Half Way There, Living On a Prayer

After leaving Shenandoah, what remains is finishing off the rest of the trail in Virginia and then crossing into West Virginia and Maryland. The halfway point of the trail is very close now. Harper's Ferry, WV is the unofficial halfway point, but the halfway point by book mileage is actually further up the trail in Pennsylvania. It will be satisfying to reach both these milestones in any case.

5/15 Manassas Gap to Ashby Gap - 12 miles

There was more rain again last night, but just 30% chance of rain in the forecast this morning. Nonetheless, when we got to the trailhead it was already drizzling. I thought it would be a good idea to put my rain shell on when I set out to avoid getting too wet, but within a few minutes my opinion changed. It was so humid out I was quickly getting soaked from the inside. I hiked the rest of the day in shirt sleeves.

The trail now skirts the ridge and follows the slopes across public land. There are a lot of short ups and downs along the way with little of interest to call attention to. More rain overnight brought more trail flooding and swollen creek crossings requiring more attention to negotiate than usual.

Highlight for today was hiking through Sky Meadows State Park and the Ovoka Tract. This was once farmland that is now public land managed by the National Park Service. There are large open meadows here with views to the east.  

In one of the meadows I spot a number of Tulip Poplars in bloom. I've seen the blossoms on the trail for some time now, but I haven't been able to see the blooms on the trees in the forest because they're up too high in the canopy. In the meadow now I can see the whole tree in bloom which is very showy.

From here it's just a few miles to get to the trailhead where I'm meeting Angelika. It's a short day today (since when is 12 miles a short hike?), so I plan on having late lunch with Angelika on the way to the campground. We stop in a small town along the way and get a nice sandwich, vegetable tart, and a couple beers to have at a picnic table outside at old mill across the street. The rain is gone for now, but it's very hot and humid.

On the way to the campground there's another obstacle to overcome. The road to the campground is closed due to flooding of the Shenandoah River. Is our campground flooded? Google helps us find another route and Angelika confirms the campground is open and we still have a spot there. When we get there, at least half the campground is under water, but they do have a spot for us higher up from the river.

I also got an email alert from the Appalachian Trail Conference that the footbridge in Harper's Ferry is closed due to the flooding. I'm not due there for a few days, so we'll cross that bridge when we come to it :). 

5/16 Ashby  Gap to Snickers Gap - 13.9 miles

There was no rain overnight. When we got up in the morning it was foggy, and the river at the campground had receded significantly since last night. The weather forecast has chance of rain all day, but going up later in the afternoon. I'm hoping we can beat the rain again with an early start.

Angelika drives me back to the trailhead. She's going to hike in and meet me at the end today, so I head off on my own to start out. It doesn't take long to realize it's going to be a hot and humid day today. Temperatures are supposed to get into the 80's and it already feels like I'm walking through a tropical rain forest. 

About four miles in I come across a sign that tells me I'm starting a section of the trail known as "The Rollercoaster".

This section of trail follows the slope of the ridge so ascends and descends sharply into several hollows over the next fourteen miles or so. A look at the elevation profile for this section of the trail tells the story.

Any of these climbs on their own is no big deal, but eight one after another on a hot humid day ends up being very strenuous. I end up literally drenched in sweat for most of the day.

The highlight of the day is passing the 1000 mile mark. Another milestone crossed and a small victory.

Shortly after this I had a strange bug fly into my shirt. Google says it's a Eastern Eyed Click Beetle. It looked really big when it was flying, but I think it surprised itself when it landed on me and decided to play dead. I've never seen anything like it before.

Angelika met me about a mile in from the trailhead. About halfway back I got my one and only view for the day.

On the way back to the campground we decided to get a beer and snack at the local brewery to celebrate passing the 1000 mile mark. We ordered a couple beers and a plate with a pretzel, cheese, and pepperoni. Well, the pretzel was the size of your head, so instead of a snack it ended up being our dinner, along with another beer to help wash it down. 

While we were at the brewery, we started hearing thunder and not long after the skies opened up again and it started to pour. The rain only lasted ten or fifteen minutes, but it was as heavy a rain as I've ever seen. I'm happy to have finished walking before this hit. 

5/17 Snickers Gap to Keys Gap - 13.6 miles

I picked up this morning from where we left off yesterday. It's Saturday, so there are a lot of day hikers to share the trail with. Angelika couldn't get a parking spot at the trailhead, so she decided to hike in at the end rather than at the start. 

The first order of business today is to finish hiking "The Rollercoaster". I did the first ten miles yesterday, so have four miles or so left to go this morning. Along the way, I cross into West Virginia.

About a quarter of the AT's length is through Virginia. It's taken over a month to cross the state line. I'm glad to be moving on.

Next I notice a spider web on the edge of the trail that happens to be catching the sunlight just right. I think it looks pretty kuwl.

At the first high point there's a rocky outcrop with a nice view. This is the destination for the day hikers I've been passing on the trail. After I get past here, I have the trail pretty much to myself again. 

After another down and up I finally reach the end of The Rollercoaster. At least the trail maintainers have a sense of humor about it. At this point the trail moves off the slope onto the ridge with a lot less climbing and descending. The terrain is still a bit rocky, but the progress is much improved.

There's nothing much else noteworthy on this section. I did notice this guy peering out at me along the side of the trail towards the end.

Angelika met me a couple miles from the trailhead. We hiked out together, did some errands on the way back to the campground, and had a nice dinner. We also took some time to get the water system in our van charged up since we're past the last freeze date now. No more dealing with water out of gallon jugs for the rest of this trip. Now we just have to get home before winter so we can flush it out before the next winter freeze comes.

5/18 Keys Gap to Weverton Cliffs - 10 miles

We're planning a short hiking day today so we can take time out to explore Harper's Ferry a bit on the way through. The weather is perfect for hiking today. It's cooler and less humid. Angelika drops me off at the Keys Gap trailhead and we make plans to meet again at lunchtime in Harper's Ferry.

The trail from Keys Gap to Harper's Ferry is mostly headed down and has some rocky sections, but for the most part I'm making good time. Along the way I pass the remains of Civil War rock redoubts that were built to defend artillery during the siege of Harper's Ferry. As I approach Harper's Ferry I have a good view of the Shenandoah River just before it joins the Potomac. The water is still high from last week's rain.

I cross over the rivers on a highway bridge and follow the AT into the old part of Harper's Ferry. Along the way I stop at the AT Conservancy to see about getting another hang tag for my pack. The guy manning the desk there says you can't get an extra tag and is a little snotty about it. I'm sorry I bothered to take the side trip.

Back on the trail, Angelika meets me just before I reach Jefferson Rock.  Apparently Thomas Jefferson wrote about how he  thought the view from here was very impressive (which it is). 

We continued down the trail to the old part of the town, had lunch near the remains of the old armory, listened to stories about John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, and had a cold lemonade. 

From here we cross a footbridge on the railroad trestle that crosses over the Potomac River. There's a mileage sign just before we get on the bridge.

At the end of the bridge, Angelika turns back and I continue on down the tow path next to the C&O Canal. At this point, we've crossed into Maryland. There's no sign, but going over the Potomac River is a clear indication. There's about three miles to cover on the tow path which is nice and smooth and level, but tough on the feet because it's hard packed. Since it's Sunday it's pretty busy with bicycles outnumbering hikers on this part of the path.

The parking area for Weverton Cliffs is just a half mile further. Angelika is stuck in traffic so I beat her there. I find a nice shady spot on the grass to wait, but it isn't even five minutes before she pulls in. On the way back to the campground we pass the traffic she was in. The backup goes for miles. Weekend traffic here is terrible.

We get to the campground relatively early, so we have time to do all our chores and still get to bed early. We're both tired and ready to call it an early night.

5/19 Weverton Cliffs to Washington Monument - 15.7 miles

Today is perfect hiking weather. The skies are mostly clear, it's much cooler, and breezy. Angelika drops me off at the trailhead and I start off climbing back up to the crest of the ridge. It's a short climb passing Weverton Cliffs along the way.

The theme for today seems to be Civil War battle memorials. There was apparently a number of important battles that took place on this ridge during the war. These led to the Battle of Antietam which ended as a stalemate with 21,000 dead. 

This rather impressive monument is in tribute to war correspondents killed in combat.

A few miles later is a memorial to two Generals killed at Fox Gap during the battle of South Mountain. There is a lot of information here about the fighting, feints, mistakes, lost orders, etc.. There's a lot of history here.

I stopped for lunch at the only viewpoint of the day near Lamb Knoll.

I met up with Angelika at Washington Monument State Park. We'll go see the monument when we resume hiking tomorrow.

5/20 Washington Monument to High Rock

The morning got off to a chilly start. It was 48 degrees outside the van when we got up. That seemed quite cool given how hot and humid it was just a few days ago. It was ideal weather for hiking though. The skies were mostly clear, it was dry, and a just a bit on the cool side.

Angelika and I set out together from Washington Monument State Park. It didn't take long to reach the monument which also had nice views to the west.

We hiked together along relatively smooth and gentle trail for quite a while. Angelika decided to turn around just past the four mile mark. About a mile further north I came to an outlook to the west at Black Rock Cliffs.

After a few more miles I met a trail maintainer out checking his trail section. Turns out he spent a lot of time in Farmington, NM selling industrial compressors to the oil and gas industry there. He hiked the AT in 1979 and enjoyed telling me about how different it was back then. They had no ultralight gear, stayed in shelters instead of carrying a tent, etc..

I also met a trail angel on the trail looking for a hiker that had contracted norovirus. I thought I was past that now, but good to know I still need to take precautions to avoid catching it myself.

I had lunch at the next rocky outcrop on the ridge, this one with a view to the east.

After lunch, there was still about nine miles to go. The trail came out of the woods and took me through a big hay field. It's always nice to go through these big open areas and get to see more of the terrain around where you're hiking.

The end of the day brought a short but strenuous climb up Quirauk Mountain to reach High Rock where I'm meeting Angelika. When I got to the parking area, it wasn't quite what I expected. There were concrete steps up to a terrace that was entirely covered with graffiti. The view is pretty nice though.

While I was waiting for Angelika I met a group of Outward Bound kids who were planning, over the next couple of days, to hike the section of trail I just did. They said they were planning on sleeping under tarps at the shelter a couple miles down the trail. The weather forecast calls for heavy rain tonight and tomorrow. I think they're going to get pretty wet.

Angelika pulled in and we headed back to the campground for dinner. The weather forecast still looks pretty grim, so right now the plan will be to take a rest day tomorrow and wait out the weather.

5/21 High Rock to South Mountain, PA - 16.4 miles

The rain started overnight and was on and off as we got up in the morning. We checked the weather forecast again, and now it looks like less rain during the day than they predicted last night. We decide to hike even if it means getting a little wet. Angelika suggests to meet me along the way in case it starts to pour and I need to bail out. We have a plan for the day.

By the time we get to High Rock the rain has stopped, but it's still overcast and pretty cold. I head out with my rain shell on and then a little ways down the trail decide I need to put on my gloves as well. The trail down from High Rock is steep and rocky, so it's slow going over the wet, slippery rocks for a while.

A few miles down the trail is Pen Mar Park. This is a really nice park with picnic pavilions, a playground, and clean rest rooms, which I take advantage of. There's also a nice view here to the west from one of the pavilions. This would be a great place to stop for lunch sometime, but too early today.

The big event for the day is crossing the Mason-Dixon line which separates Maryland from Pennsylvania. I'm officially done with Maryland now. The Mason-Dixon line is named for the surveyors who laid it out to settle disputes on where the state border actually was. In case you were wondering, this is also where the term Dixieland derives from.

From here the trail is pretty unremarkable, especially on a dreary misty day. Angelika waited for me at a road crossing at around the six mile mark to check on status. The rain was still holding off, so we made plans to meet again at the Old Forge Picnic Area at around mile ten for lunch. This was another really nice picnic area, although the rain was starting to drizzle now so we had our lunch in the van. 

There was still six miles to go, but significant rain is expected to hold off until 5:00 or so. I forge ahead and make record time getting to the trailhead on PA 233 in South Mountain. I'm hiking about three miles an hour now when the footing is good and terrain is relatively smooth. I beat Angelika to the trailhead, but she's there to meet me shortly after. It's still just drizzling so I'm just a little damp from mist and sweat.

The campground is a short drive from the trailhead. We get set up and make dinner while the rain continues to get more serious. It was a good call to hike today rather than taking a rain day.