We wake up before our 6:30am alarm, scarf down some enormous muffins, and find ourselves at Mile 0, the Georgetown trailhead that begins our journey. A familiar face greets us at Lock 1: “Hey, remember me from the elevator?!” He’s a portly, bearded man who was on our Amtrak yesterday with his heavily loaded-down bike, and who we will come to learn is in a gang of bros called The Metal Pigs. They are known to hang out, drink beer, and seem to bike a hell of a lot. We learn that afternoon that they are all biking to Cumberland, MD, and basically all they brought in their bags is socks, hammocks, and beers!
The first morning on the trail is exciting! And a challenge with all of our bags (full of clothes and an iPad, not beer) in tow. But we’ve got plans tonight to redistribute the weight, which should help immensely. About an hour in we got a chance to check out Great Falls, VA. Gorgeous scenic overlook of the whitewater! We also run into another Metal Pigs member, who compliments our Dr. Fauci doll that is sticking out of Marty’s rack bag. It is stagehand tradition to bring a mascot when going on tour, so we figured it was appropriate here, and could think of no better choice after this year we’ve all had!
We keep leap-frogging with the Metal Pigs for a few hours and they’re cheering us on at each rest stop. They stop every 10 miles to share a brew and keep inviting us to join, which we decline because we’re worried about losing too much time. After we run into them again on our stop at White’s Falls, MD, they tell us about a great brewery in a little town outside of Harper’s Ferry where they’ll be spending Happy Hour, and can they please buy us a pint there? We finally acquiesce, and this gives us something to look forward to for our afternoon of riding.
It’s the same terrain and scenery for most of the 62 miles: a winding gravel path between the Potomac River and the canal locks that were bought by the C&O Railroad in 1890. We hear the buzzing drone of cicadas and see squirrels, turtles, a deer or two, a giant heron, and were told there was a copperhead lurking in the grass somewhere around mile 25 but didn’t risk hunting him down for a photo-op.
We get to the small town of Brunswick, MD to find that a unique cafe (built in a church) had just closed for the day. But sure enough, at 5pm there’s a line out the door for happy hour at Smoketown Brewing, and our friends the Metal Pigs arrive just in time! They are such great company for us and such great friends with each other that the combination of socializing, a beer flight, and a giant pretzel give us the energy to ride the remaining handful of miles to our destination.
When we arrive at the bridge to Harper’s Ferry, WV, Becca convinces two Uruguayan youths to watch our bikes as we team up to schlep them up a long flight of spiral stairs. The quaint, historic town is a sight to behold, but the final mile to our hotel was the steepest incline we’ve seen thus far. “You mean you’re walking your bikes instead of riding up the hill?” a townsperson asks. We give him the finger (not really; everyone we’ve met has been exceedingly kind). Another guy notices our mascot and says “Is that Anthony Fauci?” Marty keeps thinking we might be in anti-vax territory and the doll will start a fight, but he keeps being proven wrong. We eat a fantastic vegan dinner at a local restaurant next to our historic hotel, build over 200 years ago. Marty submits a homework assignment. We are too tired to do anything else.
