[at-l] trip report

[rockdancer97 at comcast.net]

So the Tuesday before Thanksgiving the day was mild, sunny and I thought "it's a good day to hike!" so I asked my host John to give me a lift to the I-70/I-40 trail crossing also known as the Monkey Cage. I packed light just enough for an overnight and headed south for Harpers Ferry. In about an hour I passed some fresh boot marks, I could tell they were heading S like me, 3 people I guessed. In another hour, at the original George Washington monument, I came across Hansolo, Coffee and Smores resting a little, getting ready for the 2nd half of their 2nd day of a 3-day trip (Pen-Mar to HF). We chatted a bit, found we knew no one in common and traveled on more or less together. 

The snow squalls hit shortly after, plastering us with big wet flakes. By the time we reached the stone church/South Mountain Inn area we were about as wet as possible, but glad to be off the wind-blown ridge. I caught my breath in the lee of the church, and continued after the squall passed. The Dahlgren campsite looked fresh and new, perhaps a paint job since my last visit here in 2000. Then some more memorial markers to Union & CSA generals & battles. I was in a rush to reach Crampton Gap shelter by dark, so no time for snacks & rests along the way. The others were heading for an easier destination, a PATC locked cabin with "bear " in the name I think. At Crampton Gap the shelter, camp sites are all a bit nicer perhaps part of the effort to lower the impact of group camping in Maryland. No water though, so I had to drop my pack and head to the Gathland road crossing where there are bathrooms & soda machines. It was a cold & windy night alone in the shelter.

Wednesday was windy again, but overcast from the start. With a late start I found the 3 other hikers already resting at the soda machine area. We hung together chatting to the Ed Garvey shelter - new one for me, nice design, esp. the lighting for the outhouse. After lunch we went our own speeds and reached the C&O canal about the same time. The sights at Weverton Cliffs were OK, not grand, esp. with the cold wind hitting us in the face. In short we had incentive to get down off Weverton. I slowed on the canal path, got my binoculars out and searched for birds along the way. I had an appointment to meet my ride at 3 PM and had plenty of time.

In Harpers Ferry I took the white blaze staircase and met a family from Texas. They were surprised to hear they were standing on the AT, the two boys were bug-eyed when I told them they could follow the markers all the way to either Georgia or Maine. Dad seemed appreciative of the time I spent with them, wanted to know if I wrote a book, where to find my trail journal. In short they made me feel like a hero of the trail. I finished answering their questions, posed for pictures and moved on. My ride was waiting at the office, and I went in to say Hi. Volunteer John was on the job but it looked like all others had bugged out to get a jump on the holiday.

(The weather at night was pretty cold all week, sometimes only in the teens in the valleys, single digits on the ridge. The walking was fine with daytime temps in low 30's at the coldest. I had hoped to camp in temps like this as a way of acclimatizing for colder temps still to come back in New England. With that in mind I continued to camp out all week, waking sometimes to frozen water bottles & frost on the inside walls of my tent. My hosts were a little wigged out at this but understanding. I have to admit it was very manageable to rise when I knew hot coffee & breakfast were waiting for me a few hundred yards away. Back to Boston tomorrow, sorry K! --RD)

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