This page documents my 1995 trip on the towpath.  For this trip, we began in Washington and finished in Cumberland, MD.  Although this means the trip was all up hill, it made the logistical issue a whole bunch easier. 
 

Friday Morning - Mike, Frank and I are ready to start from K Street in Washington.  Directly overhead is the Whitehurst Freeway.
Mile 42 - By Friday Afternoon, we reached the Monocacy Aqueduct.  Here, Mike and Frank make like GQ guys.  By this time, we had fixed one flat and stopped for lunch at White's Ferry.
Mile 61 - On Saturday Morning we awoke to a steady rain. This photo is taken from across the Potomac River in Harpers Ferry (looking south).  The towpath is on the opposite bank. 
 

We spent a few hours hanging out in the Hilltop House Breakfast Buffet waiting for the storm to pass.  By 9am, the skies cleared and we were on our way.
Mile 79 - Stopped for a quick snack. As you can see, after only a few hours of riding, we were feeling pretty beat up due to the wet towpath conditions and sore butts.  However by this time things had nearly dried out. 
 

About an hour and a half later, a large thunderstorm began to form to the north.  We raced the storm about 8 miles to Williamsport (mile 100), beating it by just a few minutes. Lunch was spent in a Pizza parlor for about an hour while the storm passed. 
 

The remaining 24 miles that day was slow and difficult due to the wet conditions.  By the time we reached Hancock, MD at 6pm, we were totally trashed and exhausted.
Mile 140 - Sunday Morning we take a quick "rest" stop at a Hiker-Biker Campsite.  This photo, looking south, shows the typical conditions you will see along towpath.  Most of the original canal bed (on the left) has been completely overgrown.  This keeps the towpath quite cool, but does limit your view of the surrounding terrain.  This can also make some sections seem quite long and tedious.
Mile 155 - By Midday Sunday we had reached the "eastern" entrance to the Paw Paw Tunnel.  The 3118 foot tunnel is quite dark and so you really need a headlamp or flashlight.  Mike had boat loads of fun here trying to bike through the tunnel as fast as possible (grin). 
 

Once we reached the other side of the tunnel, we crossed the river and had lunch at a mini-market in Paw Paw, WV.
Mile 184 - Victory at Cumberland.  Mike savors the achievement at the final milepost.  At the same time, Frank has passed out on top of a picnic table, about one half mile north of this point. 
 

Even though we spent several months preparing for this trip, we each had a pretty good pain in the "tailbone" for the next week or so. Overall, the trip was a great experience that I hope to repeat some day.