Author Archives: scottluria

Glen Echo to Gaithersburg, Maryland Sunday, Halloween 2021 It’s hard to overstate the importance of the C&O Canal in our nation’s, and in my history. It dates back to George Washington, who saw the Potomac as a path to the nation’s interior, and envisioned a series of bypass canals to detour around the waterfalls andContinue reading “C&O no-go”

Washington DC to Glen Echo, Maryland Saturday October 30, 2021 Been away for 40 years, but DC is still my hometown. Today was short on milage, but chock full of visiting friends, family, and old haunts. From that first Mr. Smith Goes to Washington view of the Capitol as I left Union Station last night,Continue reading “Stomping grounds”

Train to Washington DC Friday, October 29, 2021 I thought I was done. Maybe I am done. But I’ve decided to give it another go. It was good to be back. Despite all my trepidations, it was clearly the right thing to do. Thanks to all of you for the supportive comments, calls, and letters.Continue reading “Back from the dead”

Denver, Colorado Friday, August 20, 2021 This will come as a shock to many of you. I’ve decided to stop. Please don’t worry. I’m fine. There was no catastrophe, no trauma, no single thing that brought on this decision. It was just a lot of little things. I just spent four days of unmitigated blissContinue reading “Death by a thousand cuts”

Greeley to Denver, Colorado Sunday, August 15, 2021 I could barely sleep, I was so excited. Today I would see a city I love, Denver, see dear friends, and soon rendezvous with my wife. A long day, 80 miles, but 50 of these were on bike paths, following the South Platte River, Cherry Creek, andContinue reading “The mile-high biker’s paradise”

Cheyenne, Wyoming to Greeley, Colorado Saturday, August 14, 2021 Before we get started, I have to lay down some snark on my quirky hotel. It was cute, trendy, and innovative, but it appeared that at bottom, it was about cutting costs. Hilton figured out that almost nobody uses the dressers in hotel rooms anymore, whichContinue reading “The Centennial State”

Pine Bluffs to Cheyenne, Wyoming Friday, August 13, 2021 There’s no getting around it, Wyoming is a weird state. The only state ending in “ing”, which makes it a gerund, I guess, sounds like a verb; the ending is unusual for place names in general (although Lansing, Flushing, Reading, and Corning come to mind). OneContinue reading “Reflections on a gerund state”

Kimball, Nebraska to Pine Bluffs, Wyoming Thursday, August 12, 2021. I ended my last post with a Homer Simpsonesque “D’oh!” Here I had just talked myself into resignation, skipping the Nebraska highpoint because I couldn’t get an escort through the buffalo range. I spun it as a life growth event, learning to gracefully accept realityContinue reading “I just couldn’t not do it”

Scottsbluff to Kimball, Nebraska Wednesday, August 11, 2021 Today was a day of compromises and missed opportunities. For quite a while now, I have been uncertain of being able to visit the Nebraska highpoint. I’ve already been there by car, with Brian and Eric in 2004, but I hoped to get there under my ownContinue reading “Reality 101”

Alliance to Scottsbluff, Nebraska Tuesday, August 10, 2021 Another fairly featureless day, but at least this one had an intriguing destination. Scotts Bluff, a butte which rises dramatically 800 feet above the prairie, was a landmark for earlier travelers on the Oregon Trail. It also rises above the eponymous town, which pushes the two wordsContinue reading “Calling my Bluff”