Ride Reports May 2005

Orchard Impromptu
April 17, 2005 - Led by Martha Anderson

Spring was finally kicking some serious butt as five of us headed north from Walkersville to see some of nature's bounty. Along for the ride were Mark and Martha Anderson, Brian King, Frank Scotto and Joan Wicks.

Kelbaugh Road north of Thurmont is like so many other roads in the county until you get to Catoctin Mountain Orchards about a mile out from Route 550 where you are treated to acre after acre of apple, pear and peach trees. They start down along Route 15 and extend well up the hill toward Catoctin Mountain.



On this particular day, trees in the lower fields were partially in bloom but the trees higher up had not even begun to blossom yet. We agreed that the fields would be even more picturesque in about a week and agreed to try and make it back out the following weekend.

You can visit the orchard at their market location on Route 15 at Franklinville Road or see them online at http://www.catoctinmountainorchard.com

Easy Wilderness Ride
April 2005 - by Ann and Fred Abeles

The 62-mile long Pine Creek Rail/Trail in north central Pennsylvania is a perfect destination for a few days of easy bicycling through a spectacular gorge, often referred to as the Grand Canyon of Pennsylvania. The crushed limestone trail follows Pine Creek from Ansonia, near Wellsboro to Jersey Shore on the Susquehanna River west of Williamsport. The trail is built on the rail bed of the former Jersey Shore, Pine Creek and Buffalo Railroad which carried lumber from the forests to the saw mills along the creek. By 1920 most of the marketable trees had been cut and the last freight train passed through in 1988. Since that time the forest has become reestablished and much of the area has been incorporated into the Tioga and Tiadaghton State Forests. The Canyon was recognized as a National Landmark in 1968.

We have biked the upper region of the trail a couple of times but had not had the chance to explore the trail below Blackwell. So, in early April, after visiting in New York, we decided to stop over and ride this part of the trail. Last winter I had picked up the Pine Creek R/T brochure from the new visitor center near Tioga on Highway 15. It has a map of the trail as far as Waterville and gives the web sites of some of the services along or near the trail. I booked a room at the Hotel Manor on the trail at Slate Run for $90 including breakfast. We were pleased when we spotted our destination, a beautiful, newly rebuilt inn. We met the owner/chef Mark Kauffman, who was busily preparing for the opening of trout fishing. After checking in, we got out our bikes and headed south on the trail. Although the trail is a rail/trail with a gentle gradient, it does drop considerably from its start near Ansonia.. We opted not to bike the 37 miles to the Jersey Shore trailhead but turned around at Waterville and headed up hill and up wind back to the inn. That evening, we met the rest of the inn keeper’s family and enjoyed a delicious meal. We were thoroughly spoiled as we had the whole place to ourselves that Monday.


Ann Abeles, daughter Shoshanna and grandchild Angela
leaving the new section of the Western MD Rail-Trail

It was clear and cold Tuesday morning as we headed out and northwards on the trail. There were icicles dripping from many of the small rivulets flowing down the rugged bluffs along the trail, their droplets sparkling in the sun. We enjoyed seeing the early signs of spring along the trail and the many varieties of birds. We rode about 12 miles north to Blackwell, where the trail used to end and then returned to the inn for HUGE sandwiches for lunch. We hope to return to this hotel in the fall and book rooms for our whole family to join us. Even our granddaughters will enjoy biking along this trail.

In addition to the Hotel Manor, www.hotel-manor.com, there are a few campgrounds along the way as well as a couple of inns. There are more lodging choices available in Jersey shore and away from the trail in Wellsboro. More information is available from www.visittioga.pa.com and www.vacationpa.com. In addition to biking, Pine Creek is a favorite for trout fishing, canoeing and tubing in the summer. Jersey Shore is a little over 4 hours by car from Frederick making the trail a nice weekend destination.

Spring Century
April 15, 2005 - Led by Bill Smith

It was a very beautiful, clear, cool day when we left the Food Lion parking lot at eight-thirty in the morning. It remained a bright sunny day, but the wind picked up and blew strongly from the northeast at about 20 mph all day. We began with a long climb up MD 77 over to Smithsburg, headed toward Hagerstown and then turned north into Franklin County PA. Most of the 6,500 feet of climbing was put away in the first half of the ride, but the most difficult portion of the ride was the leg from near Greencastle (lunch stop) to the top of the climb before the descent into Gettysburg. This portion was slightly uphill, with some steeper sections, and into the teeth of the biting headwind; we dubbed this bit the “Seventeen-Mile Burn”.

We lounged outside a store in Gettysburg for about thirty minutes, and were ready to stay there for much longer (and likely take naps), but one of the riders insisted on moving along. From Gettysburg to the finish at Thurmont we enjoyed a fantastic tailwind and just blasted the last leg, probably averaging about 18 mph for the last 30 miles. We averaged 14.5 mph for the 101-mile ride. Attendees were Chris Borkman, John Gantnier, guest Henrik Olsen and Bill Smith.

Almost a Straight Shot to Emmitsburg
April 24, 2005 - Led by John Munns

Almost a Straight Shot to Emmitsburg (ASSE) 2005 took place on Sunday, April 24th, starting at 9:00 p.m. The ride was attended by five riders on a brisk, cloudy, and cool day. Although rain was forecasted, we only experienced a few sprinkles. Riders Vicki Crum, Jon Disbennett, Lynne Rosenbusch, and John Fauerby joined the leader John Munns. After eight years, the route has essentially remained the same with only minor changes. We can reasonably predict the riding time for the ASSE rides, which is a 50-mile loop. For Sunday, we arrived back to the start point at 2:30 p.m.