Group Bikepacking in Maryland: C&O Canal, Sugarloaf Mountain, Montgomery County, Camping
This route is inspired from the Bikepacking.com MOCO route.
I led my first group bikepacking trip of the year and it was a tremendous success! (subscribe to this Substack & check out my tour page for updates next time you want to jon!)
Day 1:
We started at a cafe by the Georgetown Waterfront at 9am to share some coffee and breakfast as we introduce ourselves, talked about the trip, and fix up any last little details. There were some repeat attendees, new faces, and an industry friend on this 9 person group trip.
We then began pedaling along the C&O Canal, taking stops at Great Falls and a beverage food truck in the 95 degree scorching sun. BTW- all of these pictures are the raw photos from my 2003 digital camera, a hand-me-down from my grandpa, mom, and now me!
After many breaks at the start of the ride (which included some admiration of local wildlife and flora, soaking in the beauty of the canal), we entered “sandwich mode” where I told the entire group “I’m starving and I want lunch ASAP. I’m booking it to White’s Ferry”. I didn’t expect the group to keep up with me, but I’m glad they did, because I hardly had enough food & electrolytes in my to keep a 15mph pace on the gravel trail with my fully loaded bike! Thank god they were there to help break the wind and keep me motivated!
Some of the beauty of the C&O Canal!
After a much needed late lunch, we pedaled to Indian Flats campsite (at a much more relaxed pace) to set up camp. We were sweaty, covered in dirt, but all in such a great mood from the day. I forgot to mention that I got a flat 5 miles into the ride, but for the rest of the day, we had no mechanical issues.
We all set up camp, some of us napping on the grass, others showing ourselves off with the campsite pump, some reading, going to bed immediately, stretching, looking at the plants and animals, and talking while cooking at the picnic table. I love the campsites on the canal, and I love sharing it with likeminded people. It’s such a small treasure to spend a whole day in nature with people who value the same way of life.
Day 2:
We woke up and set off by 9:15am to exit the canal towpath and head to the Dickerson Market for some restocking and breakfast foods. It’s the local gas station and quick mart for people of the county area- the further away you get from Baltimore, the roads get much calmer, scenery more beautiful, and the communities/stores feel much more local. It’s nice to get into more remote territory.
At this point, we were onto wide, low traffic, country roads, pedaling towards Sugarloaf Mountain (which I call “short mountain”, because it’s exactly that). Not everyone pedaled to the top, but for those of us who did, it felt good to get some elevation in and see some views!
One of my guests broke a spoke yesterday, so we took a detour and visited a new bike shop not too far away called Catoctin Mountain Cyclery, and the owner (Scott, I think his name was?) was such a helpful, down to earth, positive guy. We ended up not getting the spoke fixed (it would’ve taken way too long), but he gave us some advice, we had a nice chat, and we continued on towards the Little Bennett State park for some more gravel and singletrack.
At this point, the group separated, as per usual for day 2 of this trip. I tell everyone what the original, main route is supposed to look like, share with them the plan, and tell them all that they can change the route however they please if they don’t want to do a full 65 mile day with elevation and singletrack throughout. It’s a great way to let everyone pick-their-own-adventure to suit their wants and needs. As the tour leader, I always stick with those who do the singletrack as far as they can make it before we get tired and decide to head to food/camp.
At first, two people decided not to do the gravel rides and stick to the roads. Then we lost another two after they took an accidental detour, so I was left with three guests while the other four were creating their own adventure. We took a break to filter some water, then decided we needed to get some lunch and peeled off the beautiful gravel paths to the county roads to devour whatever decent fast food we could find. I have no photos of our late lunch (I was too tired and hungry), but the first leg of a thunder/rainstorm passed by while my group was inside (but for the other four, they got drenched!).
We all made it to camp at roughly the same time. It was only misting at that point, but we set up our tents immediately, got rinsed off and ready for the next bout of rain to begin. One of my guests lives in DC and decided to bike home that night, and another two went with them, so our last day of camp lacked three participants. As one of my guest said “it wouldn’t be a Claire trip if it didn’t rain on the last days!”
The remaining crew enjoyed our time at camp, talking about our crazy days, enjoying the finally cooler weather (it was 85-95 degrees the whole day until the rain brought it down to 65-70) for as long as we could. We even caught a little bit of the sunset from afar, right before a torrential thunderstorm hit. The glow of the sun was beautiful while it lasted.
The storm hit and it was intense. It poured and light flashed and thunder roared in ways which even I hadn’t yet witnessed through the thin strength of a tent. My tent stayed mostly dry (just a little bit of mud pooling in the vestibule), two of my guests were in hammock tents with a bit of side mist, another guest totally dry and warm, but for one unfortunate guest, their tent flooded nearly immediately, and they called an uber to meet up with the guest who left earlier to sleep in their apartment in DC. I’m glad there was a backup!
I personally enjoyed the thunderstorm- my tent was fine, I knew I’d be fine, and the power of the light and booms of the thunder was amazing. I read my book Small Gods by Terry Pratchett, finally feeling like I got into the rhythm of his writing. At one point I was awoken by a group of people from the cabin across the canal laughing, but quickly went back to sleep after that. Overall, it was a good night for those of us who stayed dry.
Day 3:
A beautiful damp, quiet morning after an intense night of rain and storms. We were all tired from the last two days, so there was a bit lett chitter chatter today compared to the previous two.
We left camp at 9am, with one guest deciding to savor more time at the campsite before heading home.
We pedaled back down the canal 18 miles, and another 3 to Union Station to end the trip. It was cooler today compared to the last two days (thank goodness for that), and our legs were barely making it through without complaints.
We saw this large turtle on the ride which was exciting! There was a ton of wildlife we saw on this trip, more than usual. An owl, some hawks, chipmunks, large black snakes, turtles, herons, foxes, deer, and an array of birds.
The guests who left camp the night before, and those who stayed and biked back (the one person ubered from camp to DC ubered back from DC to camp to pack up their belongings and ride with us) decided to meet up for brunch as we ended the day. I immediately caught the Marc train home because I have another tour to lead tomorrow, but I’m so grateful for everyone who came! I had a blast! I can’t wait for the next one!
If you want to join me and other rad people on future bikepacking trips, make sure to Subscribe to my Substack and check out my tours page for future trips. I’ve got two coming up in October during leaf changing season, which you sure don’t want to miss!
Sincerely, me, your guide