C&O Canal 2019...Trip Overview

Our ride plan is really quite simple...ride along the C&O Canal from Cumberland, MD to Washington, DC. Sounds simple...and it really is. We will cover this 180+ miles over the course of 5 days, hopefully making this a manageable trip for the youth who will be going along. There will be 11 people making this trip. Included in that number are 7 young men, ages 13-17, from Lake Waccamaw Boys and Girls Home, 3 staff from LWBGH, and of course...me!

We will stay in hotels in Cumberland and in DC to bookend our trip, but other than that we will camp three nights and possibly stay in a hostel the other night. For the most part our breakfasts and dinners will be eaten out most days. Lunches will likely be a combination of eating out and fixing our own while on the trail.

Remember when I said that the plans were really quite simple? Well, it seem I have a gift for making things more complicated. All of the above is absolutely true and it our well thought out plans that we have been working on for a couple of months. So...just for fun I decided to make some changes in my life: about a month ago my wife and I switched to a whole food plant based diet! No more meat or dairy! This could present a problem, depending on where we choose to eat. So, I plan on going prepared to fix/cook my own meals. This will give me a measure of comfort as I will not be so dependent upon the options at the restaurants.

For me this ride also serves as another step on my journey into the world of bicycle touring. So, while the rest of the group will load their gear each morning into the support van, I plan to do this ride fully loaded. (The good thing is...if I need to, I can always put my stuff on the van as well!) My thinking is that this will give me a good experience riding a fully loaded touring bike for 5 consecutive days. Now I'm just hoping that the summer heat will decide to take a little break for our ride!