Cycling the C&O and GAP Trails
Trip Summary
What: Cycle Tour along the GAP Trail and C&O Towpath.
Where: Washington, DC to Pittsburgh, PA
When: May 29 to June 9, 2025 (9 days)
Distance: about 335 miles
Highlights: car-free cycle touring, easy navigation, small-town America
Resources
- Great Allegheny Passage Conservancy
- Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historic Park
- C&O Canal Trust
- James’ and Amy’s trip report at Doing Miles .
- Constantin’s trip report at Thirld World Blog.
Why We Went
Route
The C&O Canal runs 185 miles from Washington DC, near the Watergate Hotel, to Cumberland MD. The GAP Trail runs 150 miles from Cumberland to Pittsburgh and terminates at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers.
Photos
Notes for Potential Cyclists
Transportation
Both Washington DC and Pittsburgh are well-served by airports and a daily train connects the two. We snagged spots for our bicycles on a DC-bound train and rode back to Pittsburgh. It’s also possible to rent one-way cars to shuttle the bikes.
Inn-to-Inn Touring
This was our first experience with inn-to-inn touring. We booked all accomodations ourselves. They varied widely in quality and price. Due to our low daily mileage of ~40 miles/day, we occasionally stayed in rural areas with limited options and suffered high prices, substandard conditions, or both.
Due to the popularity of the route and the scarcity of lodging, we made bookings in advance. Most were non-refundable beyond a few days out. We had no choice but to stick to the schedule and ride the prescribed miles per day. It was never a major issue, but we would’ve liked the flexibility of lingering in nice places or sheltering longer due to inclement weather.
We chose an inn-to-inn tour for the luxury of a shower and bed each night. We felt surprising unclean though after nine days in as many hotel rooms. If camping is to be avoided for discomfort and filth, at least its your own filth; these hotel rooms subject you to other people’s filth, even when cleaned to normal hotel standards.
Perhaps a happy medium is mostly camping near showers, plus the occasional hotel stay for laundry and a deep clean.