The road out of Mount Holly Springs runs through open farmland. The route zigs and zags as it climbs over the ridges, gradually carrying me NE towards New York. One crosses Blue Mountain ridge, then Tuscarora Ridge, before descending into a valley from another era. The Amish and Mennonite farms provide an island of order, peace and old world tranquility. Horse drawn carts and farm implements are used as naturally as if we were still living in 1850. Farmers and their families dressed in nineteenth century garb wave as one drives by. Flowers line the roads and fields. There is so much pride in the land and what it produces, it fills one with hope.
State forests cover the ridges. The Amish country lead up to Tuscarora State Forest. Rothrock was next, named after the Father of Forestry in Pennsylvania, born in McVeytown. Up on the hills I crossed a posse of riders doing the MABDR in the opposite direction. Fun to watch. They were in a hurry - no time for scenery and details. Bald Eagle State Forest has a lake and campsites and was full of tourists enjoying the holiday weekend. This forest is also the location of
the most challenging piece of road on the BDR - a 2 mile downhill track of rock and stones called Poe Daddy drive. Done it twice now without mishap -- even passed a Ford F150 trying to negotiate the bumps.
In this section I crossed another lone BDR rider. He was on a KLR that was new to him. Fun to stop and gossip for a while. I went on to get lost in Weikert Road, riding West into the forest when it should have been East. Thanks to the GPS I realized soon enough, and made it out without mishap. Spent the night in downtown Carlisle, with dinner out of doors on the main drag -- a loud contrast to my lonely wanderings in the forest all day.
