Trip Summary Trip Dates: 1 Jun 07 - Jun 14 Trip Dates: 2 Sep 20 - Sep 27 Start - End Locations: 1 Washington, DC - Boston, PA/Shuttle to Washington, DC Start - End Locations: 2 Washington, DC - Boston, PA/Shuttle to Washington DC Days: 8   Rest Days: 0   Level of Support: Full Miles: 319 Average Miles Per Day: 45 Surface: Bike Trail/Paved Riders: 1 60 Riders: 2 60 Type: Supported   Meals: Catered meals Accommodations: Camping/Indoor Physical Difficulty: Beginner+   Airport: Washington, DC Cost: $949 Trip: 1 Booking Status: Approx. Half Full Trip: 2 Booking Status: Full

The 185-mile-long Chesapeake and Ohio Canal served as a lifeline for early settlers, as coal, timber, and agricultural products were moved along it. Today, it serves as a pathway to an unforgettable cycling experience. Whether you’re a beginning bicycle traveler or a road-tested veteran, this is a terrific ride, steeped in early American history. Best of all, you won’t need to worry about car traffic as you ride your hybrid or mountain bike some 330 miles on hard-packed, gently graded trails from the heart of the nation’s capital to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The mileage covered each day is modest, ranging from 32 to 59 miles, allowing plenty of time to take optional side trips to such unique destinations as the Antietam National Battlefield Civil War site. Nights are spent camping in small towns or forest campgrounds, where we’ll enjoy hearty catered meals, intimate campfires, and presentations from local experts.

We’ll begin with a quick visit to the National Mall, home to many of our nation’s most cherished monuments—including the new World War II Memorial. The long-overdue memorial was finally dedicated in 2004, six decades after more than 400,000 members of America’s “Greatest Generation” gave their lives to protect the freedom Americans enjoy today.

After bidding adieu to D.C., we’ll head through tony Georgetown, past the Great Falls, and deep into rural Maryland. We’ll visit fascinating Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park, where the father of all footpaths, the Appalachian Trail, enters West Virginia by way of a footbridge spanning the Potomac River. Our adventure through early America continues as we pass Fort Fredrick, a restored 1756 British Fort, and ride through the 3,118-foot-long Paw Paw Tunnel. Lined with more than six million bricks, the tunnel took twelve years to build, but negated the need to construct six miles of canal along the Paw Paw bends of the Potomac.

In lively Cumberland, Maryland, we’ll move over to the much newer Great Allegheny Passage, a stellar system of trails completed in 2006. We’ll confront the only real climb of the trip as we ascend Big Savage Mountain and pass through the Big Savage Tunnel, before traveling down the Youghiogheny River, a popular destination for rafters. The trail, featuring high railroad bridges and shaded canopies of deciduous trees, will lead us through friendly towns, peaceful farmlands, river valleys, and, finally, the outskirts of Pittsburgh, where we’ll be shuttled back to Washington.

We’re offering this ride twice—in the spring, when dappled sunrays dance through the lush growth of young green leaves, and in the autumn, when the shades of that same foliage transform to vibrant yellows, oranges, and reds. Choose your brand of magic and sign up soon: These rides were among our most popular in 2007, filling to capacity in just a few weeks’ time.

For more detailed information, see Supported trip logistics.

READY TO GO?
You can sign up for our Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath/Great Allegheny Passage tour now. Go to our online sign-up.

EXTRAS
For more information about our historic route check out the following web sites:
C&O Canal National Historical Park - http://www.nps.gov/choh/
Great Allegheny Passage - http://atatrail.org/