SHADOW RIDERS: World Famous Horseshoe Curve

Sunday, June 17th, we rode out to the Horseshoe Curve in Altoona, Pennsylania. Big Meanie and me, Hammer and Bones, Tiny and Goldilocks, and that crazy bastard Tater Chip. What and where, you say? Well, we heard about it from Barry, a member of the V-Twin Cruisers; he was adamant that we had to check it out sometime.

The Horseshoe Curve was opened to east-west railroad traffic in 1854, so why hadn't we heard of it? Because it doesn't obviously impact our lives today like it did when it transported people as well as coal and goods. But there it still stands, a feat of human engineering, wrapping itself around a reservoir because it was not allowed to be constructed over the water which was the main source of drinking water for the local population.

Getting there is not too bad. From the west, we took Rt. 422 east until it hit Rt. 22, and then we were supposed to turn left onto Tunnel Hill Street. Yeah, right. There was no signage, so we missed it, and as the directional signs for Altoona faded, we found ourselves 19 miles too far east and had to turn around at a country crossroads. Having to stop twice or so to figure directions can feel like ten times. Taking Frankstown Road closer to Altoona, we stopped, regrouped, and gave directions to Goldilocks so that Tiny could lead us (Goldilocks was the only passenger, and much thanks to them for being able to read the road turns and get us there).

The Curve has two tracks so that trains can go in opposing directions (one is uphill, the other then downhill, with the downhill heading east because it had always been the direction from which coal from the west was delivered to the east). Upon arrival, there were indeed two trains running in each direction! And the visitor center sits in the pretty little valley amidst the curve of the tracks at the head of the reservoir.

We took a breather, then entered the shop and museum. It's $8 to get in, which includes the visit inside the museum and a ride on the small incline up the hill where visitors can sit track-side and wave at the train engineers and watch the cars go by. The engineers always blow the horns and wave; it reminds me of when my mom, dad, and I lived in Youngstown on Logan Way, and we would cross the tracks located between Logan and Albert Street - back then in the early 1970s, there were men who worked in the shacks up high by the railroad crossings. I was just two or three then and my dad would slow down so I could wave at the man who was working, and he'd always wave back smiling.

Inside the museum is a relief map of the area and historical information not only on the Horseshoe Curve tracks, but the significance they played in 1800s commerce in the United States, the competition for moving goods, and the hell that played out for the commercial businesses who had grown other transport businesses on the rivers and canals. There were rich men who built the tracks and related industries, and there were poor workers who did the dirty work. The end result was winners and losers among the task of moving the stuff of production.

You can walk up the hill too, and down. I chose to walk both ways, and if you do, there are souvenir pins in the shop to show you did it! Oh, and they also have other pins and you guessed it - PATCHES! It's a really nice site, and worth supporting. If you get there early, you can purchase admission to both the Curve and the train museum located in Altoona, but it's a same day deal (I think).

I haven't talked about food yet, so what kind of biker would I be if I didn't? We started off at Starbucks in Hermitage for a quick breakfast, then all along the way we snacked at every gas stop - Jimmy Stix, peanut butter whoopie pies, coconut whoopie pies, Mt. Dew, Mexican Mocha coffee, water, lemon pie, and who knows what else! But our main dinner objective was Smokin' Toads BBQ in Sarver, PA.

We had to get to Rt. 356 west. I had it all planned out, 22 back to 422, and south on Rt. 159 through Yellow Creek State Park. This went well. Then it was all out adventure from there! Part way into the park, there was an ambulance down by the water with the police - someone was hurt, and as we rounded the next bend, a fire truck blocked the road sideways. As we stopped, a life flight helicopter was coming in and landed to the left by the red truck pictured. After a few minutes, we were allowed to pass through.

To get to 356, we had to take Rt. 56 to Apollo, PA, but I wanted to take OLD Route 56. I saw one sign when we got to Homer City and was totally lost from there. I was leading on this return trip, so had to keep pulling the group over or into parking lots to look at the Google map. Ugh. But like Bones says, it's fun to get lost and good bonding time. After realizing that Old 56 was a no go, we went back north to 422 and found new 56, and that was a nice ride into Apollo. Then confusion again. We crossed the bridge that goes to the tracks that run in front of the old creepy hotel in the hillside. I new we were supposed to turn immediately after the tracks, but, well, that finally happened. That's a sharp right that immediate goes uphill, Orr Avenue. In a few minutes we were at 356 and headed north-isa.

Stopping for gas in Sarver, we were 2.4 miles from the BBQ joint, and made it there at 8pm (they closed at 9). I had called from the Curve to make sure they were open, and when we did get there late, they had a table all reserved for us and set for dinner!!! How about that? So we sat down, ordered, and boy, the coffee was a life saver for me and Hammer. I had the pulled pork mac-n-cheese bowl - delicious! Everyone else had some sort of meat from burgers to ribs to sausage. It was worth the time getting there and such a nice place with a very welcoming greeting from the owner and waitresses.

Well, go on out there sometime. Go anywhere! But check out these places when you can, and have fun. Here are a few more pics from the trip.

~ Holly, a.k.a. Switchblade