2013 Ride

Day 20: Great Reception at Great Falls, Last Night on the Trail

Autumn Reflections on the Potomac

 

Check out the reflections (pictured here) of the fall colors on the Potomac River taken from my campsite. At the riverbank this morning, was treated to the sight of a bald eagle soaring majestically overhead in the direction I was headed. Good omen for the day.

 
 

Great FallsMay have set a new trike speed record pedaling the 16 miles of muddy, rutted trail to the Great Falls Visitor Center, where I found a closed concession stand with an outside outlet to recharge the laptop (as you have probably discerned by now, finding recharge stations is critical). Took a stroll down the crowded boardwalk to behold the splendor of Great Falls (pictured here).

 

Today was the best day of the trip by far for engaging people one-on-one. After four nights in a row camping out, with very little human contact, had a great reintroduction to civilization at Great Falls. People flocking to the park on this gorgeous Saturday afternoon were all but lining up to take photos of the trike, curious about where I was headed in my mud spattered craft. It was incredibly heartwarming to meet so many people who not only knew about Keystone XL’s southern leg, but enthusiastically supported it being stopped. Maybe instead of pedaling all this way, I should have just put the trike on public display here 3 weeks ago!

Fall Colors

 

After lots of great conversation, rolled a couple of miles to the last hiker/biker campsite on the trail, Marsden Tract (feast your eyes on these fall colors). It was nice to not be the only person in the campground for a change. A Cub Scout troop had pitched camp nearby, so instead of the usual silence, there were happy voices ringing out as I wrote this blog.

 
 

Last Fire

 

With this being my last night on the trail, had to have one last campfire (pictured here). Pedaled 19 miles closer to the White House today. Only 11 more miles to go.

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