Date: 2005-03-30
To: Harpers Ferry Hostel
Miles today: 1.5
Weather: clear sky

The lock was heavy and the chain that it sealed shut, around a sturdy link fence, was robust. There was no way around, over or under this obstacle and its message was clear. The trail was closed! Further advancement was prohibited.   A warning forecast of this development might have been seen in the swollen and muddy and rushing waters of the rivers that I saw from the train windows, prior to arriving at Harpers Ferry. Indeed I had heard news reports of some flooding in Maryland prior to my departure from Chicago yesterday, due to heavy rains on the East Coast.   The blue skies and bright sun that greeted me on arrival in Harpers Ferry did not foreshadow any problems, so you can imagine my surprise to find that the footbridge over the Potomac ¢ which is attached to the railway bridge crossing ¢ was firmly closed. Questions at the information office elicited the response that the swollen and rain filled Potomac was indeed the culprit. The footbridge on the north side of the river descends via a spiral iron staircase to the C&O Canal towpath and the report was that the last few steps were underwater. So no choice but to while away the time in Harpers Ferry until the swollen God of the river waters once again subsided.   I had already explored this town last year and it had not changed in the interim. I did however have a large number of people ask me about my hike, always a little tricky when you are on the first day of a new years hike. There was a whole class of high school students from Minnesota here on spring break and their teacher asked me to talk to them. Once I began to address the group even more people began to gather around to listen, and that attracted even more people until I must have had an audience of 50 or more people at least. I suspect that a good half of them thought that I was some sort of historical reenactment figure provided by the Harpers Ferry Park Service. When I finally tried to leave my adoring public, I was followed by two young high school students who were bound and determined to hike the trail and were ready to start then and there! An irate teacher and a departing bus however quickly disbanded my disciples.      Finally after much time had passed, I noted that, just as we were waiting for the gate at the south end of the bridge to be unlocked, there was a similar band of people at the north end of the bridge waiting for that gate to be unlocked also. Clearly the waters had subsided at the north end and the path was open, but the bridge itself remained closed.      It was not until 3.45 PM, after much consultation with the flood gauges, that the Park Police agreed and finally unlocked the gates and released the contained hoards.   So after a short hike ¢ only 1.5 miles ¢ I was here at the Hostel, located on a blue blazed trail. All of the 1.5 miles was along the edge, literally the very edge, of the muddy swollen and raging Potomac.      I am waiting to officially sign in ¢ the hostel does not open until 6PM ¢ and watching the warden play a game of badminton with a college student who is here doing some historical research. There are two other English hikers here also, both of whom are spending the day in Washington.   Thought ¢                Begin Slow and Small