Heading towards the Paw Paw Tunnel.

The amount of rail infrastructure remaining around Cumberland and this part of the Alleghenies is impressive, but then again, coal made a lot of it possible.

I was surprised to read that some of the lock houses along the canal still had people living in them into the 1960s before it became a National Park.

Better color this year riding along the rail trail in late October then November 2 years ago. I find the notch in the distance to be such an interesting back drop.

Once you get beyond the Paw Paw Tunnel, the builders of the canal cut through nearly a 1/4 mile of mountain before reaching a natural valley between the hills which the C&O Canal follows until reaching the edge of the Potomac River nearly a mile further down. By tunneling through the mountain, it cuts off nearly a 6 mile bend in the Potomac.

If you look carefully, you can see kayakers paddling in nearly complete darkness in the Paw Paw Tunnel. I had my bike light on and used the flash but I could barely make them out in the darkness of the tunnel.