Journal - Day 5
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We get up early and head off to yoga.
It still feels good to stretch, but everyone,
including the yoga teacher admits to being sore from all the miles of riding so far.
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We pack our bags, strike our tent and get our bags loaded on the truck
before riding our bike part way back up the long, steep hill to breakfast
served at the local fire department. Very simple but excellent pancakes
and local maple syrup.
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We ride 5 miles in dry weather before we need to stop to put rain
covers on our panniers. We ride 4 more miles uphill to the small
tunnel at the Eastern Continental Divide.
Linda Sue in the tunnel at the Eastern Continental Divide,
the highest point of the our 5-day ride
Richard's mud-covered bike with the rain covers on the panniers
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We ride the next 23 miles to Cumberland, MD in the pouring rain.
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We don't linger to enjoy any of the many beautiful vistas
that we might have stopped at had the weather been more pleasant.
Around 11:30 AM -
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We arrive at the end of the trail ride.
It's still pouring rain, but it feels good to finish!
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We load our luggage into and our bikes onto the car.
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We get the mud washed off our legs by the kind folks
who set up a hose outside the bike shop in Cumberland.
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The organizers of the trip have a welcome table set up
out of the rain and under the overpass at GAP Trail Mile 0
and we get some free BBQ chips.
Mile marker in the bricks on the trail at the end of our ride.
We've actually ridden the ride "backwards"
from Mile 150 in Pittsburgh to Mile 0 in Cumberland, MD.
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We eat a nice lunch at the Crabby Pig, the only restaurant
within immediate walking distance. It's still raining outside,
but we change into dry shirts and feel a little better.
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We eat the only thing on the menu that was anything close to kosher,
but the broiled grouper sandwich is delicious!
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We check into our hotel in Cumberland to rest up for the ride home tomorrow.
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The long, hot shower feels fantastic!
Later in the afternoon -
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The rain lets up, so we come back into Cumberland
to play tourist for the rest of the afternoon and early evening.
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While buying a scarf as a gift for Hana,
we learn from the storekeeper that there's an old, restored synagogue
(B'er Chayim - "Well of Life") just a block or two away.
It's one of the oldest in Maryland, dating back to the 1850s.
Congregation B'er Chaim (Well of Life), Cumberland, MD
Day 6 - homeward bound
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All the mud on our panniers is now dry and comes off easily
with the toothbrushes we got in the Meyersdale goodie bags.
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We're on our way home around 8:30 AM.
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We arrived home around 7:00 PM. It feels good to be home.
