Called Downstream to the Piedmont

September 23, 2017

Called Downstream to the Piedmont

I mounted my bike and followed the Potomac River along the historic Chesapeake & Ohio Canal Towpath beyond the confluence where the Valleys’ Shenandoah River feeds into the great Potomac. During this two-day round trek between Potomac and White’s Ferry, Maryland*, I witnessed amazing geographic gems that included the Carderock Recreation Area known for its rock cliffs and the Great Falls and an exquisite gorge with numerous islands and bedrock strath terraces (geographic fall line). Along the towpath I could hear through its generous beauty and periodic locks, the canal’s story, which operated from 1831 to 1924 and served primarily to transport coal from the Allegheny Mountains to Washington D.C. The wildlife is prolific with such highlights as old oaks trees, roaming deer, and sounds of many fowl including a multitude of geese. In fact, the Native Americans had distinctive names for various parts of the river, even calling the Great Falls Cohongarooton, meaning "honking geese". This living phenomenon provided many awakenings through the night. Oftentimes I paused and gravitated toward that many rock features, elevated terraces and gorges with abundant outcrops along the way. I have been summed to return and hope to seek out its western sections that reach unto the Ohio River at Pittsburgh.