Day 3: All day Sunday on a bike? GLORIUS!

September 17, 2023

A quick weather check at my stealth camp when I awake shows 47F and forecast of a sunny day. I have all day to ride my bicycle and link trails along the Allegheny River.

Sun still coming up and lighting my stealth camp spot off the bike trail.

I set out into the stillness of the morning, pedaling through the gentle rolling countryside. I pass fields of corn, food, and my only companions other than about a dozen cars in the first hour, are grazing horses and one couple in a horse and buggy heading off to worship.

First 15 miles of the day are practically carless in the still morning before people head off to Sunday activities.

First stop of the day is McDonald's for multiple reasons. The historic site I wanted to visit didn't open until 10:00 so I had to wait until they opened their doors; I wanted to get breakfast (and to be honest, McD's coffee is pretty good (your mileage may vary)); I could give my devices a 45-minute recharge on the electric grid. I accomplish all three goals. In Titusville PA I pass by a restored Sun Oil gas station as I make my way to the Drake Oil Well.

Restored Sun Oil Company (i.e. Sunoco) gas station in Titusville.

After the Drake Oil Well (site of the first producing oil well in the US), I started the journey linking trails together. Oil Creek trails connects to the McClintock trail to the Allegheny River trail. It's a non-contiguous stretch of trails, but it gives the rider roughly 50 miles of trail riding instead of streets.

Drake Oil Well. Another off-the-beaten-path history site - I crave stopping at these.

Oil Creek trail as it crosses (what else?) Oil Creek.

Two tunnels required passage on this route - Kennerdell and Rockland. I encountered the Kennerdell tunnel about 58 miles into the day's ride; the tunnel was extremely dark and also a bit disconcerting. The tunnel turns at the end, so there's no light at the end of the tunnel to see going through 95% of the tunnel's 1/2-mile length until you make a turn near the end. I can't tell you the happiness felt when I made that turn and light from the exit started creeping into the tunnel and covering the walls.

Kennerdell tunnel. If you can't see the light at the other end, it's because the tunnel makes a dog-leg just before exiting. It makes the tunnel very dark throughout its 1/2-mile length.

The section of the trail between the two tunnels is paved with a lot of root upheaval in the trail. One couple I passed called them "moguls." Countless times I had to hit the brakes and roll over slowly to avoid losing fillings in my teeth. I suspect that the trail is less-than easily accessible for maintenance vehicles to get to in order to keep it smooth. And, I do realize that it's probably not traveled nearly as much as other roadway projects in the area, so there's that.

I arrived in Emlenton PA after around 72 miles. I found an IGA grocery, but I decided to forego groceries in favor of a Subway across from the campsite. Crossing the Allegheny River and turning right, I hit the final 2 miles to the campsite, encountering 10-11% grades all the way to the top; this includes the maximum grade for the day, 11.7% (won't say I walked part of it, won't say I didn't). I get my sandwich, roll into the campsite and get prepared for the next day's journey. This includes looking at my route, because at this moment, I'm cooked from the long day and decide to re-route my originally planned 78-mile day into Pittsburgh in favor of 55-mile route selected by RWGPS.

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Today's ride: 74 miles (119 km)
Total: 193 miles (311 km)

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John PescatoreMy wife and I did Franklin to Emlenton 5 years or so- that dogleg tunnel really creeped out my wife even though we had decent lights.

She also wasn't happy when we rode through the waterfall at the southern end of one of the two tunnels...
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1 year ago

Paul MulveyWhile I don't specifically remember a waterfall, I do faintly remember some sort of soaking during a tunnel run. There were quite a few so maybe it was the Rockland tunnel.
Yes, the Kennerdell tunnel was a bit disconcerting, even with a decent light. I didn't know how long it was but had to trust going forward it would eventually lead to an exit (unless I was traveling to the underworld). Figure it takes a few minutes of constantly moving forward through the darkness with no indication you're coming out the other side? Yes, a bit creepy to be sure.
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1 year ago

Gregory GarceauAs a big fan of anything that is the first, the heaviest, the tallest, the smallest, the weirdest, or any other est-est, I congratulate you on finding the first oil well in America. Very cool.
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1 year ago

Paul Mulvey"Oil's well that ends well" :-)

Thanks, next up is the world's first "Reverse letter C bike tour in northern Florida" in February.
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1 year ago