This was our longest day by the miles, 32, but still ended up in town at a reasonable time, about 4:30. The concept of time going by is kind of difficult to get the children to understand. The idea of "less breaks now equals longer break at the end of the day" isn't motivating when you're just always in the present. "But this bench is really comfortable, can't I just take a nap?" Maybe in a place that didn't have afternoon thunderstorms looming and mosquitoes. If we had camp gear and let the kids pick the spots, we would probably only get 10 miles done a day, because they would play in the grass and be fine with peanut butter and jelly for every meal. Grownups have a bit higher expectation of a bed, a convenience store with wine, and some sort of hot meal, even if that ended up being the grill inside the gas station in Pawpaw.
Bryan amazes me every day with his energy and improving skills. He invented "flying" on his bike, flapping his legs on a flat part, just to do something new. He rode most of the milage yesterday on his own at a good speed. "20 questions" was the entertainment for the day- although he still struggles with the concept that animal is a bigger category than reptile. He has pretty much always been in good spirits, and has so much patience and love for Eryn.
Eryn amazes me with her ability to delay and outthink the adults at every opportunity. "We need to stop, my feet are slipping off the pedals"- so we tie some elastic cord around the pedals. "We need stop, I can't open my chapstick/there's dirt in my eye/my back is itchy/there's a rock in my shoe/I'm cold, I need my jacket/I'm too hot, I need to take it off" She can do the pedalling, and its gotten better, but she's tough in a lot of ways.
Highlights:
- staying with Dan at his bikepath bed and breakfast! Dan is an absolute delight, he met us about 15 miles out to ride with us, and we really enjoyed his company, local knowledge, and hospitality. And clean laundry at his place.
- the Pawpaw tunnel was epic. The engineering of this part of the canal and the history of how it was built by hand is fascinating.
- the geography leading up to the tunnel was pretty cool too.
- the 22 or so miles of the Western Maryland Rail Trail was a lovely break from the C&O, smooth pavement!
Challenges:
- finding time to write blog posts
- of course the lunch and dinner restaurants we had planned are closed on Tuesdays.
- the mud hasn't been a significant challenge yet. Maybe for Mike, he has the skinniest tires.
- the towwhee broke, Mike fixed it enough.
Recommendations:
- maybe I should have brought one more set of clothes for the kids; Bryan wore his swim trunks to dinner, Eryn got a t shirt at the bike shop that she wore during laundry day.
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Monday, June 17, 2019
Day 5: Shepardstown to Williamsport
One rule of vacation packing is always bring a swim suit, just in case. Or, at least something to swim in. I packed a two-on-one with a tankini top and some running shorts bottoms. The kids have their suits, but the swimming has been a miss so far. We didn't get in until well past 5 at the first hotel that had a pool, so after showers and dinner, swimming wasn't really an option. Today, the Potomac stretch that had a lot of boat activity still wasn't quite wading worthy- the kids did stick their hands in the water a bit. We were told that Williamsport has a good municipal pool, and it looked very cool and refreshing when we rolled into town around 4:30, but despite the sign saying they were open until 6pm, there wasn't a person in sight. Hancock also has a municipal pool, but it's not at the original park... there's a locker room building, but no pool? It must be relocated up the road a bit. The playground will have to do.
The trail had a great stretch along the river today outside of the trees. Can you get sick of the tree tunnel? Maybe if you're 5. Today, Bryan asked, "Why are we doing this?" Indirectly trying do dodge the question, I replied, "Doing what, buddy?" "Riding our bikes." "Why do you ask?" "It's boring." "You just saw a huge snake! And a new fawn! And a giant dam!" The memory is short, yet long. The next morning, Bryan asked Mike what happened to the 2 ounces of green sno-cone that was left over in Mike's water bottle. Of course, Mike had tipped it out to refill the bottles with ice water for the day, but Bryan was expecting his leftover tasty treat. He got a new blue sno-cone at the next stop, saved a little bit, and I bet Mike won't make that mistake again.
We towed the kids most of the day. It wasn't planned, but it kept them happy. I think the TowWhee bungee is still the best choice over the FollowMe tandem or the gator-bar.
Highlights:
-Bryan quizzing me on my addiction facts while he's being towed.
- The C&O national park visitors center in Williamsport
- The playground in Williamsport!
- Zoic kids' bike shorts for Eryn. The only thing she's not complaining about is her butt.
Challenges:
- Mom and Mike were not fans of the Chinese food place, but I was starving and thought it was fine, and the kids cleared their plates, so... can't please everyone.
- Towing the children. If one gets a tow, the other has to. They're quiet for Mike, but its nonstop talking for me. Which is okay for a little bit, but then I find myself saying a lot of "I don't know" and that's frustrating for them. Eryn gets into some philosophical "would you rather be a jellyfish or a seahorse" questions, but I'm zonked by the end of the day.
Recommendations:
- I'm really exhausted, so I can't think of anything to say here, except the Red Roof Inn in Williamsport was probably one of the least comfortable beds to date.
The trail had a great stretch along the river today outside of the trees. Can you get sick of the tree tunnel? Maybe if you're 5. Today, Bryan asked, "Why are we doing this?" Indirectly trying do dodge the question, I replied, "Doing what, buddy?" "Riding our bikes." "Why do you ask?" "It's boring." "You just saw a huge snake! And a new fawn! And a giant dam!" The memory is short, yet long. The next morning, Bryan asked Mike what happened to the 2 ounces of green sno-cone that was left over in Mike's water bottle. Of course, Mike had tipped it out to refill the bottles with ice water for the day, but Bryan was expecting his leftover tasty treat. He got a new blue sno-cone at the next stop, saved a little bit, and I bet Mike won't make that mistake again.
We towed the kids most of the day. It wasn't planned, but it kept them happy. I think the TowWhee bungee is still the best choice over the FollowMe tandem or the gator-bar.
Highlights:
-Bryan quizzing me on my addiction facts while he's being towed.
- The C&O national park visitors center in Williamsport
- The playground in Williamsport!
- Zoic kids' bike shorts for Eryn. The only thing she's not complaining about is her butt.
Challenges:
- Mom and Mike were not fans of the Chinese food place, but I was starving and thought it was fine, and the kids cleared their plates, so... can't please everyone.
- Towing the children. If one gets a tow, the other has to. They're quiet for Mike, but its nonstop talking for me. Which is okay for a little bit, but then I find myself saying a lot of "I don't know" and that's frustrating for them. Eryn gets into some philosophical "would you rather be a jellyfish or a seahorse" questions, but I'm zonked by the end of the day.
Recommendations:
- I'm really exhausted, so I can't think of anything to say here, except the Red Roof Inn in Williamsport was probably one of the least comfortable beds to date.
Sunday, June 16, 2019
Day 4: Harpers Ferry to Shepardstown. The shortest day was the longest
Mike asked me where I get all of my patience for my children, and I honestly don't have an answer for that. The children are good people, really. They're the sweetest, good-natured, full of honest intentions. I think my patience comes from trying to honor them as people, with their own point of view of what is important to them. It is far easier for me to see the world from their perspective than to have them see the world from mine, and nor do I want that for them in the greater sense. But there are some lessons I wish I could get through to them, like being part of a riding team means you move forward, despite feeling homesick.
Bryan was in the best spirits yesterday, and he really did his best to try to cheer up Eryn and coax her along. He suggested to just pretend Daddy was riding with us. And then told me later how much fun he was having with Eryn being there. But most of the ride, Bryan was up ahead with mom and Mike, and Eryn and I were working through her hard day.
So, I got out the Towwhee, and towed her for most of the 15 miles. I heard less about how much she wanted to go home, and more silly songs. We both pointed out things along the trail to each other- she spotted trees that looked like butts, I pointed out anything I could to keep her occupied. I told her all of the things we're going to do and see in the upcoming days, she pointed out I already told her that stuff. I rationalized with her that if we did find a way to get a train to the airport to get her home early, it would be Monday and Daddy would be at work all week, so she may as well stay through Saturday with us. She started to think about the "what-ifs" of travelling back on her own (if we really do get to the point where she just has to go home early, of course I'd go with her, but for now she's pretty convinced I'd write her a permission slip and write out directions and if she gets confused she can ask the Amtrak staff or airplane staff, and she doesn't like to talk to people, so this option seems very unnerving to her.)
My biggest hope for my daughter is for her to recognize herself as this strong, capable person, and I think it's that hope of any parent- hoping that their child is better off than the previous generation, but more in skillset and happiness and making up for what their own personal struggles are. It's hard to see the difficult parts of my mini-me, because I would love to just scoop it all up, fast-forward through the difficult years to come, and have that emergence of the strong sense-of self that will come with time and encouragement. And having her with me on this trip is one of the best ways I can think of trying to impart this adult-perspective lesson- it gets better, you are strong, capable, and you've earned a right to confidence, so show it, believe it, and live it.
Highlights:
- Shepardstown is a cool little place glad we stopped here.
- June as Pride Month is in full display in this part of West Virginia.
- another good weather day
- saw a snake! More critters to our critter count.
- the towwhee really saved the day.
Challenges:
- an almost 9 year old girl missing home. I'm exhausted from the mental energy of that day.
Recommendations:
- PB&J lunches are still popular.
- Read the bag and make sure you're getting peanut m&ms and not the snack mix with pretzels.
- Don't let wet muddy clothes sit in your black pannier for 2 sunny days before washing. That was some serious funk. Thankfully there was laundry today.
- Walk to dinner, walk through town, wander a bit. Even if the children ring every bell in the bike shop and hit every windchime outside. They had plenty of energy to walk the mile into the heart of Shepardstown, eat dinner, and walk the mile back.
- if the boy is happy with the melted otter pop slushy thing at dairy queen, that's his choice, and don't talk him out of it.
Bryan was in the best spirits yesterday, and he really did his best to try to cheer up Eryn and coax her along. He suggested to just pretend Daddy was riding with us. And then told me later how much fun he was having with Eryn being there. But most of the ride, Bryan was up ahead with mom and Mike, and Eryn and I were working through her hard day.
So, I got out the Towwhee, and towed her for most of the 15 miles. I heard less about how much she wanted to go home, and more silly songs. We both pointed out things along the trail to each other- she spotted trees that looked like butts, I pointed out anything I could to keep her occupied. I told her all of the things we're going to do and see in the upcoming days, she pointed out I already told her that stuff. I rationalized with her that if we did find a way to get a train to the airport to get her home early, it would be Monday and Daddy would be at work all week, so she may as well stay through Saturday with us. She started to think about the "what-ifs" of travelling back on her own (if we really do get to the point where she just has to go home early, of course I'd go with her, but for now she's pretty convinced I'd write her a permission slip and write out directions and if she gets confused she can ask the Amtrak staff or airplane staff, and she doesn't like to talk to people, so this option seems very unnerving to her.)
My biggest hope for my daughter is for her to recognize herself as this strong, capable person, and I think it's that hope of any parent- hoping that their child is better off than the previous generation, but more in skillset and happiness and making up for what their own personal struggles are. It's hard to see the difficult parts of my mini-me, because I would love to just scoop it all up, fast-forward through the difficult years to come, and have that emergence of the strong sense-of self that will come with time and encouragement. And having her with me on this trip is one of the best ways I can think of trying to impart this adult-perspective lesson- it gets better, you are strong, capable, and you've earned a right to confidence, so show it, believe it, and live it.
Highlights:
- Shepardstown is a cool little place glad we stopped here.
- June as Pride Month is in full display in this part of West Virginia.
- another good weather day
- saw a snake! More critters to our critter count.
- the towwhee really saved the day.
Challenges:
- an almost 9 year old girl missing home. I'm exhausted from the mental energy of that day.
Recommendations:
- PB&J lunches are still popular.
- Read the bag and make sure you're getting peanut m&ms and not the snack mix with pretzels.
- Don't let wet muddy clothes sit in your black pannier for 2 sunny days before washing. That was some serious funk. Thankfully there was laundry today.
- Walk to dinner, walk through town, wander a bit. Even if the children ring every bell in the bike shop and hit every windchime outside. They had plenty of energy to walk the mile into the heart of Shepardstown, eat dinner, and walk the mile back.
- if the boy is happy with the melted otter pop slushy thing at dairy queen, that's his choice, and don't talk him out of it.
Day 3: Leesburg to Harper's Ferry
What a difference a good weather day makes! Yesterday was beautiful blue skies. Outside of the towpath, it was warm and breezy. In the trees, it was perfect.
Realized one navigational error: the app from the C&O canal trust gives a lot of really useful information, like where the next bathroom is, but it calculates distance as the crow flies from your current location. So, I'll need to cross reference things with Google Bicycle maps or just rely on mile markers.
Highlights:
"This is the ultimate trip ever!"
Taking pictures of more spiderwebs, insect eggs on leaves, turtles.
The Towpath Creamery and their little trail supply store, which had some nice picture books for $1. So the kids get bedtime stories tonight. Their ice cream was delicious too- real strawberry topping.
The views coming into Harpers Ferry!
All the hidden treasures in The Town's Inn's "dungeon" aka friendship room. Secret stairways, doors that led to... under the porch!, a sliding barn-style door, old keys stuck into the mortar between the rocks of the walls.
Challenges:
- too many mud puddles affected Eryn's derailleur, that needs to be looked at.
Recommendations:
- I wish we had more time to see the stuff of Harpers Ferry. If adults were doing the miles we were, they would have plenty of time to climb the stone steps, etc. The kids could care less. They were fascinated with running out to the patio to watch the trains pass, and that was enough. Maybe older kids would appreciate the history a bit more, but I think as they get older and realize they were at these places, maybe they will be interested in coming back.
- The Towns inn was a great place to stay.
Realized one navigational error: the app from the C&O canal trust gives a lot of really useful information, like where the next bathroom is, but it calculates distance as the crow flies from your current location. So, I'll need to cross reference things with Google Bicycle maps or just rely on mile markers.
Highlights:
"This is the ultimate trip ever!"
Taking pictures of more spiderwebs, insect eggs on leaves, turtles.
The Towpath Creamery and their little trail supply store, which had some nice picture books for $1. So the kids get bedtime stories tonight. Their ice cream was delicious too- real strawberry topping.
The views coming into Harpers Ferry!
All the hidden treasures in The Town's Inn's "dungeon" aka friendship room. Secret stairways, doors that led to... under the porch!, a sliding barn-style door, old keys stuck into the mortar between the rocks of the walls.
Challenges:
- too many mud puddles affected Eryn's derailleur, that needs to be looked at.
Recommendations:
- I wish we had more time to see the stuff of Harpers Ferry. If adults were doing the miles we were, they would have plenty of time to climb the stone steps, etc. The kids could care less. They were fascinated with running out to the patio to watch the trains pass, and that was enough. Maybe older kids would appreciate the history a bit more, but I think as they get older and realize they were at these places, maybe they will be interested in coming back.
- The Towns inn was a great place to stay.
Friday, June 14, 2019
Day 2: Bethseda to Leesburg, VA
The first three are the hardest. The first three days of a bike trip, a backpacking trip, the first three miles of a half marathon. (I figured that one out when I started doing longer distances than 5ks, and realized that the 5k *was* the warm up- the 2nd half of a 10k just felt so much better.)
When the kids did their longest training ride to the Hotel Del Coronado down the Silver Strand, they hit their stride around mile 9, 10, 11, 12. They could go forever. Same with yesterday- once we finally hit mile 10, the next 5 miles to our lunch stop just flew by.
This, of course, was not how the entire ride went. By the numbers, we had an actual time moving of 5 hours. We started our day about 8:30, and got off White's Ferry at 5pm.
There were more "This is the best trip EVER!" exclamations than "this is the worst trip ever". There was a few comments such as, "I am never riding a bike ever again" followed soon after of, "Can my next bike have handlebars like yours?"
At the end of the day, it was 30 miles total, which was a few more than I anticipated in my mapping, and that was significant. It was a long day. I'm really glad I had the Towwhee strap, it raised spirits more than actually assisted their riding. I only brought one, thinking taking turns would be okay, but as I'm typing Mike is making up a similar bungee strap out of a found piece of webbing and some elastic cord.
Eryn thought Mike towed her too fast, so rather than speaking up, she just used one brake the whole time.
Highlights:
- Bryan looking for the fairies at the ferry landing.
- Eryn taking some really neat pictures of water-laden spiderwebs.
- Eryn walking slowly and quietly to get a good picture of a deer.
- "Puddle Power", a game they made up in which they got energy from riding through a puddle. Needless to say, they were wet the entire time.
- Taking the shuttle to the Best Western from the ferry landing.
- Singing really does make the time go by.
- The Towwhee.
Challenges:
- Took off Eryn's rack and bags. She's riding much better without them.
- Sudden downpours of a lot of rain. Followed by trees dripping.
- homesickness still hits occasionally.
Recommendations:
- the hiker-bike camps are pretty nice, and very frequent, but as a group of 5, we would need a really large tent or 2 medium tents, and that's a lot of wet gear to deal with. If it were just two of us, me and one kid, then maybe we'd camp more.
- the hotels have been fully booked, I'm really glad I made all of our reservations un March.
When the kids did their longest training ride to the Hotel Del Coronado down the Silver Strand, they hit their stride around mile 9, 10, 11, 12. They could go forever. Same with yesterday- once we finally hit mile 10, the next 5 miles to our lunch stop just flew by.
This, of course, was not how the entire ride went. By the numbers, we had an actual time moving of 5 hours. We started our day about 8:30, and got off White's Ferry at 5pm.
There were more "This is the best trip EVER!" exclamations than "this is the worst trip ever". There was a few comments such as, "I am never riding a bike ever again" followed soon after of, "Can my next bike have handlebars like yours?"
At the end of the day, it was 30 miles total, which was a few more than I anticipated in my mapping, and that was significant. It was a long day. I'm really glad I had the Towwhee strap, it raised spirits more than actually assisted their riding. I only brought one, thinking taking turns would be okay, but as I'm typing Mike is making up a similar bungee strap out of a found piece of webbing and some elastic cord.
Eryn thought Mike towed her too fast, so rather than speaking up, she just used one brake the whole time.
Highlights:
- Bryan looking for the fairies at the ferry landing.
- Eryn taking some really neat pictures of water-laden spiderwebs.
- Eryn walking slowly and quietly to get a good picture of a deer.
- "Puddle Power", a game they made up in which they got energy from riding through a puddle. Needless to say, they were wet the entire time.
- Taking the shuttle to the Best Western from the ferry landing.
- Singing really does make the time go by.
- The Towwhee.
Challenges:
- Took off Eryn's rack and bags. She's riding much better without them.
- Sudden downpours of a lot of rain. Followed by trees dripping.
- homesickness still hits occasionally.
Recommendations:
- the hiker-bike camps are pretty nice, and very frequent, but as a group of 5, we would need a really large tent or 2 medium tents, and that's a lot of wet gear to deal with. If it were just two of us, me and one kid, then maybe we'd camp more.
- the hotels have been fully booked, I'm really glad I made all of our reservations un March.
Thursday, June 13, 2019
Day 1: Georgetown to Bethseda
Day 1 complete!
The highlights:
- Going to mile marker 0
- eating mulberries and watching all the geese at mile marker 0, including some still-fuzzy, but large goslings.
- throwing rocks into the water to break up the algae cover. Eryn, "Well, that was more satisfying than expected."
- how efficient the circulator was getting us to right where we needed to be, and the racks held the kids' bikes no problem.
- Watching Bryan go to speed for pretty much the entire 8 miles. Eryn wanted to be in front for a small stretch, so she had to keep a quick pace, and we heard Bryan behind us yelling, "passing!" although there was no way Eryn was going to let him do that.
The challenges:
- I think we're already out of gummy bears
- Eryn needs a lot of... encouragement to keep up a good attitude.
- The kids are still on San Diego time, so bedtime at a reasonable hour has been a struggle.
- Because they're both overtired, the homesickness, missing Oma, missing Daddy, missing Dug and Dixie and Rita and the chickens and the ducks and the turkeys hit hard last night. We brainstormed silly ideas of how to bring our menagerie in bicycle trailers on the next trip... Rita, our sulfur-crested Triton cockatoo does like to ride on bicycle handlebars.
- My lack of sense of direction around town. I'm having the hardest time orienting myself here! So, a few navigational mishaps took us on some scenic routes.
Recommendations:
- This Airbnb in Bethseda was a great choice. The path getting out along Glen Echo/Cabin John was an accomplishment (lots of trail stairs), but a nice path on the street, just the right distance for a late start. We got in around 4pm, the kids had a great time playing on the big lawn with all the games here, magnetic darts, etc. I did laundry, we ordered in pizza, the air mattress was perfect for the kids. I'm really looking forward to the other Airbnbs we have llined up.
- Finding mile post 0 wasn't that bad once we found it. I saw the YouTube video, Mike had been there earlier in the week, but it is hidden.
- We took the Capital Cresent trail until fisherman's cove (I think that's what it's called? May edit this.). Ran into a very helpful person with routemaps who suggested this. The C&O in Georgetown is cool because the town is built up around it, but that means crossing a lot of streets.
Pictures are being posted on Instagram at almaontheroad
The highlights:
- Going to mile marker 0
- eating mulberries and watching all the geese at mile marker 0, including some still-fuzzy, but large goslings.
- throwing rocks into the water to break up the algae cover. Eryn, "Well, that was more satisfying than expected."
- how efficient the circulator was getting us to right where we needed to be, and the racks held the kids' bikes no problem.
- Watching Bryan go to speed for pretty much the entire 8 miles. Eryn wanted to be in front for a small stretch, so she had to keep a quick pace, and we heard Bryan behind us yelling, "passing!" although there was no way Eryn was going to let him do that.
The challenges:
- I think we're already out of gummy bears
- Eryn needs a lot of... encouragement to keep up a good attitude.
- The kids are still on San Diego time, so bedtime at a reasonable hour has been a struggle.
- Because they're both overtired, the homesickness, missing Oma, missing Daddy, missing Dug and Dixie and Rita and the chickens and the ducks and the turkeys hit hard last night. We brainstormed silly ideas of how to bring our menagerie in bicycle trailers on the next trip... Rita, our sulfur-crested Triton cockatoo does like to ride on bicycle handlebars.
- My lack of sense of direction around town. I'm having the hardest time orienting myself here! So, a few navigational mishaps took us on some scenic routes.
Recommendations:
- This Airbnb in Bethseda was a great choice. The path getting out along Glen Echo/Cabin John was an accomplishment (lots of trail stairs), but a nice path on the street, just the right distance for a late start. We got in around 4pm, the kids had a great time playing on the big lawn with all the games here, magnetic darts, etc. I did laundry, we ordered in pizza, the air mattress was perfect for the kids. I'm really looking forward to the other Airbnbs we have llined up.
- Finding mile post 0 wasn't that bad once we found it. I saw the YouTube video, Mike had been there earlier in the week, but it is hidden.
- We took the Capital Cresent trail until fisherman's cove (I think that's what it's called? May edit this.). Ran into a very helpful person with routemaps who suggested this. The C&O in Georgetown is cool because the town is built up around it, but that means crossing a lot of streets.
Pictures are being posted on Instagram at almaontheroad
Wednesday, June 12, 2019
Up, up and away
The boy child is pretty easy to get ready in the morning, because he sleeps through everything. I can get him fully dressed, socks, shoes, brush his hair, apply sunscreen, and he doesn't wake up at all. Sometimes I think I should encourage more independence, on the other hand, I don't really want to chase down a tornado every morning.
That was the case this morning- by letting him sleep through the packing chaos, he wasn't unpacking things that were packed, or trying to test his bike's speed through the parking lot. We also didn't make our planned train, and had to catch the later one.
But we're on the MARC, got the steel bike lifted onto the bike hanger, and ready to go figure out the next public transport option- using the circulator racks to get us to Georgetown.
That was the case this morning- by letting him sleep through the packing chaos, he wasn't unpacking things that were packed, or trying to test his bike's speed through the parking lot. We also didn't make our planned train, and had to catch the later one.
But we're on the MARC, got the steel bike lifted onto the bike hanger, and ready to go figure out the next public transport option- using the circulator racks to get us to Georgetown.
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