Homeschooling in Hagerstown

We made quick work of our last day riding the Pine Creek Rail Trail as a family. When dropping my wife and children off at Ramsey, I went down the trail with them a short ways so we could get a photo on the bridge just south of the drop off (another bridge I previously inspected), before reloading my bike to take the van south.

After I dropped the vehicle off at the Jersey Shore recreational parking, I headed north and met back up with them at the Torbert bridge.

At the end of the trail we enjoyed playing on the outside of the COVID-closed information center.

All told, it was a great family trip. It fit the bill for COVID cautious, gave all of us a sense of accomplishment, and provided a lot of time together.

Day 4 was the longest ride of our family’s bike trip down the Pine Creek Rail Trail (N map, S map). Our kids (5 and 7) completed the 19 miles under their own power, and they did so with ease. We had discovered on the previous day that short little rides with short little breaks were not good for our kids. So we set larger goals (4ish miles) and then took longer breaks, and it went much better despite being double the distance of the previous day.

This time after unloading the bikes at the Slate Run Access Areas, I only took the car to the Waterville Access area (mile 50), rather than to the planned endpoint of Ramsey (mile 54). Then as before I rode north to meet the rest of the crew. We met up around mile 43.

When we arrived at the Waterville Access area, the idea of ice cream and a playground a little further on were sufficient enticement for the remaining 4 miles to Ramsey.

The McConnell’s Country Store in Waterville was pleasantly clean and had a fun assortment of frozen treats. Right behind it was a a very fun playground.

At the end of our day we returned to Waterville for more time on the playground and dinner at the Waterville Tavern. The food was delicious. The staff was very friendly (especially to kids). The kids’ meals were served on frisbees our kids got to keep!

Before departing Leonard Harrison State Park on the third morning or our family bike trip down the Pine Creek Rail Trail, we needed to take one last chance to enjoy the beautiful views.

When I set down our son’s bike at the Blackwell access area, I discovered a flat. With the help of a stranger and supplies from Miller’s Store, we got the tube replaced before I took the van down to the Slate Run Access area and began my journey north to meet my family.

I met up with them around mile 29, giving us a chance for a family photo at a bridge I had inspected back in my days as a bridge engineer.

We celebrated the completion of half our trip when we crossed Elk Run.

With our riding done, we went to check into Happy Acres Resort. It is not a place we would recommend. It is as much trailer park as it is resort. While our cabin was nice (if dusty), on all four sides of it were run down trailers. The bottom of the pool was covered with worms, and there were no posted chemical levels. Wasps lived on the playground. Maybe on the bright side, we did see this guy, ironic given that our cabin’s name was “Bear Crossing.”

Before bed, Felicity mentally prepared for the coming day, previewing the course for our longest ride.

We kicked off the second day of our family bike trip down the Pine Creek Rail Trail with hardboiled eggs and muffins reheated over a fire.

Almost back to the the Ansonia Parking Area (Mile 8) we passed this fox:

The eagles still perched in the same tree we had spotted them in the day before.

After unloading the bikes, I took the van down to the Blackwell Access Area and began my journey north to meet the others. We ran into each other a little north of the Tiadaghton camping/picnic area.

This section (Ansonia Access to Blackwell Access) of the Pine Creek Rail Trail was beautiful. We enjoyed our journey back to the van.

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On the way back to Leonard Harrison State Park we made a recommended stop at the Main Street Creamery in Wellsboro. All four of our flavors were delicious. My apple pie ice cream had a generous amount of apple pie in it.

En route to our first day’s ride along the Pine Creek Rail Trail (N map, S map), we past through Wellsboro and thought it looked like a nice place to grab breakfast if we hadn’t already eaten at camp. Through Wellsboro, I dropped my wife and our kids off at Mile 0 on the trail, then drove to the Ansonia Parking Area (Mile 8), unloaded and headed north to meet them.

I met them just south of Mile 3 and we headed south together.

While loading our bikes at the end of our ride, we heard an eagle screeching, and were able to spot, not one, but two bald eagles!

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Our plan had been to go to Pine Creek Outfitters after our morning bike ride and rent a canoe. We were disappointed to discover the water was running too low. Had we had our swim suits with us, we could have gone tubing instead. Fortunately, a friend had recommended Sticky Bucket Maple to us. We enjoyed the tour and the samples.

In the evening, we took time to enjoy the views a short walk from our campsite.

After loading the gear and the bikes at home,

we launched our family bike trip down the Pine Creek Rail Trail driving to Leonard Harrison State Park. Site 8 was nice in that it was very close to the bathroom, but we couldn’t see it from our site.

As we pitched camp between cloudbursts, we were glad to have an instant tent. We were also very grateful for a reprieve from the rain long enough to build a fire and cook and eat dinner.