If you want to make a round trip on the trail -- say a weekend trip to a bed-and-breakfast and back -- you don't need much help with arrangements. Just call the B&B for reservations and have fun. For information on things to do near the trailheads, see our collection of links to visitors bureaus, chambers of commerce, and similar sites.
However, if you want a one-way trip, you face three kinds of transportation problems: (1) getting people, bikes, and baggage from home to the beginning of the trip and back again at the end; (2) getting people, bikes, and baggage to and from each nights lodging; (3) getting people, bikes, and baggage around the gaps in the trails. How you solve these problems depends on your Big Decision about the level of support you want.
Whatever you decide about support, people must get to the start of the trip and back home afterward. The chief options are: (a) Get friends to take you to the start and pick you up at the end. (b) Drive to the start and retrieve your cars later, either by driving back or hiring a driver to retrieve your car. (c) Hire someone to drive you to and from the trailheads. (d) Put bikes in boxes and take the train or plane but you can only do this in Pittsburgh and Washington.
Outfitters can help with the required shuttle arrangements, as well as with making food and lodging arrangements for longer trips. Consult our list of outfitters, which provides contact information and indicates the areas in which each outfitter operates. The outfitters are also listed on the amenities directories for the trailheads where they operate.
Amtrak will carry your bike, but only between stops with baggage service. Currently, the only baggage-service stops are Pittsburgh and Washington DC. You must partly dismantle the bike and pack it in an approved box. Amtrak considered allowing bikes on the passenger cars on this route so you could take them off at any stop, but they backed away from the idea. Let them know if you'd like to have such service. The Pittsburgh Amtrak station is a few blocks from the trailhead, and Washington National airport and the Washington Amtrak station have good bike access to the trails. The Montour Trail will eventually provide good access to Pittsburgh Airport. Elsewhere youll need local ground transportation to the trail.
The trails prohibit motor vehicles. Thats what makes this a great trip, but it also means you cant have a "sag wagon" following the trip to make repairs and pick up tired riders. Theres road access every few miles, so you can arrange to meet a car from time to time.
On a self-contained trip, the bikers carry all their own gear and ride to the campsite or lodging. That means that your only problem is getting people to and from the trailheads.
On a lightly-supported trip, you need one vehicle to carry baggage from one nights lodging to the next. This vehicle can probably carry some (but not all) people and bikes to and from the trailheads. You need a driver for this vehicle. You may be fortunate enough to have a volunteer perhaps a friend or family member who doesnt want to bike all day. People on the trip can drop out for half a day at a time to drive. Or you can hire someone to do the driving. For detours around trail gaps, you can make multiple trips, or pre-position one of your own cars nearby, or hire a local shuttle service, or let some bikers ride the roads (carefully!). If youre camping, note that the many hiker-biker campgrounds are intended for through-bikers, and they're deliberately located far away from car access. There are some campgrounds with car access, but they're farther apart.
On a fully-supported trip, you need enough vehicles and drivers to carry all the people, baggage, and bikes back and forth between the trail and your lodging. This could be a large van and trailer or several cars. Youll also be able to drive everyone to and from the trailheads and on the detours around trail gaps. The advantage is that you can avoid riding on roads, and you get many more options for lodging. The disadvantage is that you may spend a lot of time organizing, waiting for people, loading, and driving.
[Overview Map] [ATA Information] [Linking Up Home]
|
||||||
This page is part of the Allegheny Trail Alliance's site in support of the Pittsburgh to Cumberland Trail, a motor-free recreational rail trail connecting Pittsburgh PA and Cumberland MD. Copyright © 1998, 1999, 2000 by Allegheny Trail Alliance, Bill Metzger, Mary Shaw, and Roy Weil. Amenity information courtesy of FreeWheeling Easy. We encourage you to create links to this site and to print copies of the maps for your personal use. We prohibit other uses of this site, especially if they generate spam or other mass communications -- see our Privacy Policy.. This page was last modified on 09/03/00. Send email to ATA or contact the ATA or member trails. |