Harpers Ferry to Kent (Mile 1026 to Mile 1474)
From Harpers Ferry, the trail continues into Maryland and then Pennsylvania. Maryland and the first part of Pennsylvania was a welcome break from the Virginia grind and constant hills. The terrain became easier & faster, with plenty of civil war history to break up the days of walking.
The Mason/Dixon line is in Maryland, and I don’t think the line has moved much over time. Slow-traveling through a country allows time to get a better insight into the culture. It was apparent that the southern states conform with “Southern” values and the northern states much more “Northern”. What was surprising is how fast the culture swaps between the two – this occurred through southern Pennsylvania. Towns were consistently “southern” up to Maryland, then there’s a patchwork where it flips southern/northern a few times, then solidly “northern”. It was really interesting to observe
Rocky trails in Pennsylvania. A sign of things to come…
Shortly after entering Pennsylanvia, the half-way point is finally reached! It’s a bitter-sweet moment, recognising that there’s still a long long way to go…
The half way moves around a bit, as the trail gets minor changes and revisions over time. Always nice to be able to celebrate multiple times!
One of the more bizarre half way milestones is the “half gallon challenge” at the Ironmasters hostel. Of course, the ice cream they sell comes in a container slightly less than a half gallon, so hikers also buy a pint to ensure the half gallon is consumed. Sounds like great marketing for selling icecream!
1100 miles done!
The (unofficial) half way point
Next highlight was Duncannon, where the rocky trail of “Rocksylvania” really starts. Leading into Duncannon is quite flat and fast, and I easily completed a 26 mile “half marathon” day from Boiling Springs.
Most hikers struggle with the rocks in the next section. Yes, they are slow and brutal, but I found that it wasn’t as tough as I expected. I think this was largely due to my choice to hike in proper hiking boots rather than the popular trail runners. They provide a lot more support and resistance to the rocks underfoot, and really are a better tool for the job. Personally, I prefer the high ankle support and solid sole to the lighter trail runners
Duncannon, Pennsylvania
Yes, this is the trail
Plenty of views in this section
In some places, the rocks were ridiculous!
Finally coming out of Pennsylvania, there’s hope that the rocks disappear once you reach New Jersey and New York. Nope! That’s just hype to keep you going. Some sections in these two states are a real scramble…
But one advantage of these more populous states is the concept of “deli-blazing”. There’s a lot more taverns, cafes and restaurants close to the trail that give hikers the chance to eat real food. These are always very welcome!
Crossing into New Jersey
Flatter rock-free terrain felt very fast!
In addition to the gourmet meals, a highlight through this section is the Warwick Drive-In. The drive-in cinema allows AT hikers to camp for free at the back of the cinema and watch the evening movie. For $5 you can hire a radio to hear the soundtrack, and for another $5 even hire a comfortable chair!
The movie of the night was Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny – although within 30 minutes of the movie starting, all but three of the hikers had gone to bed! Hikers tend to go to bed very early on trail…
Camping at the Warwick drive-in cinema
This section of the trail also has the most trail magic! There were plenty of groups out providing hikers with much-needed breaks from the trail. These unexpected breaks and opportunities to meet people really reflect the great AT culture and is definitely a highlight of the trail experience
Two ex-hiker families cooking for hikers in Pennsylvania
Sometimes lucky enough to arrive during magic setup!
The trail passes close by New York, so took a few days off to take a break. There’s a train station on hte AT itself, but unfortunately trains only stop there on weekends… There are a couple of access points for buses, however.
Returning to the trail, we finished the New York section and entered Connecticut. First stop was Kent for resupply, at which point it started raining. This was quite exciting, as the weather had been exceptionally dry up to this point – leading to some difficulties obtaining water from streams. Fortunately trail angels left water bottles at strategic road crossings for hikers.
The rain in Kent continued up until the campsite that night. Little did we know at that point that it would end up a 1-in-500 year rain event and cause major damage to the trail!
