GAP (Great Allegheny Passage)

[weisan]

Originally Posted by Alan

I did the GAP and C&O last year and it was a great trip. I highly recommend for all cyclists. I did it over 6 days and used trip planner, Noble Invention. They do a lot of trips on the trail and know all of the options. See link below:

https://www.nobleinventionbiketouring.com/

Alan

I highly recommend watching Noble's youtube videos on GAP and C&O.

https://www.youtube.com/@NobleInventionBikeTouring

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by reuben

1) The GAP (Pittsburgh to Cumberland) is about a 1% uphill grade. Nothing hard, barely noticeable, largely enjoyable.

Until you get to Frostburg, then you have a fun run downhill to Cumberland.

A 35mm tire is a good choice, but anything in the 30-40mm and being flat there's no real penalty for a slightly larger tire.

Camping options are a little bit more limited on the GAP and probably require reservations - Ohiopyle State Park is a good choice, its ~75 miles from Pittsburgh - if you can, get a hiker/biker campsite rather than the drive-in state park style campsites, they'll be quieter.

Camping on the C&O is super easy - there are campsites every 5-8 miles all along the route (until the last 40 miles) and no reservations required. Depending on when you roll up and how you plan to camp (tent/hammock/etc) you may need to keep options open for where you plan to stop - if you roll in at 8-9pm to a smaller site it may be full. I like to be done with plenty of daylight to put my feet up, eat dinner and read a book so its rarely a problem for me. At each C&O campsite there is a water pump but they are no longer treated, so you will need to either pack in water for dinner/breakfast or treat/filter the water as it comes out of the pump.

[Turkle]

Originally Posted by peanutgallery

I spend a week or 5 in Confluence every year. Mitch's, River's edge and the Dirty dog are awesome places to stop. The bike shop is pretty cool too. Don't overlook Connellsville. Great town in a supersleeper kinda way. Pure SW PA. George Washington and Frank Lloyd Wright graced the region

It's my favorite place on earth. I range pretty far on the GAP and what not. There's tons of places to stop and hang out...for days. The C and O will be less random and you have to know exactly where best places to stop are located. Just different

Pretty amazing coincidence, one of my good friends has some family property in Confluence and we all get out there for a visit once a summer. Truly beautiful area, and the GAP trail is lovely. But oh Lord, there's a big climb up a mountain getting back to the farm!!

[raygunner]

Originally Posted by mistermo

I did this two years ago and dropped my car in Pittsburgh. My riding buddy had a ride arranged for us back from DC to Pittsburgh to pick up my car.

How did you get home from DC? Amtrak again? I'm tempted to ride from Pittsburgh to Cumberland again. Any idea how to get from Cumberland back to Pittsburgh without a car stashed on the Cumberland end?

To OP, it's a fun trip. Very flat. Nice little towns to stay in along the way. These PA coal towns are sadly decaying (at least those that haven't embraced tourism) and it's easy to see why they want America restored to former economic times. We stayed in B&Bs, inns and hotels. I rode a Riv Atlantis, 42mm slick tires, with panniers for clothes. Credit card touring. No food, no tent, no gear other than change of clothes.

Yep, Amtrak again from DC to Chicago.

And next time I'd like to allow more times to lightly explore some of the towns that you go through.

[peanutgallery]

We camped in ohiopyle a few times and I swear that climb from the trail hits like 30%. I feel your pain

Sucks even more with a 12 pack from ramcat beverage strapped to my bike

Originally Posted by Turkle

Pretty amazing coincidence, one of my good friends has some family property in Confluence and we all get out there for a visit once a summer. Truly beautiful area, and the GAP trail is lovely. But oh Lord, there's a big climb up a mountain getting back to the farm!!

[jpsawyer23]

I did it a few years ago from Pittsburgh to DC and I highly recommend doing it. The map they put out is extremely good and highlights where you can get food, water, camp for free, landmarks and the like. The GAP has a lot more infrastructure on the path than the C and O which is something to note. The amenities on the C and O are sometimes a mile or so off the path in town. Not a big deal but just something to keep in mind when picking camp sites. I have many recommendations for restaurants and camp sites if you're interested. Feel free to dm me if you want more info on it.

[.RJ]

Originally Posted by peanutgallery

We camped in ohiopyle a few times and I swear that climb from the trail hits like 30%. I feel your pain

True story. Better to go up the hiking path off the Gap trail than down to the river and up the road though.

[peanutgallery]

That's a bear of a climb and bedlam traffic on the weekend. A lot further than you would think

There is now a bike-centric cluster of DCNR campsites at the base of the climb to the campground. Toilet, workstation and maybe some water...no climb

Genius

Originally Posted by .RJ

True story. Better to go up the hiking path off the Gap trail than down to the river and up the road though.

[StruggleClimber]

I live in Pittsburgh and ride parts of the GAP often, but never went further than Dead Man's Hollow past Mckeesport. I know plenty of people who have done this ride and it is pretty smooth and flat from what Ive heard. I think there are some sections of smooth gravel but plenty of people have done it on road bikes.

[rmhurley]

Hey All,

thanks for all the replies and apologies for a delayed response! These all seem like sound advice and based on what you all said, seem to confirm what my gut had been telling me--that a trip all the way to DC is probably not necessary and likely easier to simply extend my travel dates in Pittsburgh by a few days and adjust the bike ride around that time line, rather than fly in and out of different places and book rides back in addition to bike rental which i already feel a bit weird about.

TBH the prospect of a straight, traffic-less 1% grade where I am NOT trespassing but ALSO includes the occasional town in which to refuel sounds amazing and would likely scratch every itch that I have right now to ride east of the Mississippi .. cheers