York to Jonestown, PA

October 12, 2020

Spirit Not Dampened on this Gloomy Day

The rains of Hurricaine Delta came to York yesterday, all the way from the Mississippi River Delta, but not until dusk. After dinner last evening, I walked back to my hotel in a warm, light, and pleasant drizzle. The storm was heavier overnight but I slept through it.

The forecast called for the rain to slow down by 10:00 AM, so I planned for a late departure on this Monday morning. When I left the warmth and comfort of the hotel, there was a mist in the air but it quickly stopped as I rode East toward the small borough of Hallam.

On this morning, I was the only cyclist on the popular weekend riding route in this area, SR-462, aka the Lincoln Highway. The road passes through some agricultural countryside before reaching the river town of Wrightsville. The Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge is a distinctive landmark on 462. It too has an elevated sidewalk but I opted to stay on the road due to some rough and uneven concrete sections of the sidewalk. There is some traffic but motorists seem generally to be used to cyclists on the bridge.

Plaque on the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge from when it was finished in 1930.

On the Columbia side of the bridge, my route took me down to the riverfront to access the Northwest River Trail (NWRT), for the next 15 miles or so. The trail was wet, covered with fallen leaves in some places, and devoid of other users. A railroad tunnel, carved out of a rocky cliff around 1850, is encountered before reaching the town of Marietta.

Tunnel, circa 1850, on the Northwest River Trail near Marietta, PA.

I saw a few walkers but no other cyclists on the way to Marietta and beyond. There is an option to ride through the town instead of staying on the trail. The road through town is marked with sharrows, i.e., bicycling arrows indicating the road is to be shared with cyclists. The road eventually rejoins the trail. The NWRT then continues all the way to Bainbridge. There it was closed off, appearing to be undergoing some surface development.

The Northwest River Trail (NWRT), on the way to Bainbridge.

Along the way to Bainbridge there was a second geological/man made phenomenon (the first being the tunnel cut through rock). This one is from limestone waste dumping that created white dunes.

The gray-white dune formations stood out in an otherwise green and wooded landscape. It lies in Conoy Township, named after an Indian Tribe that used to live here, and is visited by hikers and trail users.

Limestone dunes along the NWRT and the Susquehanna River, in Conoy Township.

At the trailhead in Bainbridge, there are several right-wing political signs and statements posted. Seems inappropriate to me, since this is a public facility and should be neutral, politically. But I am only passing through. There is also an adjacent landowner, apparently standing guard to ensure nobody trespasses on his property. He looks to be a likely suspect for the posting of the political signs. The trail is closed off at this point and you should not go around the "gate" to continue Northward on it. The fellow is not at all friendly and based upon a very brief attempt at conversation, is looking for an excuse to take things to another level. Since he is likely packing heat, be forewarned.

Since the trail ended there, I left it and used roads for a while. I went up to North 2nd Street, took a left and followed it to a merge onto SR-441, aka River Road. At Keener Road, I turned right and continued up a short hill. SR-441 has a wide shoulder and the other roads had minimal traffic, so this road excursion was stress free. Eventually, the network of quiet country roads brought me out near Elizabethtown, after having passed through an Industrial Park as I neared SR-230.

Black Swamp Road was very nice to ride on and not at all indicative of its name.

The only real hazard I encountered today, besides the right-wing landowner, was a loose cow on Keener Road. When I reached the intersection of Keener and Black Swamp Roads, a young fellow in a pick-up truck stopped to warn me about the cow. He said it tried to head-butt his truck. I thanked him but did not need to worry because I had already passed my bovine friend without incident. On the other side of SR-230 lay the next offering on my day of wet trails, the Conewago Recreational Trail (CRT).

The Conewago Trailhead near Elizabethtown, PA.

On this dismal day, the CRT followed the same usage pattern as the NWRT, so I passed by a few walkers and runners but was mostly alone on the trail. It is another very pleasant trail that passes through alternating woods and farmlands until it reaches the border between Lancaster and Lebanon Counties. Closer to the county line, there is the Old Trolley Line Park. It appeared to be very well kept but nobody was there on this wet day.

Old Trolley Line Park, along the Conewago River Trail.

At the county line, the trail continues but the name changes to the Lebanon Valley Trail (LVT). The LVT is a lot longer than the CRT. I would be on it for 15 miles to the city of Lebanon, where I would then need to use roads to my destination for the evening. I saw a few people using the trail but not very many. If not for the occasional crossings of state highways, this trail would be very remote in places.

If you ride this, take extreme care when crossing SR-743. There is quite a bit of traffic and it moves along pretty well. If you blow through the stop sign there, you might end up at the pearly gates instead of the trail gate on the other side of the road. A bike shop sits on the Northeast corner of the intersection but it was not open on this day.

Lebanon Valley Trail terminus and the line between Lebanon and Lancaster Counties.

When I reached the city of Lebanon, it was around 5:00 pm. The afternoon rush traffic was heavy and the rain began again. I left the trail and took to the roadways, which initially called for several miles on SR-72, aka Jonestown Road.

On the local evening news traffic reports, Jonestown Road is often mentioned as an area where traffic is problematic. I was hoping to catch it at an off peak time but so goes the life of the touring cyclist (sometimes). Fortunately, it had a decent shoulder and besides the traffic rushing by, the ride was not all that unpleasant.

At one point, the shoulder was completely blocked by some fallen tree branches. A lull in the traffic had occurred so I got off and cleared the branches out of the way. As I was picking up the last branch, a passing vehicle blared its horn (not a friendly toot to warn me of the approach). Totally un-necessary as I was completely off the road at all times during the exercise. To parpahrase something I once heard Bruce Springsteen say, "There are nice guys and (jerks) in every (situation)." Bruce used a stronger expletive for jerks when he said it. Ah, The Wild, The Innocent, and The E Street Shuffle... I started singing Rosalita in my head.

Later on, there was some road construction and I managed to pick up a thick and stiff piece of braided wire in my back tire. I heard it clanging before realizing what had happened. Once I saw it embedded in my tire, my heart sank for a minute. Here it was, 5:30 pm, raining, cold, getting dark, 5-6 miles still to go, and a flat tire to change.

Luckily, a park with a baseball field and a covered dugout appeared. I made a beeline for the dugout and set up my tire changing shop. There was no real damage to my tire or rim, only a flattened tube. So, it was changed, pumped with air, the panniers re-packed, loaded, and I was off once again. The final few miles were on lightly traveled roads. I made it to my hotel as the darkness settled in around me. I was happy to have reserved a clean, warm, and dry hotel room. The cold beer later on was pretty nice as well.

A baseball field with covered dugouts appeared, on cue, after I got a flat tire in the rain. I was able to change the inner tube and stay dry. Sometimes you're the bird. Other times, you're the statue. Today, I was mostly the bird.

"Hint From Heloise" - My jacket and some other clothing articles were covered with trail grit and bike grease from riding in the rain and changing the flat tire. I smeared some GoJo cleaner (the gray and gritty kind) onto all of the soiled areas and washed all of my dirty clothing in the hotel's washing machine. The jacket came out cleaner and brighter than it had been before the day began! I highly recommend carrying some GoJo cleaner when riding. The jacket was designed for wet weather so the GoJo didn't have any deleterious effects. I'm not sure what might happen with other fabrics but the probability is in your favor that it won't be as bad as a permanent black grease stain.

Today's ride: 60 miles (97 km)
Total: 150 miles (241 km)

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George HallGood recommendation on the GoJo cleaner - unfortunately for me, most of my touring clothes are already stained!
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2 months ago

Dino AngeliciBelieve me, I too have grease stains on most of my cycling clothes. After an especially dirty finish to the day, I had a brainstorm to use the GoJo on the jacket. Lo and behold, it worked. So, I decided to pass the tip along. Hope it works for you, George.
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2 months ago