Mind the GAP: Art You May Have Missed, Along the Great Allegheny Passage

There is a tremendous collection of man-made art along the GAP trail, along with all the wonders of the natural world. Some of the creations are proudly and widely advertised, serving as an attraction that brings travelers (and their consumer dollars) to the area. Some are hidden away, just out of sight from the trail, where you’d likely need to trespass a bit to discover them.

Select towns have built walkways up steep hills. They are luring adventure seekers, who are exploring the area by bike or on foot, off the trail to the town square, onto Main Street, and into their local businesses, art galleries, and restaurants. The trek is made less strenuous with the help of switchbacks littered with oversized works of art that delight visitors!

I’m not being sarcastic or misleading – stopping at every spot that catches your eye with the gleam of sunlight against mosaic glass, or the splash of color on a community mural, or the bizarre carving of a tree branch into a “Yough Ness Monster” (named for the nearby river) can make for slow progress along the trail. Plan extra time into your day, to explore and take it all in. Realize that you might ride 15 – 20 miles without a stop. . . then you’ll find yourself pulling off the crushed limestone every 2 miles because you don’t want to miss a thing and you have numerous artists in your group.

Graffiti Adorns Abandoned Concrete Structure: Blink and You’ll Miss It

A twinkle of sunlight dancing across a deer mosaic caught our eye from the trail. We thought we had arrived at The Ruins Project (more about that in a bit). We were mistaken, but glad that the mosaic had grabbed our attention. Our stop resulted in the exploration of room after room (after room) of graffiti art. The paintings, originating from innumerable cans of spray paint, were on the walls, the collapsing ceilings that opened to the bright blue skies, and the rubble that was scattered throughout this abandoned structure.

There were no signs or plaques telling us what activity might have occurred here, so many years ago, but I realized at once that this was no stagnant space. Spent cans of spray paint littered the exterior of the space. Caution tape had long ago fallen to the ground, where it was trampled by more recent visitors. Graffiti is the art of defiance, of political statement, of marking territory, and of a certain degree of angst, or dissatisfaction, or uninhibited creative exploration.

There was a lot to see; I’ve captured only a sliver of the art here. Enjoy speculating about the stories behind the art and the artists — then we’ll move down the trail a bit to discover what’s next.

Some of the art used the environment as inspiration – consider the fisherman below, casting his hook into the murky waters that have collected inside this structure. I wonder what the ‘catch of the day’ will be, but I don’t stick around long enough to find out.

I suspect that my fellow travelers had enjoyed the stop yet were ready to move along. I capture a few more images, of the paintings that interest me the most, then head back to my bike. The creative integration with the structure, as if the characters had been around for some time, intrigues me and raises more questions than it answers!

This is art. The vividness of the colors astounds me.

This is art. The larger-than-life, surreal nature of the characters puzzles me, with their alien-like features and loud personalities.

This is art and I’m curious about the headless figures.

This is also graffiti, and I can’t make sense of much of the writing on the walls. At times I can’t make out the letters or the message is lost on me, devoid of any context. I’d visit again, just to see what’s new.

I’d love to meet the artists. I suspect many of them work under the cover of darkness.

What a treat it would be to come back when they are actively engaged in creating their art! Their skill, the creativity, their daring approach to personal expression, and their disregard for authority and social norms makes the art that much more intriguing.

Mind the gap – proceed with caution!

Allegany County: The Mountain Side of Maryland

There are, of course, more visible, sanctioned, official displays of creativity along the GAP. These are worth stopping for too, as carefully orchestrated and curated as they may be. With awareness of how often the trail is used by cyclists, hikers, e-bikers, runners, and dog walkers, Frostburg has given a nod to them all, on the archway that welcomes you to the “Mountain Side of Maryland!”

The oversized sculptures “Climb” and “Glide,” by Scott Cawood, are part of “Art For The People: A Public Art Tour.” While some of us climbed to see the works up-close, others hung back and chatted with local evangelists who were positioned next to their display of brochures, ready to engage in talk of religion and salvation. . . but only if the subject was broached by visitors. Otherwise, they were content to shoot the breeze on topics such as how dusty the trail is, always, or how vibrant my red hair is, always.

“Completed in 2011 and 2014, two sculptures attempt to capture the consciousness of bicyclists along the Great Allegheny Passage. Made from recycled bike parts, including a wheel that spins in the wind, these sculptures along with others can be viewed when trekking the switchback trail off the Frostburg Trailhead on the Great Allegheny Passage Trail. Completed in 2019, the Frostburg Arch by Scott Cawood was installed to complement “Climb” and “Glide” and features a metal archway reflecting the active pursuits of western Maryland that marks the entrance to the sculpture garden and switchback.” (GAP website)

A quick stop in Connellsville, PA and Santa gets a Banana Split

We knew we’d grab some lunch in Connellsville, PA. We were surprised to be greeted by a summertime version of Santa, who gave directions to a family-owned diner and ice cream stop. “Tell them to send me a banana split; tell them I’ve sent 12 cyclists their way today!” he shouted to us, as we headed into town. We ran into those other cyclists. They finished their meal just ahead of us, so they were the ones to order, pay for, and deliver the sweet summer treat. Those few scoops of ice creat earned the whole group a spot on Santa’s ‘Nice’ list for the 2023 holiday season.

If we hadn’t stopped for lunch — if we had continued cruising along the path — I might have glanced quickly at the murals painted on cement pillars, but I would not have stopped to enjoy them. Because of our otherwise entertaining lunch stop I’d had the luxury of checking out several community murals, while the others in my group pressed Santa for directions.

I was treated to a parade of musical Kokopelli — if you don’t know the story of this fertility deity, check out the link below! The trickster god, who represents the spirit of music, dances and sings, playing musical instruments in silhouette. It looks like a party, a celebration, and also a journey, with the viewer unaware of the final destination. The Kokopelli don’t seem bothered by that fact — they just keep playing and dancing!

An underwater world provides the playground for the accompanying mural. Fish, frogs, snails, and turtles show their personalities and their teeth, where applicable. Scroll through the slideshow below, to see a sampling of the art. A sign warns: “Do Not Touch — Public Art in Progress.” A rocky sandbar gives the mural three dimensions. Cars pass overhead, unaware of what they are driving over, unless they are park-goers, cyclists passing through, or locals using the boat launch to kick off summer on Memorial Day.

Mosaic Tile and The Ruins Project

If nothing else, the art is eclectic along the trail. We did eventually make it to the area where The Ruins Project is underway, awash in mosaic pieces being assembled by various artists.

“The Ruins Project is a long-term collaborative mosaic art installation amidst the ruins of a former coal mine in Fayette County, Pennsylvania. Located on the Great Allegheny Passage, this outdoor mosaic museum attracts artists, students, and travelers from all over the world. The walls and rooms of The Ruins represent the rebirth of abandoned American coal country into a spiritual and artistic pilgrimage and destination for adventure seekers and lovers of art and history.” (The Ruins Project website)

View a short video introduction of The Ruins Project. “A few steps away from the Great Allegheny Passage in Whitsett is the Ruins Project. Created in an abandoned coal mine, the art installation features mosaics assembled from local rocks. The mosaics tell the story of the time when the coal industry thrived in the area. For more visit https://www.wqed.org/ride“

We’ll need to plan a return trip one day, to experience the massive artistic display first-hand; it was closed when we were there. We did get to explore the workspace of Rachel Sager, the mosaic artist who launched the project. We met a sweet, old shop dog, sat for a spell, and marveled at the beautiful art that can be made from local materials – rocks and bits of abandoned glass. It’s like any other mode of artistic expression, full of bold color and big ideas, but with a few sharper edges.

I find it a special delight to see an artist’s work space — it’s so much more revealing of their artistic vision and process than the finished piece of art.

The most inviting part of stopping to see the art along the GAP is how welcoming the artists and shop owners to cyclists. If you look closely at the sign below you’ll see that they have even made Ice Cream Sandwiches available here! What more could a weary cyclist ask for, especially when there is also a puppy to pet and some amazing art to take in?