Great Allegheny Passage – Confluence to Ohiopyle, PA

Our wedding anniversary was this past Sunday, on September 26th. We decided to take an anniversary trip to Confluence PA, where we spent 3 nights at an Airbnb. We brought our bicycles with us.

Around 10:00 am on Monday, September 27th, we left on a bicycle ride.  Entry to the Great Allegheny Passage was a couple blocks from our Airbnb.  We rode from Confluence to Ohiopyle.

This is a video that Bob took with our GoPro7 camera during our bicycle ride.

I took several still images, while bicycling the trail.

Great Allegheny Passage
I am looking across the bike/pedestrian bridge
that we had just crossed over from Confluence.

The Great Allegheny Passage runs 150 miles between
Cumberland, MD and Pittsburgh, PA.
We rode the 10 miles between Confluence and Ohiopyle.

We rode along the meandering Youghiogheny River
through a mostly forested trail.
The trail surface itself was mainly crushed stone.

Youghiogheny River

Opposite the river on one part of the trail was a wall of rocks.

What a nice resting spot along the trail!

Ohiopyle, PA

We had a picnic lunch here.
At this portion of the trail we were on our way from Ohiopyle to Connellsville.
We did cross over the bridge, but rode no further.

I am very pleased with myself that I was able to complete the Great American Passage from Confluence to Ohiopyle.  I have ridden very little this year. I may have been able to make the return trip, but I didn’t want to push it.  My knee hurt, and the pain would undoubtedly worsen.  Bob rode back to Confluence to get the car. 

After Bob left I rode my bicycle downhill, just a short way back from where we had our picnic, to Ohiopyle State Park. I walked a short way along the Youghiogheny River, admiring the rapids and waterfalls. 

This is the bridge that we rode across
before Bob rode back to Confluence to get our car.

Youghiogheny River

Ohiopyle Falls on the Youghiogheny River

Overlook of Ohiopyle Falls on the Youghiogheny River

I found a shady bench near the Visitor Center.  I could hear the roar of Ohiopyle Falls behind me.  It was a pleasant place to await Bob’s return.

Bob returned to Ohiopyle shortly before 3:00 pm. He said it took him 45 minutes to make the return trip on the Great Allegheny Passage. His average speed was about 13 MPH. Bob took a shower at the Airbnb, before driving back to Ohiopyle.

Summit Metro Parks Bike and Hike Trail

We spent 3 nights this past weekend in Hudson, Ohio.  We rented the Hudson Home AirBnB.  The location of this AirBnB was ideal for our activities. We went bicycling on trails in and near Cuyahoga Valley National Park, and we visited the Cleveland Zoo.  A food market and restaurants were within walking distance from our rental.

On Saturday, September 21, we went for a morning bicycle ride.  We rode the Bike and Hike Trail to Brandywine Falls, located in Cuyahoga Valley National Park.  We started at the northern trailhead at Alexander Road in Sagamore Hills.

The trail began with a climb out of the parking lot. I walked my bicycle up the hill.

This is what the trail looked like, once I had climbed the hill.

More of the trail

Bob used our GoPro camera to document some of our ride on the trail.

In a little more than 6 miles we reached the top of Brandywine Falls.  The Bike & Hike Trail is 34 miles long, so we rode only a little more than one-sixth of the trail. 

Top of Brandywine Falls, looking toward Brandywine Gorge

I walked along a boardwalk and hiked down some stairs to a falls viewing area. 

Brandywine Falls

The falling water was little more than a trickle, compared to other visits.  This visit, by the way, was our first by bicycle.  

Most rail-trails are fairly flat.  The portion of the Bike and Hike Trail that we rode is flat in some parts, but there is a fair number of dips and rises as well.  The approach to Brandywine Falls is one of those dips, and a long stretch at that.  I hit 18 MPH at one point, until I applied the brakes.  

Our initial plan was to ride to Brandywine Falls and back and, possibly, ride a portion of the O&E Canal Towpath Trail in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Not wanting to tackle the hill climb to leave Brandywine Falls, we decided Bob would ride back to the trailhead at Alexander Road and get the car.  I would wait for him at Brandywine Falls.  

Bob called at 11:09 am and said he should arrive in 12 minutes.  Apparently Bob arrived at the car 30 minutes earlier.  He spent 20 minutes having trouble following the GPS.  He discovered that he had the GPS set for travel by bicycle!