Bike Tour | PA to VA | Part 1
Ever since I hiked the High Sierras in the summer of 2008 with longtime friends Nick and Preston, I have had the urge for another challenging adventure. Living in New York City will makes me yearn for the freedom I knew as a young boy, running around the woods with my brothers and friends, without a care in the world. What better way to obtain this than combining my love for bicycles and travel, to see what I could see? I originally planned to ride to Montreal, but changed my mind and decided to head south on a solo mission into the wild.
Much of my summer was spent couch surfing around NYC thanks to some great friends, which allowed me to save some loot, and luckily purchase a touring bike at the end of summer. I got the bike together with some help from my friends and coworkers Chad and Lucus at Busy Bee, and quit my job there in mid September. I packed up my car with all my belongings and headed home to PA for one last summer session at the trails with Grady and the boys, then spent that night with my fam, getting ready for my journey to Richmond, Virginia.
I had a loose route planned and hit the road at noon on Sunday 9/12/10 after some morning rain delayed my start time. I was unsure where I would make it or where I would stay that night, so I just pedaled hard most of the day. I saw a little bit of rain, but stayed dry for the most part. A lot of day one was upon familiar turf, cruising out of the Lehigh Valley, through Kutztown, Reading and almost to Lancaster. I stopped by an abandoned gas station to stay dry for a little and had a conversation with a old guy who said he lived in the 'nut house' up the street and was going to buy his grandson a Jiminy Cricket doll to finish his collection of Disney characters. I mostly just listened as he talked and talked, then I threw on my raincoat and pedaled on through the mist. The sun showed its face for the first time of the day, and trip about an hour before dark. Somehow I did not see any Amish people all day, but ended up finding a cow farm along a peaceful creek, steps from a covered bridge, where I set up camp for the night. I decided to pitch my tent just incase of more rain. I was on private property, so I didn't want to build a fire or use my camp stove to make any food. I downed some trail mix and laid down only minutes after nightfall. I was a little nervous of being woken up by the owner of the land, and getting kicked out. I woke up several times through out the night, but didn't have any hassles except for the ones in my mind.
I had my phone alarm set for 6:20 am and immediately popped up and packed up camp. The light that early in the morning was beautiful and something I haven't been used to seeing. I snapped some photos and got a move on straight through Lancaster. I pedaled by a small diner that was offering a $1.69 breakfast special, so I slammed on the brakes and devoured some eggs, potatoes, and toast. The waitress was talkative and nice enough to fill my water bottles with ice cold water which kept me fresh through the hot sun of the day. I made it to York, PA after some minor bike troubles, sometime that afternoon, where I met up with a rail-trail that would take me most of the way to Baltimore. At some point along the trail I found myself a creek to take a much needed swim in. Swimming gives me a rush so great that it makes me scream for joy every time I get below the surface. I laid in the shallow water until I felt content, got dressed, then continued on my way. About half way down the trail, and just a couple miles into Maryland, I was waved down by an older couple who asked me how my tour was going, it was obvious to them that I was touring due to the panniers hanging from my bike. They offered me a bed to crash on in their home just a few blocks away. I was tempted, but wanted to get some more miles in before I called it a day, and liked the idea of sleeping in the woods again. I ended up finding another spot along a creek, and this time slept out under the stars, still with a little fear of being busted by rangers or landowners. I also have never camped in the woods alone prior to this trip, it's a creepy and exhilarating experience.
Tuesday morning started off in a dew filled field with sun shining through the grass and leaves in a way that makes you appreciate earth and what it has to offer our senses. I watched a flock of stork-like birds bathing in a swamp and I wished I had a long lens with me so I could have gotten a decent shot of them. It was fun just watching from a distance though. I passed by many plantation-like farms and rode through miles of forest with the occasional passerby to say hi, or hey to. One thing I always notice when I leave NYC is that there are rarely any pretty ladies to look at or talk to. This trip away from the city was no different, but I had plenty of memories from the summer past running through my head to keep me occupied. Not to mention the beautiful land and cityscapes to help me forget about girls for a little while.
I made it to Baltimore after leaving behind nature, and riding down a busy, morning-rush-hour traffic filled, four lane road. I had a delicious veggie burrito near a local college campus. When I was placing my order, the guy at the counter told me I had a spider crawling on my face. It was probably the one that I thought I knocked off my helmet earlier that morning. After breakfast, I made my way through the Baltimore ghetto and it reminded me of being back home, and riding through Bed Stuy on my way to the beach at Fort Tilden, a ride I had done many times this summer with friends and sometimes by myself. I made it to the Inner Harbor and sat on the ground and stretched and listened to seagulls for a while. By this time, my knees where bothering me pretty badly every time I cranked hard. My brother Jamer suggested I my make my way to DC to visit the Capitol and rest my bones for a day. I texted my friend Kym, who is from Baltimore and she was nice enough to send me a route into DC. I wasn't originally planning on going there so I had to make arrangements. Luckily I was able to reach friend and fellow bmxer, Jon Saunders and he gladly offer me his couch for the night. I told him I'd see him that evening, enjoyed the inner harbor for a few more minutes then took off for our nations Capitol.
The ride from Baltimore to DC was pretty grim. There was a few nice stretches, however most of the route was along four lane highways with little to no shoulder. I guess thats how it is when traveling from one major metropolis to another. My knees were also only getting worse through out the day, but I took the pain and pushed on. I made it to DC earlier than expected and met up with Jon who was working at the local bike shop. I rested there for a little, then pedaled down to the national mall and enjoyed an amazing sunset and couldn't be happier to be there. When Jon got out of work, we headed back to his place, only a five minute ride from downtown, and fired up the BBQ and had a great diner, then passed out pretty early after a few beers. I didn't get to see much of DC that night, so I decided to stay an extra night and spent all of Wednesday riding around the city checking out museums and the different neighborhoods. I really enjoyed this city and its cleanliness and great architecture. The National Holocaust Museum was really moving and something I will never forget. And the National Portrait Gallery had a really inspiring exhibition called 'Americans Now,' which featured portraits of high achieving and influential Americans in todays society. It made me really want to start shooting more portraits. All I need now is to stop being shy and make it happen more often. Overall, the day was great, we BBQed at Jon's again, with his roommate Jake who fired up some corn on the cob, then hit up Sticky Rice, the local sushi bar/drinking hole for some red, white, and blues.
CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE TO PART 2.
Much of my summer was spent couch surfing around NYC thanks to some great friends, which allowed me to save some loot, and luckily purchase a touring bike at the end of summer. I got the bike together with some help from my friends and coworkers Chad and Lucus at Busy Bee, and quit my job there in mid September. I packed up my car with all my belongings and headed home to PA for one last summer session at the trails with Grady and the boys, then spent that night with my fam, getting ready for my journey to Richmond, Virginia.
I had a loose route planned and hit the road at noon on Sunday 9/12/10 after some morning rain delayed my start time. I was unsure where I would make it or where I would stay that night, so I just pedaled hard most of the day. I saw a little bit of rain, but stayed dry for the most part. A lot of day one was upon familiar turf, cruising out of the Lehigh Valley, through Kutztown, Reading and almost to Lancaster. I stopped by an abandoned gas station to stay dry for a little and had a conversation with a old guy who said he lived in the 'nut house' up the street and was going to buy his grandson a Jiminy Cricket doll to finish his collection of Disney characters. I mostly just listened as he talked and talked, then I threw on my raincoat and pedaled on through the mist. The sun showed its face for the first time of the day, and trip about an hour before dark. Somehow I did not see any Amish people all day, but ended up finding a cow farm along a peaceful creek, steps from a covered bridge, where I set up camp for the night. I decided to pitch my tent just incase of more rain. I was on private property, so I didn't want to build a fire or use my camp stove to make any food. I downed some trail mix and laid down only minutes after nightfall. I was a little nervous of being woken up by the owner of the land, and getting kicked out. I woke up several times through out the night, but didn't have any hassles except for the ones in my mind.
I had my phone alarm set for 6:20 am and immediately popped up and packed up camp. The light that early in the morning was beautiful and something I haven't been used to seeing. I snapped some photos and got a move on straight through Lancaster. I pedaled by a small diner that was offering a $1.69 breakfast special, so I slammed on the brakes and devoured some eggs, potatoes, and toast. The waitress was talkative and nice enough to fill my water bottles with ice cold water which kept me fresh through the hot sun of the day. I made it to York, PA after some minor bike troubles, sometime that afternoon, where I met up with a rail-trail that would take me most of the way to Baltimore. At some point along the trail I found myself a creek to take a much needed swim in. Swimming gives me a rush so great that it makes me scream for joy every time I get below the surface. I laid in the shallow water until I felt content, got dressed, then continued on my way. About half way down the trail, and just a couple miles into Maryland, I was waved down by an older couple who asked me how my tour was going, it was obvious to them that I was touring due to the panniers hanging from my bike. They offered me a bed to crash on in their home just a few blocks away. I was tempted, but wanted to get some more miles in before I called it a day, and liked the idea of sleeping in the woods again. I ended up finding another spot along a creek, and this time slept out under the stars, still with a little fear of being busted by rangers or landowners. I also have never camped in the woods alone prior to this trip, it's a creepy and exhilarating experience.
Tuesday morning started off in a dew filled field with sun shining through the grass and leaves in a way that makes you appreciate earth and what it has to offer our senses. I watched a flock of stork-like birds bathing in a swamp and I wished I had a long lens with me so I could have gotten a decent shot of them. It was fun just watching from a distance though. I passed by many plantation-like farms and rode through miles of forest with the occasional passerby to say hi, or hey to. One thing I always notice when I leave NYC is that there are rarely any pretty ladies to look at or talk to. This trip away from the city was no different, but I had plenty of memories from the summer past running through my head to keep me occupied. Not to mention the beautiful land and cityscapes to help me forget about girls for a little while.
I made it to Baltimore after leaving behind nature, and riding down a busy, morning-rush-hour traffic filled, four lane road. I had a delicious veggie burrito near a local college campus. When I was placing my order, the guy at the counter told me I had a spider crawling on my face. It was probably the one that I thought I knocked off my helmet earlier that morning. After breakfast, I made my way through the Baltimore ghetto and it reminded me of being back home, and riding through Bed Stuy on my way to the beach at Fort Tilden, a ride I had done many times this summer with friends and sometimes by myself. I made it to the Inner Harbor and sat on the ground and stretched and listened to seagulls for a while. By this time, my knees where bothering me pretty badly every time I cranked hard. My brother Jamer suggested I my make my way to DC to visit the Capitol and rest my bones for a day. I texted my friend Kym, who is from Baltimore and she was nice enough to send me a route into DC. I wasn't originally planning on going there so I had to make arrangements. Luckily I was able to reach friend and fellow bmxer, Jon Saunders and he gladly offer me his couch for the night. I told him I'd see him that evening, enjoyed the inner harbor for a few more minutes then took off for our nations Capitol.
The ride from Baltimore to DC was pretty grim. There was a few nice stretches, however most of the route was along four lane highways with little to no shoulder. I guess thats how it is when traveling from one major metropolis to another. My knees were also only getting worse through out the day, but I took the pain and pushed on. I made it to DC earlier than expected and met up with Jon who was working at the local bike shop. I rested there for a little, then pedaled down to the national mall and enjoyed an amazing sunset and couldn't be happier to be there. When Jon got out of work, we headed back to his place, only a five minute ride from downtown, and fired up the BBQ and had a great diner, then passed out pretty early after a few beers. I didn't get to see much of DC that night, so I decided to stay an extra night and spent all of Wednesday riding around the city checking out museums and the different neighborhoods. I really enjoyed this city and its cleanliness and great architecture. The National Holocaust Museum was really moving and something I will never forget. And the National Portrait Gallery had a really inspiring exhibition called 'Americans Now,' which featured portraits of high achieving and influential Americans in todays society. It made me really want to start shooting more portraits. All I need now is to stop being shy and make it happen more often. Overall, the day was great, we BBQed at Jon's again, with his roommate Jake who fired up some corn on the cob, then hit up Sticky Rice, the local sushi bar/drinking hole for some red, white, and blues.
CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE TO PART 2.
posted by Brian Barnhart at
11:25 AM
