successful for him (he makes 600+ mile days on the motorcycle), he is thinking that we should adapt the concept to the bicycles, as well.

Basically, as far as the sightseeing goes, I am hoping to have a plan before we go (with flexibility) so that we aren't standing around the trail asking each other whether we should stop here, ...where do we have to go to get to..., ...if we skip such and such, is there anything else to see today, etc.

Thanks in advance for your input,
Angie :)

Hi Angie. Can't help with the train logistics. I can tell you Harpers Ferry is a nice place to spend a day. There is a nice little hike to the top of hill / rock cropping. This gives you a beautiful view of the town. Lots of neat little shops there. I really like Ohiopyle too. I think you could find plenty to do there. There are lots of other towns that have neat things to see and/or do.

Let me recommend "The Trail Book". Best $10.00 you'll spend. Just like this website, it has a lot of good info. It has a section for each "Trail-Town" with lots of info for each town.

Good luck with your ride!

Ohiopyle is worth checking out. If you've got time, you should get one of the outfitters to drive you up to Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water house located nearby. It would be a challenge to ride your bikes there on the highway. Harpers Ferry is a must see, but access from the trail is via a railroad bridge with a walk way. You have to climb a few flights of stairs to access it. You'd likely have to leave you bikes locked up on the trail and just carry your valuables with you. The trail also passes by the Antietam civil war battlefield. I just did the Pitt-DC ride a few weeks ago. I spent 3 days bicycle touring D.C. at the end of the trip. I had a friend give me a ride back to Pittsburgh so I didn't mess with the train. One option is to ship your bikes back home and take the train.

I appreciate the discussion as I am about to embark on this journey myself, leaving this Friday. I am looking at a one way car rental, which makes the most sense to me...any feedback?

I have started looking at rental cars, as well. It looks to be a good option for the trip over to Pittsburgh. I did see that most of the rental car companies have locations within a few blocks of the Pittsburgh trailhead.

However, when I check the return trip, it is quite a bit more costly. Because of that, I am going to see if someone from home (Harrisburg) can come pick us up.

I am trying to be conservative on the costs for this trip, since I have already cruised twice this year, and have a New Years trip to plan. Since we are not averse to the truly rustic (we really swing the pendulum in vacation interests), I am looking at relying on the hiker biker campsites for a large part of the trip. I am hoping to space them with regular private campgrounds or guest houses so that we can do laundry and get something more than a portable shower. I hope that we don't come to regret that decision.

Since I consider myself the world’s foremost authority on Amtrak and Bicycles (talk about a tiny universe!), I’ll try to tackle the logistics question. Since you say GAP+C&O, I presume you mean you’ll end up in Washington, DC. You will be able to ship your bike in the baggage car back to PGH in a box. Quoting Amtrak policy: "Bicycles/bicycle trailers may be checked in a bicycle container for $10, in lieu of a piece of baggage. Bicycle boxes are sold at most staffed locations for $15 per box. Customers may supply their own bicycle container.” None of the other stops (Connellsville, Cumberland, Martinsburg, or Harpers Ferry) have baggage service; so no full sized bikes.

I haven’t had any experience with trailers, but based on the policy, it looks like a trailer works just like a bike. So assuming you carry you panniers on board, each of you would be entitled to ship a bike and a trailer in lieu of a piece of checked baggage.

The Capitol Limited departs DC at about 4 PM and arrives about 11:45. I believe you have to check baggage 45 minutes before departure. Whether the clock starts when you tell them you want to check the bike and pay the fee or when you present the boxed bike sort of depends on how busy they are and what type day the baggage man has been having. But obviously you don’t want to cut it too close. Incidentally, Amtrak’s bike boxes are much bigger than the manufacturer’s boxes. Normally, all you have to do is rotate the handle bars, roll the bike in, and tape it up. Usually the baggage guy has a roll of tape, but again I wouldn’t count on it.

FWIW, I’m planning a PGH to CUM ride; but my wife and I don’t have to deal with the no baggage issue at Cumberland because folding bikes go a carry on luggage. But my sister has a full sized bike; and it appears that the best bet is to leave her car in Cumberland, rent a car from one of the two Hertz locations and drop it off in Pittsburgh.

There is word on the street that the

Continuing the previous post, there is word on the street that the new baggage cars to replace the 60 year old rolling rust buckets will have bike racks. Also, Amtrak has been sort of promising to have roll on, roll off bike service on the Capitol Limited. This is supposed to happen sometime in 2014.