We rolled west, starting off on Rt. 216 west to Brighton Dam road where we turned left to cross over the dam and then right onto Rt. 650, which eventually becomes Rt. 108. At Damascus, we went north for a short distance on Rt. 27 and then turned left on Fingerboard Rd./Rt. 80. Fingerboard Rd. is a very nice ride with lots of small farms and other nice homes to see along the way.
Passing on through Urbana, we went a few more miles before turning left on Rt. 85/Buckeyestown Pike. This ride is essentially more of the same great scenery that is experienced on Fingerboard Rd., and we continued on it until we hit Rt. 28 to go towards Point of Rocks. We were doing fine until we came across a Road Closed sign - which KS reminded me we'd seen when we were in the area on Memorial Day. Thankfully the Detour signs were well posted and we made our way through some more great small farm scenery before coming out on Rt. 340 which we hopped on to take us right into Harpers Ferry.
Traffic wasn't near as bad as I thought it would be as rolled into town around 11:30am. Parking was a challenge as usual, but we found a spot together for all five bikes and walked on down to Hannah’s Train Depot It was the first place we came to - and it wasn’t crowded - so we hopped on in. The service was fine and the food was okay; my fish & chips was nothing like the great fish & chips meals I’ve had in the UK, but I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I’m going to have a hard time finding any better over here. Angela’s pork bbq sandwich looked good, and she fixed it properly (with the cole slaw slapped on top of the pork).
We walked around town and down to the river before getting back out on the road. I really hadn’t planned anything for the return ride since I figured we’d just see what folks wanted to do. I suggested a ride up to the Antietam Battlefield so that’s where we headed, riding up Rt. 67 and enjoying the fantastic view along the way. I really enjoyed looking out to the west at the beautiful hills and thinking that we definitely need to run this route again when the leaves begin to turn.
Since I hadn’t planned any route ahead of time, I sorta winged it and hoped I could remember how to get to Antietam from the south - but I was wrong. We found ourselves in Hagerstown where we stopped for gas and to check the maps. Chuck R. decided to head on home so he could be there in time for some family activities and the rest of us rolled on toward Smithsburg with Clarke and his GPS leading the way. Once we were just about to Smithsburg I jumped back in front since I’d reacquired my bearings and we turned right on Rt. 77 toward Thurmont.
If you’ve never been on Rt. 77, it’s a great road with lots of twists and turns going up and down the Catoctin Mountain. Apparently bicyclists enjoy it too, as we came upon a cyling foursome on the downside of the mountain. We carefully worked our way past them but it took me a while to get around the leader since he was taking full advantage of gravity - not to mention the fact that he was hogging the road - but that’s okay since I know they’re allowed to. I finally got around him and we proceeded to wind our way down the mountain when all of the sudden that joker passed me over the double yellow. As he was going by he shot me a very annoyed look to which I returned an “are you an idiot?” look. He’s lucky he didn’t become a hood ornament at that particular moment. Yeah, it’s tough to admit that me and my 113 cubic inch Raider got passed by some spandex-wearin’ clown on a three-pound 20 speed.. but I like my bike in it’s current condition, not as a hood or a tree ornament.
KS & I got a good chuckle out of a squad of sport bikes working their way west on Rt. 77, probably looking to get some great curves in. Unfortunately for them, however, they were stuck directly behind a Maryland State Trooper.
We rolled on through Thumont and took Rt. 550 down to Rt. 26 and continued east before dropping south again on Rt. 94. A well-deserved break was in order, and we took it at the Dunkin’ Donuts near Woodbine. After that, it was a normal run back to Columbia on Rt. 144 and Rt. 32.
Couldn’t have asked for a better ride. The weather was perfect, traffic was light, and the scenery was outstanding. We’ll certainly need to run that route again when the leaves are turning!
