Day 12 Colliers WV to Warnock OH

May 23, 2023

Late start again as Henry had GI issues this morning. Couldn’t get my route to load on my gps- another senior moment- so I took off just following my paper maps and cue sheets. I guess that 2 mile 7% grade climb out of Colliers must’ve cleared my head and I figured out what I did wrong. TaDa! Route loaded!

The route worked across the little northern finger (panhandle?) of West Virginia to Follansbee, then followed the Ohio River to Wheeling.

Typical view from the road south of Follansbee. I liked the sign.

No cute dog pic today but I did see this guy just watching people go by

After Wellsburg, the route utilized 3 trails, the Yankee trail, the Brooke Pioneer Trail and then the Wheeling Heritage Trail. These were contiguous and took me right into Wheeling.

Turns out they’re building a new bridge and you really can’t fudge this one. Luckily I ran into Dave who kindly gave me a lift and 3 bottles of water. I was going to need them.

This is Dave who is working on the new bridge and was going where the trail picked up again. He was my personal escort driver!

Wheeling is experiencing a lot of road construction right now so I took a short walking tour while trying to find the suspension bridge.

Lots of beautiful old buildings in various states of repair

This huge suspension bridge was built in the 1800s. It’s under repair but they left one walkway open for pedestrians.

Once over the bridge in Bellaire OH, I got on a 4 lane highway with entrance and exit ramps but a good shoulder. Never done that before. Got off on the 48th Street exit and then the fun began. The hills of eastern Ohio. I try not to stop on climbs or descents, so here are a few pictures of towns in between.

Deer are not as tame as on Lummi Island. They definitely don’t block the street here.

Peter picked me up west of Warnock. We’re staying at Barkcamp State park about 5 miles away. For anyone doing this route, it’s 1.5 miles up a hilly “road” with lots of rough gravel. So glad I didn’t have to bike it. There are definitely some benefits of being sagged. The camp is lovely though.

Looking forward, with maybe a little trepidation, to more hills for the next few days.

Today's ride: 49 miles (79 km)
Total: 426 miles (686 km)

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