This post covers the fifth day of a bike tour from Pittsburgh to D.C. in July 2017. If you haven't already, read the previous posts first:
Having covered an extra 20 miles the day before, that left us with only 125 miles to cover for last 3 days. We had a hotel booked in D.C. for Friday and Saturday night so it would do no good to double up the miles and get there a day early. This just gave us more time to enjoy the sites, drink beer with the locals and eat good food. When we woke up, a small bug had eaten a hole in one of the tents.
For the rest of this trip we would have the C&O Canal on one side of us with the Potomac River on the other.
At the time we rode, the wells had been treated with iodine, which made the water potable. It had a bad taste so we filled up with water at each town when possible. They were supposed to stop treating them after last year so you may need to bring your own iodine tablets.
The trail got interesting here, as it went along the edge of the water, next to some cliffs, and then next to a small waterfall.
We rode about 40 miles that day, heading to Sheperdstown, WV for dinner. It seems every bar in West Virginia is twice as expensive as the bars in Maryland. An odd thing about Maryland is every bar charged tax and would give you random amounts of change back with your beer. I just never heard of a bar that didn't at least price things in quarter intervals. This bar had the most amazing backyard patio.
I also came across an old library building still in use. This place was wonderful! There was a children's book section upstairs. The staff were super friendly and just glad that a tourist would check out their library.
That night we camped at another free site, this one with space on the beach right along the Potomac. I went swimming that night and in the morning. There was a homeless man, a hobo I guess, also camping there. He was nice and we all hung out together. He told us how the park rangers kick him out for using the same campsite too many times in a row. While we all got along, I still kept my gear close to the tent. I have nothing against anyone who travels with no money or anything. I've done it. But having been there, I know you can't trust everyone. I took this photo before locking up the bike.
I'll have part 6 soon as we take a stop at Harpers Ferry, the town where abolitionist John Brown and his men raided a federal armory!