Distance Vertical Gain Duration 88.4 Miles 538 Feet 8 Hours 53 Minutes Starting off our morning, the wet trail was lit up with the beams of our headlamps and bike lights with our final day on the bikes ahead of us. Finally, got the boys to start riding at 6:30 AM, my preferred start time for a big adventure. To me, moving in the dark is like free miles and free time, in that, everything you accomplish before the sun comes up feels like a bonus and somehow easier compared to starting later in the day. This made our breakfast …
Distance Vertical Gain Duration 92.9 Miles 2,224 Feet 10 Hours 29 Minutes Waking up to the predicted forecast of rain on the roof of the cabin we spent the night in was difficult pill to swallow. I’d previously completed a bike touring trip for 3 days around the White Mountains of New Hampshire entirely in the rain, and I was not looking forward to almost a century ride in the rain today. With a bit more pep in our step this morning than the previous two, we loaded up our bikes, dawned all our warm clothes, rain gear, and pushed off …
Distance Vertical Gain Duration 86.3 Miles 974 Feet 9 Hours 22 Minutes Waking out of a sleep, on a terribly uncomfortable couch, that only an entire day on a bike can put your body into, I was ready for another day in the saddle. But there were a few items to square away before we could pedal off towards Paw Paw, West Virginia nearly 90 miles away. Pat found himself carrying extra gear that was simply not useful, so he wandered down to the Post Office and shipped extra clothing and a pair of shoes. I was off in the other …
Distance Vertical Gain Duration 83.6 Miles 1,257 Feet 8 Hours 17 Minutes With grand ambitions of being in the saddle first thing in the morning, just after breakfast burritos and coffee, reality set in and we were not even close to being ready to go. And by we, I mean Ben. While Pat and I squared away everything the night before, Ben still had a litany of items to complete before we could roll away from his home in Alexandria, VA. The list included installing a new chain, mounting handlebars, installing brake levers, wrapping said handlebars, the exhausting task of mounting …
Setting out from Washington D.C. to check off my buddy Ben’s bucket list item of riding all the way to Pittsburgh on the C&O and GAP trails. We also, easily, convinced our other college friend Pat to join us. Over the 4 days, we had such a blast riding this trail and cannot recommend it enough to those who enjoy riding, scenery, history, and nature. Long days in the saddle and so much American history viewed along the way.
The C&O section of trail, that runs from D.C. to Cumberland, Maryland is a cinder gravel trail that is mostly smooth. Following alongside the Potomac, you pass through a history of this country. One where towns relied heavily on their proximity to a navigable river, or in this case, a canal to ferry goods inland from the port cities. These small towns, once wealthy from extraction industries like coal, are all a shell of themselves and depend mostly on weekend tourism from the nearby cities.
The Great Allegheny Passage, or GAP trail, that runs from the continental divide downhill to Pittsburgh ended up being mostly paved, with a handful of crushed gravel sections. Nearly complete opposite from the previous days trail of rural, remote riding, the GAP trail cuts through one old town to the next.
Hi there, my name is Zachary Kenney and I’m an adventure filmmaker & photographer. My passion is to tell stories that will hopefully motivate you to go live a more adventurous life. Whether that is to experience the view from the summit of a mountain, or wandering through a new town on a road trip. Currently based in the Park City, Utah.
First Bikepacking trip was a success! It’s like bike touring, but on a mountain bike, and over some gnarly terrain. You strap everything you need for a night of camping onto your bike and go have an adventure. A quick, overnight trip up to the Wasatch Crest from Park City after work. My buddy Tyler joined me for this sufferfest of a climb, but was all worth it the next morning for a 10mile descent back home. The Route we took started in Kimball Junction, then headed up the UOP, up BLT, followed by a very steep climb on Moose …
