It rained most of the day today. This is only the third day of "real rain" I have had in my two-month tour. At least I finally got some use out of my fenders.
The half mile I rode on US 17 today was probably the hairiest part of my trip. Lots of traffic and no shoulders. At one point three semi trucks passed in a row, each one a little closer to me. I bailed out onto the gravel at the side of the road, the first time anything like that has happened.
At Purcellville, I got onto the W&OD trail. It is a paved bike path that follows the old Washington and Old Dominion railroad line. You can ride all the way into downtown Washington DC without ever riding on a street or road. However, I only took it for 3 miles until I branched off to the north. It looked like a very nice path, although you need to be careful where the two-way bike path crosses freeway entrance ramps and cross streets.
The photo was taken from the Catoctin Creek bridge, near Brunswick, MD.
At Waterford, I deviated from my route slip to head for the AYH Hostel in Harpers Ferry. It's ironic that the only two hostels that I was able to utilize were on the first and last nights of the tour. In Waterford, I asked directions from a lovely young lady walking barefoot down the street in the rain. She wasn't sure, but smiled sweetly and directed me to some fellows working on a house who helped me out.
I found the hostel with no wrong turns and only asking directions twice.
The only other guests are a portly fellow hiking part of the
Appalachian Trail
and four young ladies from Wales on holiday from University. They
traced my route on a map of the USA in their guidebook and were most
impressed that I had cycled farther than they had driven.