Riding The Trails From Pittsburgh to DC

November 30, 2024 • 2 minutes to read

This October I rode my bike from Pittsburgh, PA to Washington, DC on the famous GAP + C&O trails. I rode the route in four days with overnight stops at motels and inns along the way. It was a chance to enjoy Autumn foliage in the Allegheny hills, and the farmlands of western Maryland.

It was another opportunity to satisfy my wanderlust and thirst for physical challenges that were awakened in my bike tour of 2023.

By the Numbers

The Route

My original plan for 2024's "Big Ride" was very different. I had planned a route along the Appalachian mountains, including a climb of Mt Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Rockies. That was the plan until Hurricane Helene unleashed havoc on the southeast.

I quickly pivoted to a viable plug & play tour route: The GAP + C&O.

The Grand Allegheney Passage is an updated rail trail running from from Pittsburgh, PA to Cumberland, MD. It's a well-maintained and smooth gravel surface. As a former railroad, there is an easy grade (less than 1%) all the way from Pittsburgh to the Continental Divide in western Maryland.

The Chesapeake & Ohio Tow Path from Cumberland, MD to Washington, DC has a more interesting past and condition. The Chesapeake Canal was built from Washington to Cumberland as an alternative to the Erie Canal in New York. The towpath runs alongside to allow draft animals to pull barges along the canal. The surface is less well kept than the GAP trail with more two-track, cobbles and detours.