Day 9, Tues: Harpers Ferry, WV to Leesburg, VA - 25 miles

Since today was a low mileage day, we did not set our alarm.  We spent the morning touring the very unique and historical town of Harpers Ferry.

Harpers Ferry is situated in a gap of the Blue Ridge Mountains and at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers and from its beginning functioned as a natural avenue for transportation.

Rail transportation in the United States began in Baltimore, MD on July 4, 1828 and on that same day President John Quincy Adams turned the first spade of earth along the Potomac River for the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.  The race was underway as the progressive railroad and the traditional canal struggled to become the first to connect the Ohio Valley with the east coast.  Harpers Ferry was one of the first milestones of that race.

As the railroad streaked westward from Harpers Ferry, the C&O Canal fell hopelessly behind in the race to the Ohio.  Made obsolete by the faster and less expensive iron horse, the C&O never attained any great measure of economic success, but did transport coal, flour, and lumber to Washington for nearly 90 years.  Canal operations ceased in 1924 when a flood devastated the Potomac Valley, leaving the canal in ruins.

Historical part of Harpers Ferry.

Historical part of Harpers Ferry.



This view of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers has changed little from what Meriwether Lewis saw in 1803 when he collected supplies from Harpers Ferry hoping to find a similar accessible trade route on rivers passing through the Rocky Mountains.

The bicycle/pedestrian bridge across the Potomac into Harpers Ferry.

What goes up, must come down.

Although we are still bouncing and shaking our way to D.C., we did not have to contend with puddles, protruding stones, tree roots, and mud.  There were several miles where we had to dodge sink holes and some mud puddles, but neither our bodies nor our bikes got splashed, today. 

The view along the Potomac River never ceases to amaze us.

Part of the C&O joins the Appalachian Trail, so now we can say that we have also been on the A.T.  The Appalachian Trail is a hiking trail of approximately 2,200 miles crossing 14 states. 

 

Lockkeepers were available any time of day or night to operate this lock.  Tending locks was often a family venture and the canal company preferred family men.  Lockkeepers were paid as much as $600 a year, and were provided a lockhouse with a garden plot.  The couple that lived here had 4 children and operated the lock from 1917 until the canal closed in 1924.  For nearly 40 years they continued to live in the lockhouse after the canal had stopped operating.

 

This kind of vacation is our favorite and most enjoyable way of learning history.

Today we went from WV to MD to VA.  We have now bicycled across 4 state lines - PA, MD, WV and VA.  This is exciting!

In order to get to Leesburg, where we are spending the night at the Hampton Inn, we crossed the Potomac River via White's Ferry, the last operating ferry on the Potomac.