[David sent a lot of days to us at once so we are going to split the update into two sections - one today and one tomorrow.]
Monday, June 30
The Canal House is closed on Monday so I guess I might as well hike. I went slow as there were lots of historical markers to read. The trail follows the old C&O Canal for a few miles. It was much smaller than I thought. Stonewall Jackson fought here, as did units of Lee’s army in the run up to Antietam.
Confluence of Potomac and Shenandoah
The Old C&O Canal. Very small.
A former Civil War correspondent built the country’s only War Correspondent Memorial. Very large. I crossed into Maryland today and Maryland trails are really crowded. I passed Boy Scouts and church groups. I’m camped with 10 thru-hikers, a few section hikers and some high schoolers out of school.
War Corespondent's Memorial
Equipment-wise, my new jacket kept me dry through an unusually heavy afternoon storm. No ticks today either, but that might have more to do with the rain than anything else. They don’t seem to be active on wet days.
I saw in the comments section that someone who is contemplating their own thru-hike is following this blog. Like most hikers, I am happy to talk anyone’s ear off about hiking, equipment, or the AT. If any potential AT hikers have specific questions, feel free to email me directly. I think my email address is in the “Profile” section. For now, my advice is to commit to it and do it. I think traveling of any kind is broadening and an AT hike is a special kind of travel. If this is the right time in your life, do it. You never know what might happen in a few years to make a hike impossible. Do it knowing that you will leave family and friends behind. Do it if it takes every penny you have. Max out the credit cards if you have to, but do it. You won’t regret it.
All’s well.
Dahlgren Campground. Today – 17.7 miles. Total – 1028.8 miles.
Tuesday, July 1
Today included more crowds, some good views and a fun side trip. My first stop was at a Washington Monument. Not THE Washington Monument but a Washington Monument. This one was built first. It is a low tower made of gray rock and you can climb up and get a good view of Western Maryland. I ate lunch at Black Rock Cliffs where my parents took my brother and me camping when we were kids. There were lots of dayhikers there with lots of questions about thru-hiking. Normally I like that conversation but they were distracting me from my enjoyment of the view. Also I could see from there that my afternoon storm was coming early so I left quickly.
View from Black Rock Cliff at 9:00 AM.
View seven miles farther at noon. Note clouds. Storm hit at 3:00 PM.
A few miles later I met up with thru-hiker Mike and we decided to hike just off trail to the Free State Hostel. We didn’t want to spend the night but we could order pizza from there and drink soda. We did and watched the storm drop rain on our roof. Two hours later it stopped and we hiked five more miles, fueled by pizza and caffeine.
I’m tenting right off the AT, up a side trail from Devil’s Racecourse Shelter. I’m sharing a camp area with a pleasant couple from Seattle called Hoot and Sundance. They cooked a tasty looking pea soup.
All’s well.
Devil’s Racecourse Shelter. Today -- 18.8 miles. Total – 1047.6 miles.
Wednesday, July 2
I crossed into Pennsylvania today but the big news is that Jefe, the former Marine who I last saw way back in Georgia, caught me. I was eating lunch at a shelter and he walked in, stared at me for a second and said, “Aren’t you Vegas?” I sure am! The last time I saw Jefe I was sick and walking down the road at Neel’s Gap, GA for a day off. I remember wondering if I would ever catch the group I was with then. Hard to believe that four of the five of us are within a day of each other. Jogle and Mas are both just a day back. Only Gnormal has fallen behind because he adopted a dog and found a trail girlfriend.
Statistically, three of us should have quit by now. April 16 might turn out to be a good day for thru-hike beginnings.
Jefe and I spent an hour catching up and then we hiked on. He is planning 25 mile days in order to meet a friend in New York, so I might not see him again.
Rocky Pennsylvania Trail
Gypsy moth catapillars.
I think I have written before about how quickly people bond on the trail. That is a good example. Eleven weeks ago I hiked with that guy for three days and it made my day to see him again. The terrain is gentle and high temps are in the low 80s. There was no storm this afternoon.
All’s well.
Rocky Mountain Shelter. Today – 19.8 miles . Total – 1067.4 miles.
Thursday, July 3
It’s easy to do big miles in Pennsylvania. I did 23 miles today and was done by 5:15. I’m staying in a hostel that was a mansion 200 years ago. It was a stop on the Underground Railroad and has a secret room that was used to hide escaped slaves. At $25 per night it is pricey but it’s cool to think of the history of that building.
I rushed today for two reasons. First, I was meeting Bob, a hiking friend from Las Vegas who is hiking a few days with me. Second, I wanted to do the traditional AT halfway half-gallon challenge. I’m more than half done with this very long trail and thru-hikers celebrate by trying to eat a half-gallon of ice cream. Bob witnessed me completing the challenge, making the choice to go with calorie rich chocolate peanut butter ice cream. Then I had a cheeseburger. My hiker hunger is only growing. I’m down 24 lbs. now.
Proof of completion.
Quick notes:
- No ticks on me since going to Permethrin.
- Raspberries are in season. I took a raspberry break today to sample them. Delicious.
- Thru-hikers Peach and Fuzz run a charity called Re-member, aimed at helping Native Americans on the infamously poor Pine Ridge Reservation. You should Google it. I ate lunch with them and was fascinated by their stories.
- My pack weighed in at 29 lbs., including three days food and a liter of water.
All’s well.
Ironmasters Hostel. Today – 22.9miles. Total – 1090.3 miles.
Friday, July 4.
I did mean for today to be a big mileage day but it turned out to be my biggest so far. Bob and I had talked about doing 19 miles to a little town called Boiling Springs. We got off to a late start because the store served good breakfast sandwiches. I had three. It rained all morning but that just kept it cool. The walking was easy, sometimes through level Amish farmland. We took our time, stopping for quite a while in the afternoon to eat wild blueberries. They are much smaller than the farm raised variety but just as good.
Official Halfway Marker
Long, flat trail.
Camping isn’t allowed near Boiling Springs but there is a man there who lets thru-hikers tent in his backyard for one dollar. When we got there though, he wasn’t home and the B+B nearby was full for the holiday weekend. Someone told us about a pizza place in town and it turned out to be really good. There were genuine Italians doing the cooking. After dinner we went back to the $1 backyard but still no luck. A look at my map and guide showed some cheap motels eight miles up trail. That would make a 27 mile day but we felt refreshed after dinner and the walking looked pancake flat. It was nearly 8:00 but Bob had a super spotlight headlamp so we took off.
Pennsylvania Farm Walking
It turned out to be great hiking. Temps were nice and Fireflies filled the fields we walked through. We passed wheat, corn and alfalfa fields. We could hear, but not see, fireworks in the distance. We passed through a few patches of forest, one of which contained a huge flock of big birds. They stayed in the trees squawking and flapping loudly as we passed. We had rain jackets on because of intermittent storms and that was lucky because the birds knocked water off the tree leaves at us and crapped lavishly. Bob took five direct hits. We’re thinking about “Bullseye” as a trail name. It was a spooky bit of woods and we moved right along.
We hit the motels around 11:00 and got a great rate from the night guy at Super 8. He is a hiker and says it was buzzards in the trees. I’m clean and relaxed after a shower and feeling good about 27 miles.
All’s well.
Super 8 Motel, Highway 11. Today – 27.4 miles. Total – 1117.7
