Date: 2005-06-22
From: Harpers Ferry

To: Crampton Gap Shelter
Miles today: 11.1
Weather: light rain

Started at Harpers FerryDestination: Crampton Gap ShelterMiles today: 11.1Total Miles: 1018.7Stayed in shelterDay 103Redhat and I were up and ready to leave the hotel early. We were not going to have breakfast at the hotel because it is expensive but when we went downstairs there was a sign that a continental breakfast was 3.99. The gas was off and that was all they were offering so we decided to stay and eat. Coffee was an extra charge but they were offering free coffee in the lobby so we told the waitress we would get our coffee there, which we did. She then offered to refill our cups for free after that. While RedHat went to the post office I sat at the ATC with our packs. When it opened I got my re-supply box that Toto had left there on his way home the other day. My daughter, Emily, had sent me something but it was not at the ATC so I called the post office to ask if it was there and it was. So then I had to walk the 2-3 blocks down to the post office to pick it up. While I was there I went ahead and sent the maps I didn't need back home to save on space and weight. It had started raining just before I had to walk down but I stayed pretty dry with my rain jacket on. I was more wet with sweat. RedHat went on down to the outfitters before I left for the post office. I was going to walk the trail down to the bottom of the hill and then walk up to the outfitter a short distance so I wouldn't have to walk all the way up to walk the trail down later. When I got to the outfitters a person working there said RedHat said to tell me that she had gone on. I bought a new bite valve with a clip for my water hose and a new pair of New Balance shoes 1/2 size larger. My feet have swollen and since my right foot is bigger it was hurting me more--but no blisters. I had not noticed until today that the tread on my old shoes was really worn. While I was still at the outfitters RedHat came in and said she was going to go to Washington DC but the Amtrak was late. She had asked me earlier if I wanted to go to DC and I said, "No, not really. I have no desire to go there." I did not know that she had meant she was going to go ahead and go to DC. Then she said she was going to go home--she missed her husband, grandchildren, and friends. So I walked to the train station with her and then started up the trail. I did not leave Harpers Ferry today until I had talked to my mother and knew that her stress test was ok and that she was going to be discharged from the hospital. The trail follows the C&O Canal on one side and the Potomac River on the other side for 2.8 miles and then the trail climbs up the mountain with switchbacks over a fairly rocky trail to a trail that has a rocky overlook down to the Potomac River. By this time I was ready for a rest break before continuing up the mountain. There was an older couple from Washington DC that had walked up the rocky cliff with 2 grandchildren visiting from the west coast. After reaching the top of the mountain it was level walking for most of the day except for just before we came to the shelter we had to climb up to it and then when we got to the trail to it, it was about 1/4 mile down again. I met McGuiver and Just Passin' Through as they were hiking from Dahlgren Backpack Campground back to Harpers Ferry. They will be camping tonight at the campground. I had wanted to stay there but with a late start after visiting the ATC, PO, and outfitters and then having lunch, 17 miles was out of the question. At the first shelter I stopped for a rest and found a family of 3 from Cambridge, Ohio. It turned out that they used to live in Ravenswood, WV, just across the Ohio River from home. They knew my dad from the tire business he has there and also knew my brothers. What a small world. I wish I had gotten there names.I met Chef-Boy-Ardee today on the trail. I had heard his name mentioned before but had never met him. Woody, the ridgeruner, is tenting here at the shelter. Turbo Joe, and 2 hikers out for a month, Pony and Smile and their border collie, Buddy, are in the shelter with me. I fixed a spaghetti dinner I had packaged at home and it was pretty good. I had never tasted it before. I have a lot of food right now and need to eat it up so I can get the weight down. I could have weighed my pack at the ATC but I was not really wanting to know how much I was carrying. I, however, have lost 20 pounds. Before I got to the shelter I stopped at the Gathland State Park to get water from a spigot and get a root beer from a soda machine. The water source here is an intermittent spring. It is nice when there is water available that I don't have to filter.Well, everyone else has gone to bed and turned out their headlamps and it is long past hiker midnight (dark) so better turn out my light also. I am listening to wonderful soothing music on an MP3 player Emily sent me. Off to dreamland I go.