GAP/C&O Day 6 - Brunswick to DC

 OK, so today was supposed to be a bit shorter, but it turns out I had to start the day by riding 2.5 in the wrong direction all uphill.

It seems all the bouncing around on the rough towpath loosened up the screws, and a screw that holds the front rack on fell out altogether, as did a screw that hold on the rear fender. The screw for the front rack is kinda critical.

Luckily, there is an Ace Hardware in Brunswick, and even more luckily they open at 9:00 AM on Sunday morning. Ace is the best. I just wish Home Depot would die in a fire so we could have more Ace Hardware stores.

Here's my bike out front of Ace waiting for a nice new bolt for my front rack. Mission success on this.

The rear fender was more problematic, since there is a clamp that fell off with the screw. But this is not a crisis, because I always bring some duct tape with me when touring.

I recall that this is not the first time I have gone to Ace Hardware to buy screws for the bike rack to replace ones that have fallen out, believe it or not. I think the lesson here is I need to start bringing some spare screws with me. And check to make sure everything is tight every couple days.

So my emergency repair cost me five miles and an hour and a big climb, but no big deal really. It was back on the towpath, where the new smooth surface lasted all the way to Edwards Ferry, 30 miles from DC. 

Here is one of the many viaducts that carry the canal over rivers it needs to cross. I think this is the Monocacy River. 

Lunch was a backpacker meal at Horsepen Branch, the last of the hiker-biker sites before DC. It hit the spot. 

Ten miles later, I rode through Great Falls. Here is my attempt at a panoramic photo.



And at the end, I climbed out of Georgetown and up to Kalorama, where the buildings are really beautiful, and nobody built a CubeSmart next door.

I'm staying at the very dubious Windsor Park Hotel, a couple blocks north of the picture above. It was the cheapest option in the middle of DC. Amid all the embassies and fancy apartments, there is this old hotel, which is a very bare-bones operation. No frills whatsoever, bike doesn't fit in the elevator, so it's chained up in the side alley (out of view of the public), and the elevator barely works anyway. I hope there is coffee downstairs somewhere tomorrow morning. Dinner was takeout from the sushi restaurant around the corner, so that's a win.

Here is the Strava track: https://www.strava.com/activities/4121457774