New Jersey to Maryland: Week 4, River Relay

img 2988
Niles fixes a flat tire along the D&R Canal trail in New Jersey.

Day 22

Sept. 14: Niles rode from New Brunswick to Trenton, N.J., much of it along the scenic D&R Canal State Park Trail. So, if you're going to get a flat, might as well get it in a scenic spot, right? Tomorrow: Philadelphia!

water sharing1
Pouring water from the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers into our River Relay collection during the reception in Philadelphia with (from left) Linda Mead, president and CEO of D&R Greenway Land Trust; Dennis Markatos-Soriano, executive director of East Coast Greenway Alliance; and Shawn McCasey, executive director of William Penn Foundation.

Day 23

Sept. 15: Silvia Ascarelli (Advisory Board member) and her husband, Clive, joined Niles for the bike ride from Trenton, N.J. to Philadelphia. We gathered in the early evening at the stunning Fairmount Water Works pavilion, on the Greenway and on the banks of the Schuylkill, for a joint reception with Alliance for Watershed Education of the Delaware River, which was launching its six-week River Days celebration, and William Penn Foundation, a partner of both organizations.

digging
Several FreeWalkers help plant young Franklinia trees at Bartram's Garden in Philadelphia — after walking from downtown and before hitting the Greenway for more miles.

Day 24:

A hot, fun day at Bartram's Garden in Philadelphia. A dozen or so cyclists and a dozen or so walkers made their way from downtown Philadelphia and over the Schuylkill, on the Greenway, to end up at the boat launch at Bartram's. After going for a paddle, they headed up to the gardens to plant 25 young Franklinia trees. Discovered by John and William Bartram in 1765 along the Altamaha River in southern Georgia, the tree was brought to Philadelphia in 1777, named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, and saved from extinction thanks to its cultivation by the Bartrams.

ab013ce4

Day 25:

We enjoyed another day in Philadelphia and talked with visitors at Spruce Street Harbor Park's Fall Festival along the Delaware River. Tomorrow we hit the road again for our next state: Delaware.

92adfadb 3791 4835 af71 5ee14893892d
Mid-Atlantic Coordinator Daniel Paschall, left, greets Wayne Clark, center, and Eric Brenner in the Philadelphia train station after their train ride from Washington D.C.

Day 26

Two new cyclists joined the Relay: Eric Brenner, chair of our Washington D.C. committee, and Wayne Clark, Advisory Board member. For a fully multi-modal day, they rode the subway to an Amtrak train from Washington D.C.'s Union Station to Philadelphia, where they met up with Daniel Paschall, our mid-Atlantic coordinator. The three enjoyed their ride to Wilmington, DE, including this beautiful stretch of the Northern Delaware Greenway.

daniel and mayor
Mid-Atlantic Coordinator Daniel Paschall talks with Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki at the DuPont Enviromental Education Center.

Day 27

We started the day at Wilmington, Delaware's DuPont Environmental Education Center on the Riverfront. County Executive Matt Meyer and Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki welcomed members of the East Coast Greenway Alliance and Delaware Greenways to talk about the new portion of the Greenway under construction. The state aims to be the first to complete its Greenway route border to border. From Wilmington, the cyclists rode on to Havre de Grace, Maryland.

in baltimore
Partnering at Baltimore's Druid Hill Farmers Market with our friends from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy.

Day 28

A beautiful day of riding, ending in Baltimore. We set up a table at the Druid Hill Farmers Market by the Baltimore Conservatory with our partners, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, to talk with visitors. A short group bike ride along the Jones Falls Trail segment of the East Coast Greenway took us about 1.5 miles to Round Falls, a scenic lookout along Jones Falls stream, and back to the Farmers Market.

Read more River Relay trip updates

Together, let's grow the Greenway

Recent record-setting funding for design and construction goes directly to building the East Coast Greenway - as it should. The East Coast Greenway Alliance needs your support to continue our advocacy work that is fueling completion of the Greenway. The Alliance has a sustained track record of turning every dollar donated to our nonprofit into $100 in public infrastructure investment. Invest today and support the growth of the East Coast Greenway from Maine to Florida.

Donate Today