Saturday I hiked A.T. Section 13 of Pennsylvania. This was a very tough hike, 19.1 miles through very tough conditions including snow, ice, and cold temperatures. Folks often ask, “How long does take to hike 19 miles through the mountains?”  7 and a half hours is the answer. My feet still hurt. Notice the ice on my hat in the pic.

Saturday morning we crossed the Potomac from Maryland into West Virginia. Today’s hike was short but tough. We started in Weaverton, MD and hiked northwest up the C&O Canal tow path. We crossed the old train truss bridge over the Potomac River into Harpers Ferry. The river moves quite well this time of year. We walked through town and past the ruins of the Federal Arsenal and up the steep grade past the Catholic Church. The west end of town sits along the Shenandoah River, which include awesome views from Jefferson Rock. We crossed the Shenandoah River on Rt. 340 and marched past the Appalachian Trail Conference HQ and off into the woods of West Virginia. So many points of interest and significance here in Harper’s Ferry. Always worth the trip.

Saturday morning we marched off 11 miles through the Pennsylvania mountains. This hike lasted 4 hours, 9 minutes. Good timing considering the amount of ice & wet snow. We are as far south as Pine Grove Furnace State Park. Still a long way to go before we arrive at Front Royal.

Back on the trail. Today’s weather was very tough. The air temperature was 16 with very strong winds up to 40 MPH. Made for a lot of ice, many slips and even a few falls. The ground really hurts when its frozen. Today we hiked south from Boiling Springs, PA down to Mount Holly Springs. Only 9 miles today, but very tough.

I’m spending my last night here in the very cold Northeast. It was 5 degrees when I left Williston, Vermont this morning. Now I’m chillin’ in a hotel room in Manchester, New Hampshire. (I just opened a beer bottle with an iron. Desperate times call for desperate measures) Life has been good here, good times with old friends and new. Can’t wait to come back in the summer when things are thawed out.

I’m spending the week in Vermont. The weather is cold and the mountains are snow covered and gorgeous. Saturday I spent some time in Montpelier cruising the streets of the capital city. Sunday was a bit more relaxed meeting with some friends and enjoying BBQ. Monday it will snow, so I’m going snowshoeing in Stowe, seems like the thing to do. More later.

My normal hike of the Appalachian trail will have to wait a bit. We here in Central Maryland got 20 inches of snow Saturday afternoon. Made walking down the street an adventure.

This weeks hike of the Appalachian Trail was in great contrast to last weekends adventure. Section 10 in Pennsylvania is 12.3 miles of relatively flat ground. With the sun shining and the mud mostly frozen we were fast and we were dry. The bonus of Section 10 is the end point at Boiling Springs and the Boiling Springs Tavern. I recommend stopping in for a cold beer on a frozen winter afternoon. The Pennsylvania hospitality will warm you.

Saturday morning we set out to climb Cove Mountain. This is Section 9 of of the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania. 900 feet up over 1 mile. This is one of the longest and steepest ascents of our route. This section is 14.5 miles long with several major elevation changes. When we started a light snow was falling, by the time we reached the Darlington Shelter there were several inches on the ground the temperature had dropped. The slick leaves and mud slowed our pace to a crawl. Section 9 took over 6 hours to finish. I’m looking forward to dryer days and flatter ground.

This morning I completed my first hike of the season on the Appalachian Trail. It was a short hike and out of our normal sequence. We did a 7 mile section in Maryland out near South Mountain. We finished in about 2 hours. Next weekend we start back at Duncannon, Pennsylvania and head south.