Date: 2016-04-11
From: Harpers Ferry

To: Blackburn Trail Center
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: scattered clouds

After our breakfast of TV dinners, we checked out of the motel. Everything was a little wet from rain overnight. Tagalong left me off at the bridge before taking off for Wisconsin by way of Ohio, & I started up from Harpers Ferry at 7:10, heading up to Loudoun HeightsA couple of days ago, a few of the understory shrubs and trees were leafing out -- now just about everything is. The redbuds had been blooming; now the dogwoods are too. With the leaves there will be less visibility from the mountains, not that it's good enough to get good pictures even when the leaves are down.Almost immediately, I wondered if I had made a mistake changing to different shoes. These sure seemed a little slipperier on the Rocks than I remembered. I was tempted to call Susan to come back and switch me to the ones I've been using the past week. I wore these down South in February and they weren't a problem even on the ice. I concluded that I just have to get used to them. Besides, her phone wasn't working well enough to hope to catch her. I found a 15-inch oak down across the trail about halfway between Keys Gap and the State line & did 10 minutes of cutting further north. There was a down tree with poison ivy vines just south of the power-line easement. Met NOBO Dr John with a section hiker, then NOBO Darkest Hour at Blackburn Center. Nobody else, tho there were a couple of campers down the hill from the Lesser Shelter. I saw a few glimpses of sun just before ten o'clock. There was a nice view from Buzzard rocks but very limited because of the trees. It probably was better in former years. After making good time toward my goal of doing 20 miles to Bear's Den today, I stopped for a brief lunch break at David Lesser shelter. It's a log shelter, built with square logs. Built in 1991 makes it a little older than the average shelter, I guess. It has a nice porch plus sort of a covered patio with picnic table and swing. Left right at 12 o'clock, a little less than halfway thru my day as planned.I spent about 15 minutes clearing a multi-branch top of a tree that fell across the trail. I thought it was oak at first, but it was too soft for that. I thought the sun was bringing more warmth, but then it disappeared, and there was a cold wind up on top. Eventually the sun came back, & it got up to 60 degrees. Not bad hiking weather. About a mile after the shelter I was just walking along and suddenly my right foot caught on something & my left foot jumped out ahead to to catch me and apparently I strained a hamstring or something like that. Well, that really slowed me down as I was going considerably less than 1 mph the rest of the afternoon. With only 2 miles to go to Blackburn Trail Center, I concluded that's where I'm going to spend the night. The only trouble is ... it is a ways down the hill over rocks, & rock steps anyway. Rather difficult.I found Darkest Hour in the enclosed cabin with bunk beds; he's done a lot of section-hikes all over the trail in the south and East. Then later on, a young man came who is just on his first day of a southbound thru-hike, starting at Harper's Ferry. I called my wife, Susan (Tagalong), & son-in-law, Bill, & charged my phone. Bill diagnosed a hamstring injury & recommended rest & stretching.