The clouds mute the heat and humidity as Ted and I hop on our bicycles. Starting a new trip is always filled with anticipation as we have no pre-conceptions as to how and where the day will take us as we peddle the D&L Trail.
Entering the stone dust path next to the Delaware canal, Grundy Commons with its 186-foot high clock tower looms over us. It is a counterpoint to the trail, laden with goose droppings, that follows Bristol lagoon, an algae-filled space where turtles bathe in the flickering sun and muskrats scurry about its borders.
A few boys are having no luck fishing for bass at Lock No. 4, the first somewhat intact lock that is adjacent to a space where at least half a dozen homemade shelters of green and blue tarps sit in the woods. This initial foray of our ride disappoints as it is filled with debris and countless abandoned shopping cards upended and coated with mud in the canal. Yet for all this human-deposited detritus, a lone great-blue heron stands stoically waiting for a meal.
But a few miles in, the trash begins to dissipate and a more natural and pleasing trail emerges. The water is deeper and the canal is wider, accommodating a variety of boats resting on the opposite shore. The vegetation is lush though foreign invasive plants such as mugwort, Japanese knotweed and bittersweet, tree of heaven, bindweed and others make it difficult to fully appreciate the native trees, shrubs and wildflowers that are attempting to make a show.
Getting further away from our more industrial starting point, many different animals emerge including deer, fox, rabbits, geese, more great-blue herons and wood ducks. Their appearance and the apparent health of the surrounding canal gives me hope. “I caught three today,” said one boy with an expert cast. I was not sure if he was referring to trout or bass but he and many others are out with their rods looking for luck and fish.
As lush as the canal was with life and water, the next section is devoid of both. This continues for many miles, perhaps because a bridge is being repaired resting on concrete blocks in the canal bed. Only when water is restored later on, is the canal reborn.
Daydreaming is not a good idea as newly placed gravel is unstable to ride on and the frequent appearance of low bridges makes it a good idea to dismount your bike so you don’t lose your head or helmet. We pop in and out of forests, farms and back yards, some of which sidle up to the tow path with comfortable chairs and decorative shrubs.
Approaching New Hope, the canal is now adjacent to and above the Delaware River, whose steep sides are filled with native maple, oak, hickory, locust, black cherry, beech, and sycamore trees. A lone heron flies below us, leading us to our first stop.
