Near the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah in Harpers Ferry, drinking in the watery views from a pedestrian bridge and, right, the rocky shallows.
W e spent the night at the campground in Fort Frederick State Park. The historic fort, circa 1756, is a peaceful place to spend the night within earshot of trains and only a stone’s throw from the river. In the morning we cycled from the fort to Locks 47 through 50 near a mule barn where weary animals passed the winter. In the 1870s about 3,000 mules worked the C&O, and the aptly named town of Four Locks had two general stores, two ware- houses, a dry dock, a post office and schools. The Miles Gibson family was lodging in Lockhouse 49 when we visited. Staying there is a bit like dry camping. There’s electricity but no running water and a chemical toilet outside. A washbasin sits in each bedroom, but you have to bring your own water. Next, we made the drive to the Williamsport Visitor Center, situated in the old Cushwa Coal and Brick Company ware- house. A large basin allowed the barges to line up, at times for 6 or 7 miles, waiting to unload coal coming from Cumberland or to take on bricks, grain and vegetables bound for the George- town market. Many of the brownstones of Georgetown origi- nated at the Cushwa brickworks. Before heading to the Antietam Creek Aqueduct section of the C&O, at mile 70, we drove through Antietam National Battlefield then stopped along a section of roadway designated an official national park camping area. We put the bikes on the path there and rode down to Lock 37, a 2.5-mile ride each way. Drive-in users with bikes cross the towpath on footbridges to tent sites with outdoor privies and water. We decided that the invitation to rest also applied to RV campers, so we paid our $10 fee, fed the cat and ourselves, pulled in the stairs and slept undisturbed. The way to Harpers Ferry, Virginia, from Antietam Creek was a tortuous two-lane road that wound through the hills, past small homes and beneath overhanging trees. We headed down
to the towpath when a yellow roadside sign popped up to warn us of a 12-foot clearance. Our trailer measures 12 feet, 8 inches. A National Park Service truck pulled alongside us, and a mustached face leaned out the window and confirmed the clearance. The way around was to backtrack, turn right, then head right again over the hills and through the woods past Grandma’s house to Highway 67. Another right turn, then a half hour later we were in Harpers Ferry. Strategically positioned at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers, Harpers Ferry had a federal arsenal and was the target for abolitionist John Brown and his raiders in 1859. During the Civil War, the town and its weapon-making machinery shifted from Union to Confederate possession eight times, with the C&O Canal and the Potomac River becoming the de facto scrimmage line. We toured Harpers Ferry, then walked the footbridge along- side the railroad tracks and down a circular staircase to the towpath, crowded with cyclists. One couple was sucking air and looking exhausted. They were part of a British Columbia group that had flown to Pittsburgh, rented bicycles and were close to finishing the C&O Canal towpath after first complet- ing the 149-mile Great Allegheny Passage to Cumberland. That day and the day before, they’d ridden 64 miles and spent eight hours in the saddle on rented bikes. They said they were having a good time. Ugh! The Monocacy Aqueduct at mile 42.2 has seven arches and stretches 500 feet, the giant among the 11 aqueducts along the C&O. It’s strikingly beautiful with its pink quartzite stone. Even so, the Confederate army still tried to blow it up. Great Falls Tavern, built in 1828, was a way station for travelers in the early years but is now a museum with displays and memorabilia. Walkways and outlooks show the otherwise placid Potomac as wild and savage as it cascades through steep rocks and a narrow gorge.
14 COAST TO COAST fall 2013
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