Day 8 - Rockwood, PA

Though my sleeping bag and tent are pretty comfy I didn't get a lot of sleep my first night camping due to the thunderous crashes from freight trains pulling through a rail yard nearby. They were louder than thunder. I can't believe a piece of machinery can produce such a noise and survive.

I got up at about 8 to the sounds of Tom and Meg packing down their gear and heading off on the trail. I wanted to lie still a little more before getting up so I didnt get to see them off. They left a kind note behind with their email address.

After getting dressed and organizing gear inside my tent I stepped out into a cold fresh air. Clouds were over head. I took down my tent and packed the rest of my bags for the day. Ryan was late waking up. He too had trouble sleeping in addition to feeling a little off from his evening swim in the Potomac.

We followed the last 5 miles of the C&O tow path into Cumberland for breakfast at the City Queen Creamery. It's an old time soda shop, booths filled mostly with seniors, a vintage Rock-Ola juke box not too far from a soda fountain behind a wood paneled bar.

We had a good conversation with two guys next to us about possible routes for the day. One of them, a local police officer who just suffered a heart attack a week ago, described how tough the hills on route 40 would be making special note of Big Savage Mountain which begins in Frostburg, MD. We stopped by the local bike shop, where we were also told about the terrible climbs. While there we were offered hot coffee, use of there a shower and a laptop with internet!

So far getting information from locals far outstrips what you can attain from a gps or google maps. Folks who have spent there whole lives in a town can tell you about evey bump in the road.

Our alternative was to take the Allegheny Highland Trail which starts where the tow path ends and continues north west all the way to Pittsburg, PA. Although we would be losing some of our longitude by heading back into PA, the opportunity to be on a scenic, car free path with plenty of camping options was too good to pass up.

The path is a well maintained rail trail made of smooth packed dirt, which keeps an even 2 percent uphill grade for about 20 miles, the most steam engines could do at the time of it's construction. This feels like riding up a long handicap ramp. You realize you are on an incline, but it only knocks a couple miles off your speed. At the easten continental divide, not too far past the PA border, you summit the climb at 2392 feet and begin riding downhill. This was a welcomed change of pace, letting me ride comfortably at 15 mph.


Along the path are beautiful sweeping vistas of the valleys below. Every so often the trail takes you through a tunnel or up along a high overpass. I stopped frequently to snap photos. At other points I spotted a steam engine passing along another set of tracks. The sun was out all day.

We took a quick lunch break in Meyersdale, PA, a sleepy town with most stores closed on Sunday. I ate a sandwich at subway where a pre-pubescent kid, uniform hanging off his thin frame, took orders from customers acting grown up and looking freightened at the same time.




We followed the trail for another 15 miles to Husky Haven camp site, which is in Rockwood, PA. There are separate small clearings with fire pits and picnic tables nestled between the trees. Barry, the operator, killed the engine on his tractor to show me around. We choose a spacious clearing right by the water to set up camp. The grounds are idyllic and I'm looking forward to getting some sleep.


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Location:Rockwood, PA