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Sunday, November 04, 2001

By Larry Walsh

The grassy field in front of the dam in Confluence has been a popular camping site for visitors, especially those participating in That Dam Ride.

	Mike Bilcsik, on the trail with his wife, Karen, left, is the organizer of That Dam Ride, an annual two-day, 136-mile round trip on the Great Allegheny Passage from McKeesport to Confluence. Because of new security concerns, Bilcsik will have to find a new place to house the hundreds of riders next year because of campsite's proximity to the dam. (Gabor Degre, Post-Gazette)

But, because of its proximity to the base of the dam, the Army Corps of Engineers has closed it for security reasons.

That prompted Mike Bilcsik, the organizer of That Dam Ride, to look for alternate overnight sites with showers for next year's event. The aptly named annual ride in early September is a two-day, 136-mile round trip on the Great Allegheny Passage from McKeesport to Meyersdale.

The ride is organized by the Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area, a Homestead-based group that Bilcsik works for as a community organizer, and the Confluence Tourism Association. Participants this year came from seven states -- and one from Germany.

Prior planning prevents poor performance is more than an alliterative slogan to Bilcsik. So it was no surprise to find him and his wife, Karen, in attendance at the tourism association's monthly meeting Oct. 17 in the Confluence Community Center.

Bilcsik thanked the association for its help with this year's ride and asked for its assistance in finding overnight accommodations for next year's event. "I'd really like to find places that have showers," he said.

Ray Silbaugh, the president of the tourism group and co-owner of Confluence Hardware, said the association would check with local churches, the fire hall, the school district and anyone else who might be willing to help out.

Bilcsik was encouraged to ask Confluence residents if they would be willing to let riders stay in their home or camp in their back yard and use the shower for the one night they are in town. That kind of hospitality is offered annually to riders who take part in weeklong rides across Iowa, Ohio and other states.

Some of this year's dam ride participants stayed in private homes and paid $15 per person or $25 per couple. A few stayed for free.

Clyde A. Braun Jr., the resource manager for the dam, said there are two sites in the Outflow Campground that riders could use next September.

He said one camp site that can accommodate 40 persons has several picnic tables, electric and water hookups, a fire ring and easy access to showers and can be reserved. The other camp site, available on a first-come, first-served basis, can handle about 30 persons. It also has access to showers. The costs for both sites are minimal.

"We'll do what we can to help them," Braun said.

Bilcsik said he'd like to increase the number of riders for next year's event. If you have any suggestions for helping him find overnight accommodations for the group, call him at 412-462-5328. The ride's Web site is http://www.thatdamride.org/.

Tunnel vision

One look at the 3,300-foot-long Big Savage Tunnel in southern Somerset County and you know a lot of work needs to be done to make it passable for users of the Great Allegheny Passage. And that work will start soon.

"We should be in there by mid-December," said Jim Eppley, chief of the design division of the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. "This has been a long time coming. We are very excited about it."

There's a lot of work to do in the tunnel, the northern portal of which is about 8 miles south of Meyersdale.

Part of the roof collapsed just inside the north portal. The entrance is blocked by two pieces of old turnpike guard rail about three feet high. The roof fall debris, ankle deep -- and sometimes knee-deep -- water inside the tunnel, the lack of light and fear of unsociable wildlife have kept most trespassers away.

Copperhead snakes slither on the Meyersdale side of the tunnel. Rattlesnakes like to sun themselves on limestone boulders the size of pickup trucks on the Frostburg side of the tunnel.

Water has been a problem in the tunnel since the Western Maryland Railway built it in 1911. Even in dry weather, water drips from the ceiling and trickles down the walls. It seems to pour from everywhere after a heavy rain. In the winter, icicles up to 4 feet in diameter hang from the ceiling and cling to the walls.

And itis windy. The topography on the southern side of the mountain funnels the wind directly into the tunnel. In the winter, it is cold, very cold. Even the recesses where railroad workers used to get out of the way of oncoming trains offer little respite from the wind.

But the workers from Advanced Construction Techniques of Maple, Ontario, the company that was just awarded the $7 million bid to tame the Big Savage, are used to cold weather. They will close both portals, install construction heaters and a temporary electrical and lighting system to do their work.

Before closing the north portal, however, the contractor will remove all the earth and rock above it -- back about 40 feet -- and completely rebuild the portal with reinforced concrete. It also will put new decks and guide rails on two small bridges near the north portal.

Two of the most challenging tasks inside the tunnel will be using rock bolts to secure the walls and ceilings and attach an 8-inch-thick liner to them, and then installing a state-of-the-art drainage system so water can be piped out along each wall.

Schultheis Electric of Latrobe was awarded the $230,000 contract to install a vandal-proof lighting system and do other electrical work.

The entire project is expected to take a year to complete, but this winter's early start might enable the contractors to finish sooner.

Eppley said the tunnel renovation project wouldn't have become a reality without the "untiring efforts" of former Gov. Tom Ridge, DCNR Secretary John Oliver and Linda McKenna Boxx, president of the Allegheny Trail Alliance.

Riding the turnpike

In 1968, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission opened a new stretch of the turnpike between Breezewood and Fort Littleton in Fulton County and abandoned an 11-mile stretch that included two tunnels -- Ray's Hill and Sidling Hill.

Although the state has used the vacant highway property for a variety of things in the past 33 years, including a firing range for the state police, bicycle enthusiasts thought it would make a unique four-lane bike trail.

And it's going to happen.

Two years of negotiations will be completed at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 15 at the east portal of Ray's Hill Tunnel when the Southern Alleghenies Conservancy, a Bedford-based nonprofit organization, pays $1 for 8.5 miles of the abandoned highway.

Len Lichvar, executive director of the conservancy, said the purchase includes both tunnels -- the 0.7 mile-long Ray's Hill and the 1.3 mile-long Sidling Hill, which has a slight curve in it.

"The old turnpike and the lengthy tunnels will offer a totally different biking and hiking experience," Lichvar said. "This is going to provide a great opportunity for the region," he said, referring to Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Fulton, Huntingdon and Somerset counties. The trail will be managed by a yet-to-be-formed organization.

Lichvar said the trail will be accessible from the Breezewood area and from Wells Township in Fulton County. "We're looking at access routes now," he said.

The trail will open late next year or in the spring of 2003.

Trips for kids

The Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area is looking for corporate sponsors and donors to help it launch the Southwestern Pennsylvania Trips for Kids program for children from low-income families. The organization needs help to buy 15 mountain bikes and a used cargo van to haul them in.

"I had been looking for something that would add diversity to the Rivers of Steel trail program," said Mike Bilcsik, a community organizer for the heritage group. "What better way of doing that than with low-income children who might not otherwise get the opportunity to ride our trails."

Bilcsik said the organization will work with social service agencies, police departments, shelters, local communities and trail groups to "reach out to children who probably have never owned a bike or never had someone take them out for an afternoon's ride."

August Carlino, president and chief executive officer of the heritage group, said each ride will stress personal responsibility and historical and environmental awareness. Adult volunteers will be on hand to act as mentors, "buddies" and ride leaders.

Carlino said bike trails such as the Steel Valley Trail that winds along the Monongahela River and passes by former mill sites and the Carrie Furnaces will give the children "a sense of history and pride for their hometowns . [They will] begin to understand that this area's historic and natural resources are world-class and part of this area's future growth."

For more information, call 412-462-5328.

Larry Walsh can be reached at 412-263-1488. His e-mail address is lwalsh@post-gazette.com.