Wounded Weekend Warrior

Sunday, April 13, was a beautiful day here in the northern Piedmont - sunny, a nice breeze, and temperatures in the upper 70s - too nice to stay inside.  So Kali and decided to take our first bike ride of the year on the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park towpath trail that parallels the Delaware Rive in New Jersey north of Trenton.

The day was perfect and the ride was great until just before the end.  This winter's ice storms had brought down a lot of woody debris alongside the path that the state park folks had not yet had a chance to clear.

Because the day was so nice, there were a lot of riders.  I was following closely behind Kali, who moved toward the verge of the path to give oncoming riders room to pass.  Kali's bike caught the end of a branch alongside the trail, but didn't interfere with her ride.  However, the branch snapped back and became entangled in my front wheel's spokes.

The bike (and I) went down unceremoniously and I slid, mostly face-first, toward the Delaware River over a steep embankment with a thick growth of multiflora roses.  Fortunately, I was wearing my helmet (as I always do) and only got scratches and scrapes.  Oh, and I jarred my neck a bit, too, which is still stiff today.  But, all in all, it could have been worse.

Ouch!

Kali took these pictures after we got back home.  I look more and more like my father (now deceased) every day.

Looks worse than it is

A Good Excuse for a Walk

Center Bridge over the Delaware River (New Jersey on left)

Normally, this time of year, Kali and I would use the very short window of opportunity to buy ripe, freshly picked peaches as an excuse to make a 25-mile trip to an orchard in Bucks County, and to ride our bikes along the Delaware River.  But, with Kali's July injury in Fort Collins, Colorado, healing only very gradually, we still can't get on our bikes. 

Instead, on Saturday afternoon we decided to make the trek to the orchard, and to walk (not ride) along the Delaware Canal towpath that parallels the Delaware River on the Pennsylvania side of the river.  (A similar towpath follows the Delaware and Raritan Canal on the New Jersey side of the river, and it's in much better condition than the flood-ravaged path on the Pennsylvania side, but it's also much more heavily used and less enjoyable for walking - though much preferable for biking.)

We walked about three miles (1.5 miles out and back) and stopped for an (unsatisfying) soft serve ice cream cone at a locally popular drive-in at the turnaround point.  The conditions were great for a nice walk: relatively low humidity, partly cloudy skies to keep the temperature reasonable, lots of shade along the path, and nice scenery with the river on one side and the canal lined with elegant properties on the other.

Delaware Canal towpath trail

A restored lock along the Delaware Canal

Canal towpath, Delaware River, and bridge to New Jersey

Riding inner tubes on the relatively gentle current is a summertime tradition along this stretch of the Delaware River, but a tuber from Washington DC drowned last week about six miles north of this bridge when he and his friends went tubing when the river was high from rain in its headwaters.  Normally, the wide river is nearly shallow enough to wade.

Elegant (and pricey) digs along the Delaware Canal

Many people have built (or renovated existing historical) houses along the canal and, in places where it's wide enough, even on the strip of land between the river and the canal.  I can certainly appreciate the appeal of the location, but given the river's propensity to flood, I doubt that I'd locate here even if I could afford it (which I can't).

Purple loosestrife on the canal bank

Attractive purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), an invasive plant, grows abundantly along the canal's banks.  While it may be alien, it certainly provides pollen and nectar for countless native insects - probably one of the reasons why it's so successful. 

Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa) and duckweed (Lemna spp.)

After we returned to the car, we drove a few miles uphill out of the valley to the peach orchard where we bought a half-peck of yellow peaches, some crispy early-season Stanza apples, and a jar of home-made peach-raspberry jam. 

Kali approaching Manoff Market Gardens' peach shed

Decisions, decisions...

Kali selecting some Stanza apples

Delaware Canal Towpath Bicycling

Though I love to ride my bicycle, many things conspired this summer to limit my rides--especially the relentless string of humid, 90+ days. My wife had to work all day last Saturday (August 21), so she suggested that I go for a long ride that day. Just recently, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources announced that it had repaired and reopened the towpath paralleling the Delaware Canal following devastating flooding in 2006. The ride along the towpath had been among our favorite rides before the flooding destroyed the trail, so I took advantage of the fact that the towpath had just reopened to take a 36-mile ride on Saturday morning (18 miles out and back). The entire trail runs from Bristol, Pennsylvania on the south to Easton, Pennsylvania on the north, a distance of 59 miles. For most of its route, the Delaware Canal closely parallels the Delaware River.

A view across the Delaware River to a knob on the New Jersey side.

The canal was severely damaged by flooding in June 2006. The Delaware River rose up out of its banks, inundated the canal, and scoured away the towpath in many places. The state vowed to repair the trail, and they finally came through after four years. How long will it last, though? There are "high water marks" on buildings, rocks, and bridge abutments all along the towpath, and all of the marks are above the level of the canal.

The canal and towpath traverse some pretty scenic landscapes. Nowadays, of course, the properties are among the most expensive in Pennsylvania because of the corridor's rural character, its proximity to New York City and Philadelphia, and the spectacular views across the canal and the river.

A private residence abutting a reach of the (temporarily dewatered) canal

There are quite a few historic structures still extant, dating from the canal's heyday (1832-1931). The following are views of the Uhlerstown Covered Bridge spanning the canal.

A rebuilt wooden lock gate

A red-girt bridge spanning the canal; there are literally hundreds of of these ubiquitous bridges along the towpath

The canal also supported plenty of inns along its route; many are still bed-and-breakfasts and restaurants.

Indian Rock InnLumberville Inn

The canal was largely built on the floodplain of the Delaware River, so it intersected with many riparian features. Much of the canal corridor is wooded and semi-natural, making for a very pleasant bike ride. Of course, with the area so frequently disturbed, invasives are a big problem.

Cabbage Whites (Artogeia rapae)enjoying purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) flowers

Purple loosestrife and Japanese hops (Humulus japonicus) along the bank of the canal

But many areas are more natural, especially where the canal cuts through backwater swamps.

Duck-potato or wapato (Sagittaria latifolia) growing alongside the canal

While the canal was dewatered for four years for repairs, sycamore seedlings established themselves. Now that the canal has been reflooded, I wonder if these trees will be able to persist, even though they can tolerate some wet feet.


At Mile 46 (north of the southern terminus), sheer 300-foot cliffs rise up above the south side of the canal and the Delaware River. These are the Nockamixon Cliffs (also sometimes called the Delaware River Palisades). The red shales and sandstones that were originally deposited here were cooked into hard metamorphic hornfels by a nearby magmatic intrusion, making the rock extremely resistant to erosion.

Fifteen thousand years ago, when glacial ice dominated the landscape just a few miles north, arctic conditions prevailed on the cliffs. Today, a remnant of those times persists on these north-facing, cooler, and moister rock walls. Roseroot sedum (Sedum rosea), a plant usually found in arctic or high mountain areas, is an endangered species in Pennsylvania known only from two sites along the Delaware River. it was discovered growing on the Nockamixon Cliffs in 1867. Since then, the cliffs have been regarded as one of the most important botanical areas in southeastern Pennsylvania. The cliffs are off-limits to the public, and are virtually inaccessible without technical climbing gear.

Nockamixon Cliffs (a.k.a Delaware River Palisades)

Delaware River opposite the Nockamixon Cliffs