North East, MD to King of Prussia, PA

May 18, 2017

Another "rough" day amongst the hills! Except for the Delaware segment!

We started out with an early breakfast at the Denny's next door. A reliable breakfast spot and my next preference after Waffle House. It looked like another hot day with about the same amount of (significant) climbing.

Prepping to leave Denny's after a filling breakfast.

Today's ride to King of Prussia.

Heart

Comment

Link

We resolved to take it easy today. I had already been making generous use of my 32 rear cog. And yesterday, after a climb and a sharp left turn requiring more climbing, I even used my granny gear! Haven't done that in a while! My middle ring is a 32 (22-32-42 upfront), so that, combined with the rear 32, gives me 27.0 gear inches. In the granny, it drops to 18.5, which will get me up almost anything without pain!

So on most hills, I ended up in 27.0 gear inches at some point before reaching the top. I had no interest in getting rubber legs, and, as I was once told as a young (wee) lad, "You paid for those gears; you might as well use them." And I did.

All that said, today was a pretty nice day of riding. We were soon in the countryside and enjoyed the views and quiet roads as we made our way north.

The scenic road out of North East, MD (after the four-mile climb up from Little North East Creek).

A cute complex of buildings on Rock Church Road.

Including this beautiful tree in the church's yard.

Glen Road, which becomes London Tract Road and then Broad Run Road, was a very memorable experience.

Somerset Lake (I think this is a private development, but I always bike like I own the place).

We were going to bike in three states today. Maryland, then Pennsylvania, followed by a short leg in Delaware, before returning to Pennsylvania again. There were no "Welcome" signs at any of the state border crossings, a testament to the minor roads we were on and the low volume of traffic. That was fine with us. And we really were only in Delaware for a very short distance (maybe five miles). And except for the car tags, which was my first clue, I only knew we were in Delaware because of their distinctive highway signs that I am very familiar with, having done a lot of riding there.

So it was a noneventful day until about MP 31.5, where we encountered a closed road for bridge reconstruction. Normally, I would at least ask for passage through, but from a distance, it really did not look plausible. And a quick check of a possible detour route showed an easy way around that added maybe a mile to the course, so no big deal.

Except where I recovered the route, at the bottom of a steep climb up to the Radley Run Country Club, I noticed the sign. Yes, THE SIGN that said "No Thru Street." Hmmm, I hope that isn't true. I pondered for a bit and surmised I had been routed along bike trails, sidewalks, or golf-cart trails through the country club.

I really didn't want to climb this if I wasn't going to get through . . . but I was rescued by a lady!

While I pondered this, pulling out my phone for assistance and clarification, a nice lady leaving the complex stopped and asked if I needed help. I'm always grateful for unsolicited help, so struck up a conversation about the path through to West Chester. She seemed very conversant, and we parted with me being confident I could get through on public roads. And I did. I always worry, however, when crossing private property, like a country club, if it is going to be an issue. Always ask first!

After the country club, it started becoming more developed. West Chester was only a couple of more miles away. I was also looking forward to using the Chester Valley Trail into King of Prussia for the last ten miles or so. But that was still ten or so miles away.

And I needed water. Amazingly, I did not pass any convenience stores in West Chester, so I stopped at a charter elementary school, which clearly was not used to male visitors wearing spandex. They sent out a jock-type coach guy to deal with me, but once he saw I was "harmless," I was admitted and directed to a school water fountain. Ever vigilant in these times, he kept an eye on me the whole time, after which I thanked him profusely.

On my way again, I made a wrong turn (or missed a turn) somewhere east of West Chester and ended up on the wrong side of the railroad tracks. Rather than turn back, I pushed on and crossed on a major roadway underpass (as if I needed more hills) and recovered the route.

My Garmin, for whatever reason, had stopped cueing me for turns, so I had some challenges in the urbanish environment I was in, but once back on the route, I made this very long (and I mean very long) descent to the trailhead. And then it started to rain!

Well, I had felt a few suspicious drops beforehand, but then it just opened up. It was a combination of relief and annoyance since it was a heavy rain. I quickly took a picture of the trail and threw on my raincoat. I don't think I had it on for more than five minutes when the rain stopped and the sun returned, and I was feeling overheated (of course).

. . . and the trail behind. It doesn't extend much further (according to the maps), so I didn't miss much.

But the trail was a delight to ride and mostly shaded. Clearly a rail trail, too, as the alignment was straight as an arrow with only a slight grade. The only complaint is the adjacent highway (PA-202) that provided continuous background noise, even with sound barriers. They could have been a bit taller, maybe. Otherwise, smooth sailing.

One of the overhead road crossings. Looks a bit wobbly!

This section was a bit in the rough and seemed to be a service road connector between trail segments.

The last challenge was at the end of the day's ride in King of Prussia. What a mess that place is! I finally navigated my way to the hotel with some effort, including riding the shoulder on PA-202 in the wrong direction for a short distance. This place is meant for cars and cars only!

But shortly before my arrival, I heard from Happy. He was still 20 miles out. He made it around the detour (I had clued him in via text with pictures and directions, including a note to ignore the "No Thru Street" sign), but he had run out of steam and was going to take an Uber or cab to the hotel. One has to do what one has to do. Too bad he missed the trail riding. He would have enjoyed that.

Later, we went to Rock Bottom (in the mall, of course) and had drinks and dinner. The mall is an out-of-this-world experience. Wayfinding is not easy, but we made it. I had three of my usual reds and my favorite ribeye, while Happy had one and food as well. He mostly wanted to retire early, and I don't blame him; he needs to ride tomorrow, and I want him to be fresh! So he retired while I hung out a little and did some blog work and then made my way back to the hotel. I wanted to rest as well but also knew tomorrow was a short day. A short and leisurely day at that!

Today's ride: 57 miles (92 km)
Total: 171 miles (275 km)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	0
Comment on this entry	Comment	0