I was looking at the River Riders Web site this morning and see that they are a Gold Sponsor of the ATC. There may be an opportunity there.
"Too often I would hear men boast of the miles covered that day, rarely of what they had seen." Louis L’Amour
If you take a walk on the road via Google Earth street view, you can see why. There does look to be a reasonably wide shoulder for most of the distance on the river side, but it does narrow down and nearly disappears in places. The posted speed limit is 45, so you can bet most are going 55.
Just noticed another thing. There is no pedestrian foot path across the sandy hook bridge. Jersey barriers are right up against the old cast iron guard rails and there is no shoulder. Plus I saw big rigs on the road leading up to the bridge. No way would I try to walk across there, except maybe at 3 in morning.
The only other option would be to re-route the trail to come down the east side of the ridge to get closer to the 340 bridge crossing. However, the east side of the ridge has a number of houses on it. I would guess most of that land is private property. It might be possible to cut through someone's backyard to connect to one of the roads that goes up the side of the ridge. But cutting a new trail is something that takes years too. Still have the problem of getting across the bridge safely.
Guess it's a good thing I did HF NOBO last spring
Last edited by Slo-go'en; 01-26-2020 at 10:51.
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The ATC put out an update on the HF bridge, not much new:
"The #AppalachianTrail footbridge crossing the Potomac River in Harpers Ferry is still out of commission following the train derailment on Dec. 21, 2019, negotiations are underway to ensure that the footbridge is restored as quickly as possible.Details on the restoration and timetable for reopening the footbridge have not been finalized, however — while the footbridge remains closed, hikers should continue to make their own arrangements for shuttle services to bypass the closure.
Hikers are not advised to walk on Highway 340 to cross into Maryland, as this roadway has narrow shoulders and heavy traffic. Information about available transportation options can be found at appalachiantrail.org/transportation."
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"Chainsaw" GA-ME 2011
Good to hear negotiations are under way with contractors to repair the footway over the river.
It's a pretty complex process with a lot of moving parts that have to be addressed prior to engaging contractors who will do the actual rebuilding. Financial responsibility alone may become a litigious hurdle prior to performing the engineering work and develop plans that will need review and permitting before much visible work can start. While this may be fast tracked, it will still take a few months to get things sorted out.
In the meantime, there is a business opportunity there for the entrepreneur.
I agree with you but have you let the ATC know directly? I know Laurie follows the forum, but making direct contact with them will send a more urgent message. Here's the page for contact details:
http://appalachiantrail.org/home/about-us/get-in-touch
Scott
You can always take a shuttle, as recommended the ATC, until the bridge is rebuilt. The ATC, and NPS, have limited budgets. It’s quite possible that the RR, or their insurance, will pay to rebuild the foot bridge. A reroute of the trail could be costly to get the proper easements, and build the reroute. I think it is perfectly reasonable for hikers to use a shuttle until the footbridge is rebuilt.
Last edited by gpburdelljr; 02-01-2020 at 20:35.
I’ll be damned if I waited 15 years to thru hike and end up taking a yellow blaze? Not going to happen.
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I suspect this will take a couple of years to work out. First there has to be a determination for responsibility (all RR fault or perhaps some other factor/party has partial). Then there has to be some sort of determination of how much liability they bare and an attempt to settlement. This could be fast or dragged out for years in legal limbo. Then there is getting the bridge replaced. Are there new regulations that require new environmental studies to be performed? Finding someone who can do the work within the financial limitations of the settlement and then getting the thing actually built. Unless the government steps in with some financial backing to help move things along, I betting on 5 years. Someone want to start a poll on how long they think?
I think as of now they're only offering shuttles to weaverton? Maybe by the time thru hikers start coming through someone will be offering shuttles to sandy hook rd . That would put you right across the bridge on the c&o, AT . If not you'll have to back track the 3.5 miles or so . It's pretty easy to do , if you don't want to miss any steps it's a nice easy flat walk along the river. ( AT- c&o canal) .
Last edited by rickb; 02-01-2020 at 22:26.