Distance: 12 miles Hike Time: 5.75 hours Elevation Gain: 1,500 feet Summary This may be the most challenging section in Maryland. That's not saying much since Maryland is fairly flat. There are a few moderate climbs in this section, but the real challenge is the rocky terrain. The trail runs primarily along the West side …
Continue reading "Hiking – AT NOBO – Washington Monument to Ensign Cowall Shelter (Wolfsville Road)"
Distance: 9.2 Miles Hike Time: 4 hours Elevation Gain: 1,500 feet Starting off where we left off on our last Northbound hike of the AT, we continued toward the Washington Monument (not the one in Washington DC). The "original" Washington Monument was first built in 1827 and is located near Boonesboro, Maryland within Washington Monument …
Continue reading "Hiking – AT NOBO – Crampton Gap to Washington Monument"
Starting the Maryland section of the Appalachian Trail (NOBO)...well sort of. We skipped the first few miles along the C&O Canal and started at Weverton Cliffs along the ridge of South Mountain to Crampton Gap. 6.3 miles one-way.
Day hike of the Southernmost section of PA on the AT. 7.6 miles from Old Forge to Pen Mar Park. Elevation gain of 1,900 feet.
A 50 mile loop from Lake Needwood in Rockville, MD to the National Mall in DC and back. It seemed like the time was right to explore via bike and investigate the state of the COVID-19 pandemic in the nation's capital.
It appears that winter is already over. In fact it seems like it's been over for a month. It's been unseasonably warm with temperatures in the 70s on multiple days in Maryland. I suppose I didn't take my own advice all that much this winter to go outside in the cold, but we wrapped up …
Continue reading "Exploring – Green Ridge State Forest by truck"
A hike at one of my favorite places on the Appalachian Trail. A 10 mile thru-hike around Smithsburg, MD to the Mason-Dixon Line.
Hiking at Gunpowder Falls (Hereford Area) and Prettyboy Reservoir in Baltimore County, MD. Our trip was cut short due to bad weather, but we made the most it.
Once you have completed the C&O canal from DC to Cumberland, you can continue directly onto the Great Allegheny Passage, or GAP for short. The GAP has a much better reputation among cyclists. The surface is crushed stone which is very tightly packed. It is also meticulously maintained. I saw crews in multiple locations either …
Continue reading "Shooting the GAP – biking the Great Allegheny Passage in two days (or less)"
The C&O Towpath (trail) is 184.5 miles long and runs parallel to the Potomac River and the partially-completed Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. It runs from Washington DC to Cumberland MD (it never made it to the Ohio River). I have a history with this trail. On two occasions I have attempted to complete the entire …
Continue reading "The C&O Canal Towpath – biking North in two days"
Ideally I would have started today's ride at 9, but 10 at the latest. I was able to get myself out of bed at 7:30, so I had a shot to start earlyish. I stayed up at my friend Allen's place playing some bizarre video games until 11pm the night before. Probably should have gone …
Continue reading "It’s really good to have friends – day 2 on the bike tour"
So the plan was to start early; no later than 9. However I didn't sleep well the previous two nights so I allowed myself to catch up on sleep. So I wound up getting up at 9 and not leaving until about 11:30. I think it was worth it. I didn't want to start the …
Continue reading "The first day is the hardest – starting a bike tour"
