The High Rock Ride

On Saturday, August 31st, a nice-sized group from the Bayside Believers took a ride up to the High Rock Overlook in Washington County, just south of the Mason-Dixon Line. I’d heard a lot about the view from this perch, as well as the fact that hang gliders use it for a launch site.

KarenSue and I pulled out on our bikes at about 8:45, planning to meet up with the rest of the gang in Clarksville around 9am. When we got to the meeting point in Clarksville, we found that Chuck Ridgely and Jeff & Angela Wightman were already there. We hung around chatting for a while before we noticed that it was nearing 9:30 and there was still no sign of the Glen Burnie contingent. Figuring that the folks who were late were all Harley riders, we thought there were probably mechanical issues that were keeping them delayed! A few minutes later we heard the hogs rumbling up to the light. Turns out, Road Captain Bill Cassell had confused Odenton with Clarksville. That’s easily understandable, right?

Joining us on the on-ramp to Rt. 32 were Bill and Gail Cassell, John and Patti Rogers, Bill and young Miss Gabby Coursey, Ronnie Kirkendall and Penny Holtz, and Jim Kemplin. Bill Cassell led us in prayer and we were on our way northwest toward Eldersburg.

Passing through Sykesville, I had my first near-miss of the day. I was bird bombed, and it hit about ½” below the top ridge of my windscreen. I know that many of us enjoy being closer to nature when we’re on our bikes but this was one part of nature I’m glad to have missed, however!

Once we got to Eldersburg, we turned left and headed west on Rt. 26 which really becomes a beautiful ride once you clear out of the sub-divisions west of Eldersburg. We rolled along until we came up to Libertytown when we turned right onto Rt. 550 toward Thurmont. KarenSue and I take this route whenever we ride up to Gettysburg and absolutely love it. The rolling hills, gentle curves and beautiful scenery are a great escape from the Baltimore – DC corridor. I know that we’re not supposed to covet what other people have, but I confess that I really love many of the homes that I see out in Carroll and Frederick counties!

The morning had been cool, damp, and heavily overcast but when we stopped for a quick potty break in Thurmont, the sun was poking through strong and several of us removed a layer of shirts. However, Bill advised that we were going to be heading up into the mountains and the temperature was going to be dropping again. He was right! We continued on Rt. 550 heading northwest and it was up hill for several miles. Since we’d had rain the previous days and the area stayed cool and damp, the roads were still wet so it took a little more concentration to navigate the passage. We rode through cool little towns like Sabilasville and Cascade, which reminded me of some of the hunting-camp towns not far from where I grew up in Western PA.

We finally came up to Pen Mar and started up the Pen Mar – High Rock Rd which had us go single file to deal with the smaller, slower road. It was very damp and a little foggy as we made our way up the last leg of the climb toward High Rock, so we took our time going up the slick surface. A few minutes later, we arrived at the “parking lot” at High Rock and dismounted.

While we were hoping to see the beautiful expanse of the valley below, all that we saw when we climbed out onto the rock ledge itself was a sea of fog. It was a little disappointing, but at the same time one could sense that looming below was something beautiful that for the moment, God was hiding from our view. We walked around the overlook and talked about how thick the fog was, pausing now and then to fuss at our friends who were inching a little too close to the edge. We met a couple dads who with their sons were hiking the nearby Appalachian Trail. One of the guys was kind enough to take a group picture for us.

As we continued to mill around some more, we could slowly feel the heat of the sun begin to cut through the fog. A few of us commented on how the fog would probably burn off within a half hour or so, but it wasn’t five minutes later when the sea of white below began to dissipate and the valley slowly came into view. We were finally able to see most of the area, from the farms that dot the landscape to the town of Waynesboro, PA, to the north, and various other communities which have sprung up here and there. We were able to enjoy the view for a while until some fog started to settle back in, so we made our way to the bikes so we could move on to the next destination: The Mountain Gate Restaurant in Waynesboro.

The trip down the mountain was slow but steady as we were mindful of the narrow (and still wet) road. Once we got to the bottom of the hill and turned to make our way toward the state line, we crossed paths with another group of CMA riders who turned out to be the Wings As Eagles chapter from Carroll County. The “Wings” guys were on their way up to where we’d just come from.

Crossing into PA, we came up to Rt. 16 where we turned left and headed west to Waynesboro. We rolled into the Mountain Gate Restaurant and walked on in, anxious to get to the business of knocking back some pies (and assorted other foods) from the buffet. Bill hadn’t made it in yet so Gail got a few of us to go back out and tell him that they didn’t have any pies – but they had 21 different kinds of cake. Personally, I didn’t think that would be a bad thing but we knew that Bill was counting on breaking his own record of pie eating. He didn’t fall for it, so we went on in and proceeded to make a dent in the excellent smorgasbord (desserts and other stuff). We’d been there for about an hour when the “Wings” fellows rode in. The hostess put them at the completely opposite side of the restaurant, so we joked that somebody must’ve been worried that two biker gangs seated too close to each other might cause problems!

Lunch was great; so good that there was no way we could waddle out of there and get right on the bikes so most of us walked across the street to where there were several model homes open for browsing. Many of us were tempted to try out some of the furniture (specifically the couches and beds), but unfortunately there were “Please stay off of the furniture” signs clearly posted at the entrance to each model home.

Browsing completed and food somewhat settled, we mounted up and headed to Emmitsburg to begin our journey back home. We got onto Rt. 15 south at E-burg and rolled right down to I-70 at Frederick. Most of us split off onto Rt. 144 at Mt. Airy to enjoy the much more relaxed ride that 144 provides over I-70. Apart from the deer that ran across the road just ahead of Bill, the rest of the ride was uneventful.

Even though the view of the Great Valley wasn’t quite as spectacular as it is on a clearer day, we still enjoyed view from the summit and were thankful to the Lord for a safe ride and a great time of fellowship. I can’t think of any specific instance where we had a chance to directly witness to somebody but I know that indirectly, seeds were planted. The folks at the gas stationed where we stopped at Thurmont, the dads and kids at High Rock, the folks in the restaurant. In each instance, they saw men and women smiling, laughing, and having a great time of fellowship together. They saw us mingling with the guys from Wings As Eagles. What else did they see? Our back patches. I overheard one elderly woman commenting to the people at her table as some of our folks walked out that “those are Christian motorcycles?” We were representing the love of the Lord through our fellowship, smiles and laughter. Never underestimate the power that a smile has! In a world where so many people have no joy in their lives, a smile and a kind word with the love of Christ has the power to change a life.

“Serve the LORD with gladness.” Psalms 100:2a