Yes, this is a hiker hostel!
View from Bears Den Rocks
Looking into Jefferson County, West Virginia
"Trail" on Loudoun Heights above Harpers Ferry
Leaving Virginia
Entering Harpers Ferry, WV - Potomac River
Monday, June 22, 2015
On to Harpers Ferry
6/19/15 - Mike dropped me off this morning at 8:30 and I hiked the 16 miles to Rod Hollow shelter by 3pm. The sky was overcast and the temp moderate, but the humidity! I may as well have been rained on! And there's no way my clothes will dry overnight. Oh well, I'm for Bears Den hostel tomorrow.
The ridge runner Kite is here, he's cool. Right Click, Rock Steady, Finn, Tumbles and Scout, Leviticus, Mockingbird and Dr. Pickles are here. I passed Dora, she was 'coming out of Front Royal today, and Blackout showed up late today.
The tropical storm is due to blow through tomorrow night, confirming my plan for a ten Mike day to Bears Den hostel tomorrow. Hopefully it will clear before Sunday daybreak; I'll decide whether to do a stop at Blackburn Center it a full day to Harpers Ferry at that time.
Seven o'clock and finally it starts raining, dropping the temp and some of the humidity. I am already finished eating and am relaxing in the shelter. A good evening and hopefully a good sleeping night.
6/20/15 - It took until 1:30 to make the 10 miles from Rod Hollow to Bears Den hostel. The humidity is awful and I'd forgotten how rocky the trail is through the Roller Coaster. But I've now had a shower, I'm in a cool room, and my pack is drying in the sunshine.
The hostel ended up full tonight. Javier (Clean Shave), Doppleganger, Rua, Finn, Scout and Tumbles, a bunch of section hikers, and Blackout are here. I was surprised to see Blackout, he's a very strong hiker, but he admitted the humidity was brutal today. And the rain from TS Bill has been intense tonight. The trail is going to be really sloppy mud tomorrow. My plan is to hike out 10 mikes to the AT Blackburn Center and decide then if I can make Harpers Ferry before dark. I'll need to call ahead for a hotel if I decide to push through.
6/21/15 - I thought I didn't sleep at all last night but Doppleganger says she heard me snore a couple times. Either way it's gonna be a long day to AT Blackburn.
I slipped out of Bears Den shortly before eight. Tumbles was eating breakfast and waves goodbye as I walked past the front. The trail was more sandy, so very little mud, fortunately. The Roller Coaster is not as bad north of Bears Den and the temp was cooler so I made good time. I got to AT Blackburn around noon and went down for water. After eating lunch I decided to press on and make the day a 21 miler to Harpers Ferry.
I'd hiked the 12 miles between Blackburn and Harper Ferry in 2007, with an injured left leg, which may be why I didn't remember all the rocks. The trail, especially across Loudoun Heights, is almost all rocks. There's no flat place to put your foot. The last couple miles, my feet were screaming. Then I got to the river bridge; the hotel is about 300ft up the highway from the bridge, while the trail turns right and runs along the Potomac River. Unfortunately, there's no shoulder on the freeway, so I had to take the trail about a half mile, then go uphill about a quarter mile to the ATC HQ, then back down hill to the hotel. Arg! All told, I walked about 22 miles.
Pictures - to Bears Den Hostel
Stone wall possibly surveyed once by George Washington
Waiting out the rain
Yes, this is a hiker hostel!
Shenandoah, Part 3
6/16/15 - Rubberband Man has sleep apnea. Bad apnea. He kept the shelter up last night. And some idiot came in last night about eleven with a high power white light and illuminated everyone. So I didn't sleep well. So despite the fact that I reached Gravel Spring shelter shortly after 1pm today, I called the day done. After all, I still had hiked 13.1 miles. And it's another 9.6 to the hostel. So tomorrow will be a really short day, but then, I need resupply.
Streak, Lucky and Lolly and their dog Cal, Tumbles and her older brother Scout, Songbird, her dad Quiz and friend Bearbag are here; Skins and Bearman as well as Dr. Pickles and Mockingbird have decided to do a 23 to the hostel. The Wild Boys, the two guys that I last saw entering Waynesboro, when I was leaving, popped in a bit before six. Fifty three and Slick are in also.
And I've finally seen a bear in Shenandoah! The shelter log warned there was one here and sure enough, it showed up today about five thirty. It wasnt exactly scared of us, and circled the area at a walk. I suspect from its lackadaisical attitude that it will be around all night. Joy, no sleep again.
Crispy came in, said Boston hiked on by here, and that Rubberband Man and Pilgrim took a bath this morning in the water source spring at Pass Mountain! Arg!
Songbird, Quiz and Slick (on Crispy's guitar) serenaded us at dusk with folk songs. Bits was a very enjoyable evening.
6/17/15 - Today was scheduled as a "nearo" day, or a day in which just a few miles are hiked, in order to drop into Front Royal and the Terrapin Station hostel for resupply, shower, and laundry. As the rain started about an hour before I got to town, it's become a refuge day as well.
I passed Boston's campsite about eight this morning. His dad is coming Saturday to Harpers Ferry, so he is putting in miles in the rain today. I'll catch up eventually.
Fifty Three dropped in to the hostel; says he wants to change his name to Lick. Packman came in later, so there's three of us tonight.
6/18/15 - I slack packed from VA 55 near Front Royal back to the Terrapin Station hostel today. Mike Evans, the owner, only does town runs on the morning, so I didn't start hiking until 9:30am. Still, I finished at 3pm, even though I again stopped to chat with friends. Lick, Packman, Pocahontas, Tick, Flame, Crispy, Chewie, Kiki, Right Click, Rock Steady, Boston, and several others are all a half day north of me.
Co-Ed is off trail. He was with Pocahontas and Tock on the aqua blaze trip but stayed in Front Royal today as his foot is still causing him pain. He called his folks, and they have picked him up to take him home. Another goner. Another friend lost to an injury.
I got back to the hostel and met hikers Lonesome Tom, another German, Wilderness, a female section hiker, and Starburst (female) and Gas Monkey. Lonesome Tom got a ride into town and bought 8% alcohol beer, got blasted and started bothering Wilderness so Mike Evans threw him out. Ended up with Gas Monkey having to call the cops because Tom was drunk, speaks English with a thick accent, and Mike kept smiling and displaying humor, although he was quite angry. Tom eventually left about 8:45pm. I had to help him get his pack on. Tom apparently was so intoxicated that he fell (inside Park boundaries and so out of county jurisdiction) and so the sheriff is waiting for Park Rangers to come collect Tom for observation.
Shenandoah, Part 2
6/13/15 - Logman got up at 5:30 or earlier, despite us having planned only a 12 mile day. Said he couldn't sleep anymore. So he left at 6, and I dawdled and left at 6:45 for Bearfence Hut.
We got to the Lewis Mountain Campground about noon. They don't really cater to hikers; there's about 10 rental cabins and 50 campsites. It's the smallest campground in the park. But they have a store microwave, so lunch was a pepperoni calzone and some milk. I got some stuff for supper and breakfast.
Bearfence Hut's water source is an unreliable spring, and it is currently not usable, so we had to load water and carry it here. I suspect I don't have enough, but it's only eight miles to the Big Meadows Wayside so I'll survive. Of course, for me it's actually a twelve mile day to Rock Spring Hut. I'll be solo again after the wayside.
6/14/15 - This time it was me that got up at 5:20, although Logman was waking too. A hiker named Foo had come in late and was sleeping in the shelter, he got woken as well.
It rains last night, and although the rain stopped by about eleven, the tree dripped until almost seven. The fireflies were out all night and the stars were right through the trees.
Foo will probably have to zero a few days after Big Meadows, he has some sort of bite or wound on this upper thigh. It is a blistery injury, about the size of a dime, and raised about ⅛ inch. It is medium red, and he says it stings when he touches it but it doesn't hurt when he walks. I advised seeing someone as yesterday he noticed the skin around it for about an inch had also turned red, but is not yet touch sensitive. This morning it looked no worse, but it told him to see the Rangers at Big Meadows just in case, which he agreed to do. Hope it runs out ok.
I ate a second breakfast at the Wayside, resupplied, took pictures with Logman and headed for the campground a mile away for a shower and laundry. The shower sure was good! Then I repacked and hiked out to Rock Spring Hut, four miles away.
6/15/5 - The Rock Spring Hut hiker log stated that there was a worse problem than bears.... Raccoons! They were climbing the bear pole and stealing food. I ended up hanging my bag anyway as there wasn't anyplace else any better. Turned out the problem wasn't raccoons, they've been trapped, but a deer that was very curious. It was all over camp all night, looking in tents and the shelter. And the fireflies were spectacular again. Hiker Crispy was there with his battery powered string of Chrisymas lights to jazz up the shelter.
I rolled out of camp about six thirty again and headed for Skyland resort. Got there just at nine. I decided to eat a second breakfast at the coffee bar; milk and blueberry muffins, yum! Then it was off to Mary's Rock and Thorton Gap.
Unlike 2007, this year I beat the rocks without injury! I'm stoked now, Maine is getting closer.
Bearman and his son Skins, is here, as is Dr Pickles and Mockingbird. There are several section hikers; Streak, Rubberband Man and Pilgrim, and a couple I last saw at Bearfence shelter.
The guy attempting to break the AT speed record, Scott, apparently ran past here while I was cooking supper. We didn't know it because the shelter is 0.2 miles off trail. He's running fifty miles a day. Go Scott!
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