Day 11 New Beginning

Pittsburgh to Raccoon Creek State Park, PA 42 miles (505)

Today I started riding solo. No Laura, lots of bags stuffed with lots of stuff, and no more bed and breakfasts. I also found out that there are a lot of hills between Pittsburgh and the campground where I'm staying.
I got today's route from the president of the Major Taylor Bicycle club in Pittsburgh ( for more on Major Taylor click  Here). As evidenced by the pictures below - what a great route! It was difficult getting out of Pittsburgh but once I found the Montour Trail everything clicked. It's raining as I write this, but I was able to get in to the campground, set up my tent and shower before the rain started. Tonight is supposed to rain all night so it will be a good test to see how watertight my tent and my bags are. I'm looking forward to a day off the bike tomorrow and to a day of rest and light hiking.

Home for two nights




Views leaving Pittsburg

Tunnel on the Montour Trail 






Near traffic-less roads between the Montour Trail and Raccoon Creek State Park


One of the trails I rode today. 


I don't know what, "Let the sea set you free" means; but someone put a lot of work into this bicycle,  so I thought I should at least take a picture of it. 



My campsite at Raccoon Creek State Park - I am the only one in the entire tent camping area.

Comments

  1. velomomJune 2, 2021 at 6:24 PM

    Have a good night's Rest! I hope the rain is your lullaby and not your Nightmare! Love you and so thankful for our 8 days of riding together!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ATATJune 2, 2021 at 8:19 PM

    Looks like an awesome place to spend a couple nights! Hope you get plenty of rest for the next leg of your journey!

    ReplyDelete
  3. RafaelJune 2, 2021 at 9:43 PM

    I am mesmerized by your adventure !!! (Rafael)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rolff ChristensenJune 3, 2021 at 4:53 PM

      Thank you Rafael. I'm glad you can follow along. Let's get together for a ride after I return!

      Delete
  4. UnknownJune 3, 2021 at 8:07 AM

    beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  5. KellarJune 3, 2021 at 8:27 AM

    Awesome thank you for sharing

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rolff ChristensenJune 3, 2021 at 4:55 PM

      Thank you Elena. Is Kim following along on the interactive map - see the first log entry for a link

      Delete
    2. Rolff ChristensenJune 3, 2021 at 4:55 PM

      *Cam

      Delete
  6. Robert AJune 3, 2021 at 1:07 PM

    Enjoy your day off the bike...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rolff ChristensenJune 3, 2021 at 4:56 PM

      Thank you Robert. I hope you have a great milestone ride on Saturday. Please say hi to everyone.

      Delete
  7. Angie RJune 3, 2021 at 3:26 PM

    Even if there were other tent campers on a rainy day, I’m sure you’d be the only tent camper who arrived by bike, carrying all your gear 😄 takes real guts to do what you’re doing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rolff ChristensenJune 3, 2021 at 4:58 PM

      Guts or ??? ( Some people might call it something else not so complimentary :-) )

      Delete
  8. AnonymousJune 3, 2021 at 4:36 PM

    Laura is amazing and you are amazing too, Dr C! We are pulling for and praying for you both in this new stage cycling solo. Beautiful photos seeing all this lush green, definitely the East coast! (Marsha & fam)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Six Done June 27 - July 3rd RAGBRAI/Iowans/Weather

Image
Marshalltown IA to Papillion NE 203 miles (1,837) I can't write about this past week in Iowa without mentioning more about the Registers Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). Some people think RAGBRAI is a bicycle ride. It's NOT. It's a rolling party across Iowa, in which over 10,000 partygoers use a bicycle to get from one town to the next. If you are in Iowa and someone finds out you are a cyclist, the first thing they talk about is RAGBRAI - even if they themselves are not cyclists. Iowan friendliness has impressed me. Also the drivers are patient, courteous and cautious. If a bicyclist is on the right side of the right lane on a two-lane highway, if there is oncoming traffic, drivers - including truck drivers - slow way down behind the bicyclist and wait for the oncoming traffic to pass before going well over the yellow line and passing the cyclist with plenty of room to spare. This past week was marked by fantastic weather. No drenching downpours that made me l...
Read more

Day 64 July 25th Seven Years

Image
Pahaska Tepee WY to Canyon Campground Yellowstone NP WY 45 miles (2,801) Today I commemorated my 7th year after open heart surgery (July 25th, 2014) by riding into Yellowstone, up and over Sylvan Pass, and on into Canyon Campground. To say that God has been good to me would be a gross understatement.  Here are some of the views from today's ride: The road up, over and down Sylvan Pass seemed safe as it had a shoulder to the north and some of the views from the pictures above to the south. Beside the shoulder we're granite walls interspersed with trees and grasses and punctuated with waterfallettes: Tonight's campsite in Yellowstone: Note the bear box I was sharing with a couple of cyclists w...
Read more

Day 66 July 27th (Un)Common Courtesy

Image
Rest Day  Gardiner MT  0 miles (2,841) This is Greg: Greg is from Seattle and is on a road trip with his family around Montana, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton National Park. We were in line for breakfast at the Yellowstone Grill in Gardiner, Montana; the town just outside the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park. He approached me to ask me about my rear view mirror and if I had trouble focusing on the road while viewing the traffic behind me. We ended up talking about cycling etiquette and motorist etiquette around cyclists. After speaking with Greg, I realize that most accidents could be avoided if  cyclists and motorists alike exercised (no pun intended) common courtesy. Greg told me that when he was in Yellowstone yesterday, he drove by a cyclist down on the road with first responders attending him and rangers all around. After yesterday's harrowing ride on Grand Loop Road, I realize that I could have been the downed cyclist. I pray for that cyclist's ...
Read more