A Most Unusual Day

At Pen-Mar county park we reached the Maryland/Pennsylvania border and the Mason Dixon line. There was a huge crowd of people and we were looking for the snack bar we'd heard of. The man in the center of the picture (John Kelley - and family) saw we were hikers and offered us two extra tickets to the Patriot Federal Credit Union annual cookout. Wow! A great meal. Then he lent us his van to go resupply, then he put us in touch with another former hiker who takes in hikers, and 20 minutes later we were on the road to the house of Bernard and Rhoda Custer - who's internet I'm now using. Such wonderful people. We're clean, dry, full, and happy. We are truly blessed.

A Great Section for History

The middle section of the AT doesn't offer that much in the way of mountains - we won't go over 3,000 ft in a while - but it's rich with history. We often pass great old architecture like this pre-civil war church on a Maryland hillside.

Faded Glory

Harper's Ferry, WV, is a beautiful town. Full of history and cool old architecture. It is considered the "psychological halfway point" of the trail and is home to the Appalachian Trail Conference. We stayed at the historic Hilltop House Hotel, which was grand in its day - it even was mentioned in a Carl Sandburg poem from one of his visits. Alas, the plaster is cracking, the paint is peeling, and the whole building is kind of shifting under its own weight, but still it remains a presence - a picture from the past as it sits on its bluff overlooking the confluence of the Patomac and Shennandoah rivers.

Almost Halfway

Harper's Ferry will be the approximate halfway point of our journey. We're almost there...

Bear's Den

Owned and operated by the ATC and smoothly managed by Queen Diva, this is one of the best hostels we've seen so far. Reminiscent of an old castle and situated on a hill, it is peaceful, breezy and comfortable. A very nice place to rest.

Short Dog in Tall Weeds

Some parts of the trail are better maintained than others. This is not one of the well maintained sections. The title of this post is dedicated to Danny Weber.

Big Beard

I had no idea whether or not I'd like the beard, but the bigger it gets, the more I like it.