The murals were created by art students at the local high school. Congratulations to the teacher who developed this project and a way to display her student's efforts to the public in a way that showcases the city.
On our bike tours with another couple, we frequently note old buildings which are located in a good place to develop a B&B. This building is located across the street from the trail, but needs a little work. Actually, building materials behind the house indicate that someone may already be working on a renovation. Several businesses in Connellsville are already focused on serving cyclists, including a bike shop. In some parts of the town the bike route not only includes a bike lane, but the lane is physically separated from vehicular traffic by traffic islands with nice landscaping, flowers and shrubs.
Looking downstream from the bridge toward the Ohiopyle Falls. This section is the beginning of a very popular rafting and kayaking area. It seems like every year somebody drowns in this area, usually near the falls. My father-in-law tells stories about people swimming over the falls when he was a young man.
The train station has been made into a visitors center, complete with restrooms and water fountains. There is short-term car parking but not over-night.
We stayed overnight and ate dinner at the Rivers Edge Cafe. The food was good. I seem to remember there were four rooms in a adjacent building and we parked our bicycles inside of a garage. Since this was July 4th weekend the other rooms were filled and everybody (all cyclists) sat and talked in the common living room until late at night. I always enjoy this type of ad-hoc social gatherings. My Dad and I slept in a double bed together. I don't think I had slept in a bed with anybody (other than my wife) in two decades, so it felt funny. Complicating things even further is that each of us has Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS). With all the thrashing around during the night and our big feet with pointy toes, it's a wonder our legs weren't too cut up and bruised to allow us to pedal away the next morning.We hoped to be able to phone our wives to let them know how things were going, but there was no cell phone coverage in town. However, our young waitress told us we could walk to the outside of a bar and get a cell phone signal, apparently from some kind of repeater inside the bar. Well, the suggestion paid off. Unfortunately, I neglected to get a picture of the two old guys leaning up against the bar talking earnestly into their cell phones.
