The Hilliest Ride with the Steepest Climbs of our Trip So Far

     We knew all along that the four days out of Pittsburgh (Sunday-Wednesday July 4-7), in the Alleghany Mountains of Pennsylvania, were going to be the hilliest of the entire trip, with far more elevation gain per day than any of our days in the Rocky Mountains. While the Rocky Mountains are much higher (5200 feet at our highest point in the Rockies, compared to a maximum of 2900 feet in the Alleghanies), the roads through the Alleghanies have many more ups and downs, resulting in many more feet climbed per day.
     What we didn't know was that a number of factors would add to the difficulty:

1. Steepness: Four hills on Sunday were so steep that we had to walk our bikes (& baggage) up at least parts of them, including one stretch where we walked up about 500 feet. We now know that the next three days will include quite a bit more walking. Up until Sunday, we had never walked our bikes up a hill on the entire trip.

2. Very busy Highway 30: We had routed ourselves along Route 30 for much of Sunday-Wednesday, but it turns out to be a high-traffic road, ill-suited to cycling. When we modified our route to avoid Route 30, the route became considerably more hilly.

3. Heat: The temperature today reached 90, and it is predicted to be at least that high for the next several days.

Another factor that added to the difficulty on Sunday was road construction and closings at several points on our route, which forced us to re-route (adding miles and hills) and, on one occasion, to take a perilous crossings of a bridge under construction.

All in all, it's a very challenging period of our trip.

Walking the bike up a steep hill in the Alleghany Mountains

Carol's leg injury resulting from a perilous stretch where a road was closed for repairs

The next three images show a dangerous crossing of a bridge under construction: