Harpers Ferry to Compton Gap

[igost]

Looking to do a small section I missed - from Harpers Ferry to Compton Gap.
It's about 60 miles, or 3 days of walking. I can allocate up to 7-10 days for this trip.

Is there any way to make it a loop instead of out-and-back?
I know I can get from Compton Gap to Front Royal via Dickey Ridge, but can't figure out how to get from Front Royal back to Harpers Ferry.
Or maybe there are hiking options east of AT?

Also, could you recommend a place to park a car in Harpers Ferry for a week or so?

TIA

[Slo-go'en]

Unless you want to do a lot of road walking, no.

You might be able to do an Aquablaze on the Shenandoah river.

3 days to get to Campton Gap? Hope you know what your getting into.

No doubt you'll want to spent the night at a hostel in HF so you can get a real, real, real early start to bang out the first 20 miles, the last 10 being part of the Roller Coaster. You might be able to leave your car at the Teahorse hostel.

[igost]

Unless you want to do a lot of road walking, no.

You might be able to do an Aquablaze on the Shenandoah river.

3 days to get to Campton Gap? Hope you know what your getting into.

No doubt you'll want to spent the night at a hostel in HF so you can get a real, real, real early start to bang out the first 20 miles, the last 10 being part of the Roller Coaster. You might be able to leave your car at the Teahorse hostel.

Thanks!

I don't know for sure what I'm getting into. But I typically do about 20 miles a day on AT.

[RiverbirchHiker]

Regarding the parking question:
I know of two options below and neither are flexible or ideal. I'd like to hear other options.

I haven't been able to make this official NPS parking lot work, because the parking lot used to close outside business hours. I'm not sure if that's changed, and I'm not sure if coronavirus has closed this lot.
Here's the NPS option: There's overnight AT parking available at the NPS visitor center lot. There's a permit system, they allow up to 14 days, and they'll shuttle folks to the lower part of town (though that schedule is limited too and you can just walk anyway).
https://www.nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/parking.htm

I've left my car at the Hostel International at Sandy Springs, Maryland (just across the bridge from Harpers Ferry). A stay at the hostel is required to do that. I've stayed at the hostel before and after hiking, to give myself an extra day to sightsee at Harpers Ferry (cool place, loads of interesting history, shops, etc...)
Problem there is the pedestrian bridge linking MD & Harpers Ferry is closed, and a hostel stay is def. not in the plans for most people.
---------

Wow, averaging 20 miles/day is fast hiking, especially for sections (as opposed to thru-hiking)! More power to you to be able to plan that kind of pace in advance...
Enjoy your time out there...

[igost]

Regarding the parking question:
I know of two options below and neither are flexible or ideal. I'd like to hear other options.

I haven't been able to make this official NPS parking lot work, because the parking lot used to close outside business hours. I'm not sure if that's changed, and I'm not sure if coronavirus has closed this lot.
Here's the NPS option: There's overnight AT parking available at the NPS visitor center lot. There's a permit system, they allow up to 14 days, and they'll shuttle folks to the lower part of town (though that schedule is limited too and you can just walk anyway).
https://www.nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/parking.htm

I've left my car at the Hostel International at Sandy Springs, Maryland (just across the bridge from Harpers Ferry). A stay at the hostel is required to do that. I've stayed at the hostel before and after hiking, to give myself an extra day to sightsee at Harpers Ferry (cool place, loads of interesting history, shops, etc...)
Problem there is the pedestrian bridge linking MD & Harpers Ferry is closed, and a hostel stay is def. not in the plans for most people.
---------

Wow, averaging 20 miles/day is fast hiking, especially for sections (as opposed to thru-hiking)! More power to you to be able to plan that kind of pace in advance...
Enjoy your time out there...

According to NPS website, HF parking lot is closed and no timeframe for re-opening is given.
From what I read, Teahorse hostel will let you park your car there for a small fee, even if you are not staying with them.

As to 20 miles per day - I did entire Shenandoah from Front Royal to Rockfish Gap in 5.5 days last year. Hiked from Clark's Ferry to Harpers Ferry in 6 days 2 years ago.
Don't see why I can't do the same in Harpers Ferry/Compton Gap section.

[Slo-go'en]

You probably can, but the HF to Campton gap section is a bit rougher then the two sections you mention. And of course, it will be hot. Plus there is the little detail of shelter/campsite spacing.

[igost]

You probably can, but the HF to Campton gap section is a bit rougher then the two sections you mention. And of course, it will be hot. Plus there is the little detail of shelter/campsite spacing.

Is trailside camping allowed there or it's only designated sites?
What's the situation with water in June? Is it Pennsylvania-bad or better?

TIA

[LittleRock]

You can "stealth camp" pretty much anywhere on that section, except in Shenandoah NP. Water shouldn't be an issue.

My recommendation: If you only need to do Harper's Ferry to Front Royal, just stop at Front Royal. There's nothing special in the northernmost 10 miles of Shenandoah, IMO. The Mountain Home hostel (100 feet from the AT where it crosses US Hwy 522) is open, according to their facebook page.

If you can do 20 miles/day on the trail, you could take the train to Harper's Ferry, hike south to Front Royal, take a zero and resupply at Mountain Home, and hike back in a total of 7 days.

[igost]

You can "stealth camp" pretty much anywhere on that section, except in Shenandoah NP. Water shouldn't be an issue.

My recommendation: If you only need to do Harper's Ferry to Front Royal, just stop at Front Royal. There's nothing special in the northernmost 10 miles of Shenandoah, IMO. The Mountain Home hostel (100 feet from the AT where it crosses US Hwy 522) is open, according to their facebook page.

If you can do 20 miles/day on the trail, you could take the train to Harper's Ferry, hike south to Front Royal, take a zero and resupply at Mountain Home, and hike back in a total of 7 days.

Thanks!

I started at Front Royal last year - walked Dickie Ridge to Carson Mountain near Compton Gap. Doesn't make sense for me to go back there.
Due to the current situation would like to avoid public transportation as well.

Taking a shuttle from Harpers Ferry and hiking the way back seems like the most logical choice at the moment.

[Slo-go'en]

Use Guthook to locate tent sites. Your not going to find a suitable site anywhere else unless you don't mind sleeping in the poison ivy or thorn bushes. Nearly all of them are dry camps. Shelter water sources should be fine, if not a bit of a walk to get to. Also use Guthook to locate water sources and comment on their condition. Once past the roller coaster which starts about 10 miles south of HF, it easies up a lot.

[igost]

Here is a quick recapture of my trip:

On Saturday drove to Mountain Home at Rt 522 (excellent B&B/hostel - highly recommend!)
Left my car there, did a quick out-and-back hike to Compton Gap. 12 miles in total, 3000 ft elevation gain, 4.5 hours.
Slept at Mountain Home.

On Sunday left my car at the B&B (only $3 per night), and got a shuttle from them to Harpers Ferry.
Started from John Brown's Fort hiked to Spout Run, 2 hills down from North End of Roller Coaster. 22 miles, 5300 ft elevation gain, 9 hours.
Slept in a beautiful tentsite right near the brook.

On Monday hiked to Ashby Gap and had to cut my hike short because of severe dehydration. 14 miles, 5000 ft elevation gain, 7 hours (got sidetracked at the viewpoint, went in a wrong direction and had to take Buzzard Hill twice).
Got a ride back to Mountain Home, stayed there for another night and drove home.

In all, Roller Coaster didn't feel any special or tougher than nearby sections - was able to maintain my average hiking speed there (~2.5 mph)

[RiverbirchHiker]

....On Monday hiked to Ashby Gap and had to cut my hike short because of severe dehydration. 14 miles, 5000 ft elevation gain, 7 hours (got sidetracked at the viewpoint, went in a wrong direction and had to take Buzzard Hill twice).
Got a ride back to Mountain Home, stayed there for another night and drove home.
In all, Roller Coaster didn't feel any special or tougher than nearby sections - was able to maintain my average hiking speed there (~2.5 mph)

Thanks so much for the trip report. It's always a great thing when folks come back and report on what actually happened after all the planning and expectations.

Sounds like a fabulous trip before the dehydration cut things short.

Can you elaborate on the dehydration you experienced? I think it's a great learning experience for many, to hear how you got into it and how you handled it. It's hot and dry out there right now, so many folks are dealing with hydration issues.

I'm particularly interested in the decision you made to cut the hike short and get a shuttle back.
That's a tough decision to make. It's easy to push forward b/c of lots of reasons (want to finish that particular section; there's got to be water coming up, right?; I can just tough it out, etc....).

[igost]

Thanks so much for the trip report. It's always a great thing when folks come back and report on what actually happened after all the planning and expectations.

Sounds like a fabulous trip before the dehydration cut things short.

Can you elaborate on the dehydration you experienced? I think it's a great learning experience for many, to hear how you got into it and how you handled it. It's hot and dry out there right now, so many folks are dealing with hydration issues.

I'm particularly interested in the decision you made to cut the hike short and get a shuttle back.
That's a tough decision to make. It's easy to push forward b/c of lots of reasons (want to finish that particular section; there's got to be water coming up, right?; I can just tough it out, etc....).

Mostly, bad planning on my part. There is plenty of water out there.
Should've refilled more often, should've stopped for lunch at about 2pm (there was a shelter nearby, with a table and shade), should've set camp after 17-18 miles in.

But I was doing good mileage, felt great and decided to address it all later.
Turned out, later was too late - when I finally set up tent at 8pm, I couldn't eat anything. Didn't feel bad, just tired.
So I went to sleep.

Next morning I realized I still couldn't eat anything. Couldn't even drink water - glad I had Gatorade mix with me.
Basically I walked the next 14 miles on that Gatorade, then got picked up at Ashby Gap - because couldn't keep walking. Came up 1 day of hiking (20 miles) short of my target.

Next time will plan better. No skipping water breaks, no skipping lunch.

[RiverbirchHiker]

Thanks for providing the details. It's exactly what I expected--a story that can really help me (and maybe others). You're in great shape to be able to hike at that pace and pull off 14 miles with little in you on that last day. Fitness can give you some flexibility to work through things and keep hiking.

I've experienced my own versions of this and know exactly what that feels like when you just can't drink water or eat anything. I've also gotten into a salt imbalance before and got into that awful, depleted state at the end of a very long day. Hard to do anything constructive when the depletion is in full force.

During hot summer days (like a week ago in southern NY when it was humid and in the 90's), I've been trying this new thing recently. I'm bringing a small filter (Katadyn BeFree Filter) and drinking a liter of water at each water source I pass in the morning, into the afternoon (in addition to carrying some water). The filter is designed for a quick gulp, where you drink right out of it. It's a 5 minute stop and I'm forcing myself to do it now. I don't need to do it all day, but if I start off with this, I'm pretty hydrated moving into the heat of the day.

I used to talk myself out of stopping to filter water. I'll do it at the next stream, or I'm fine and want to get some miles in first. Its always too late when I get into that kind of thinking!

The Katadyn filter is just a gimmick to get myself to do it. I could do the same thing a bunch of different ways, inc. with my standard-sized Sawyer filter. I also get electrolytes in me and eat salty foods like potato chips.

[RiverbirchHiker]

Your story reminds me to stick with hydrating and emphasizes the risks I used to take.
Doing something later.......it always seems too late!!