Blackburn Trail Center

[Rogue]

Backpacker Magazine should be called Yuppiepacker. Once every six issues there is a small story that might be of some use to a few backpackers. If they didn't like Bjorn he must be a true thru.
As for the Blackburn I always plan to go there but when I get to the junction I remember that there is no food there (unless you stumble upon an angel), and walk on by.

I just emailed Backpacker mag yesterday evening about that very thing. I was a charter member when Backpacker came out and they only had 4 issues a year; bulky, high gloss, glued backbone (no staples) and fabulous articles and photos. All the ads were from equipment manufacturers and food suppliers. I recently bought a copy and was sorely disappointed in the quantity and quality of what had once been worth having. I even used the yuppie word on them too. When I read your post I had to laugh. I see that others view that rag and subpar as well. Maybe my little blast of reality will inspire them to do something about their quality. Anyway, thanks for the great chuckle and have a great new year.

[Lone Wolf]

Rumor has it that Backpacker Ragazine is the sole sponsor of Trail Days this year. There goes the neighborhood.

[screwysquirrel]

Didn't the neighborhood go back in 2001?

[blisters]

My hiking buddy and myself also had the honor to meet and hike with Bjorn. It was back in June of 98'. We met Bjorn at the ATC center in Boiling Springs, PA. One of the first things he ask us was if we had money and wanted to get a room together. Well, that freaked us out and we took off further down the trail. The next morning, as we were breaking down camp, Bjorn had passed our campsite. He didn't see us, so after we got on the trial, we figured we would get to know this guy a little better. We ended up hiking with Bjorn the entire day. He told us everything under the moon: he didn't believe in U.S. currency, he lived on an island of the coast of Maine, he was sparring partner with some famous boxer in the 60's, just to name a few. He did tell us all about the yellow blazing thing. After taking a nap at our shelter for the night, he took off for God know's where (he said the next shelter). He wanted us to go, but we declined. I do remember that night on heck of a thunderstorm hit and he was out there in it. Anyway, at the time we were a bunch of young newbies to the hiking experience, he did have a lot of good tips about hiking, that we still use today. Heck of nice guy!

Hmm, I'd love to chat about Bjorn (one of my favorite topics) but I'm not sure if we should in this forum. I can answer, "Whatever happened with..."

Bjorn Thruhiked for the first time in '95. That was the year Backpacker magazine sent out crews to "hike along with the thruhikers." In the October (I believe) issue, they just SLAMMED Bjorn. Hard. It was painful to read. But, true to himself, Bjorn did not take that lying down.

He was accused of being a non-thruhiker, yellowblazer, horrible company, bad man, cookie monster, you-name-it. And above ALL ELSE, he wasn't a purist (they ran the article from a purist standpoint). The next year (when I met him) he was the purest of the pure. Really. He made up the most stringent rules I've ever heard of - not even Wingfoot would have a word to say about these rules - they were tight.

He hiked EVERY day. It may only have been from one blaze to the next (did a lot of that in Damascus) but he did it. It had to be with loaded pack on. To make these small trips more contiguous and to off-put any potential naysayers, he rehiked most of these small section on the last day he was in a town! Crazy.

Anyhow, old Bjorn made it to Katahdin all 3 years (he also hiked the next year). If EVER there was a hiker that was the true Hike-Your-Own-Hiker, it was Bjorn.

I miss him. But that's ok, he gave me a million great memories.

[neo]

i stopped there in may 2002 for a little break,they gave a soda,i used the rest room filled my water bottle and hiked on to the david lesser shelter neo

[The Hog]

I was the caretaker at the Blackburn Center back in 1985. Back then, it was badly infested with fleas. I bombed the heck out of 'em and routed 'em. Some members of the PATC were mad at me for using toxic pesticides (one of them even said, 'All you have to do is wet mop the place.' She wet mopped the place and it had no effect - none - on the fleas).

Beware, there ARE rattlesnakes in the area - I encountered two of them in the two months or so I was there.

One day, a bearded thru hiker came down to stay overnight on the porch. We had a nice chat and he asked me about my thru hike the previous year, specifically did I remember a ridgerunner named Tom Leonard in Massachusetts? Yeah, I met him and went on to describe Tom and mentioned what a good guy he was, etc.

This thru hiker looked at me in silence for several long, pregnant moments, then said, "I'm Tom Leonard." I just about fell off my chair laughing at my own cluelessness!

[jackiebolen]

The roller-coaster was a nightmare when I did it...so, so hot and humid. So it made my entire month when the nice caretaker at Blackburn gave me a cold soda, fixed up a cut on my hand for me and then I took a shower.

Then free supper later.

Then I checked in the hiker box and found large amounts of free Liptons.

All in all, an extremely enjoyable night....not to be missed!

[BonzNRio]

I've visited & stayed at Blackburn many times since my thru hike in 97.I've met alot of the trail maintainers & have helped when I could.I totally appreciate what these folks do.Take a sec & imagine if there was no suck thing as trail maintainers.Where is TrailBoss & his wonderful wife these days? Great folks/Great hostel.Very worth the walk off the trail. ~Peace~

[partly cloudy]

Is Blackburn Center open during the "off" months? Like Jan. Feb. and March. I gotta complete that section and will be there in Feb. or March. If not there, maybe Bear's Den.
First attempt, the heat, the rain, the roller coaster.

[Sly]

Is Blackburn Center open during the "off" months? Like Jan. Feb. and March. I gotta complete that section and will be there in Feb. or March. If not there, maybe Bear's Den.
First attempt, the heat, the rain, the roller coaster.

It's open year round. There's a small hiker cabin just to the south of the Blackburn Centers main complex. It has a wood stove and wood to burn. Just go in and make yourself at home.

[partly cloudy]

Thanks Sly If your in the area, I'll keep the fire goin' for ya.

[jamarshall]

Stopped in last Saturday and lucked into a meeting of the ALDHA planners. Couldn't be a nicer group of people. Shared dinner, slides and breakfast the next morning. The caretaker was great too, kept asking if there was anything that I needed. But all I really wanted was someplace to stay out of the rain. I found that and a lot more. It was well worth the long walk down the hill. Thanks to all!

[weary]

Is Blackburn Center open during the "off" months? Like Jan. Feb. and March. I gotta complete that section and will be there in Feb. or March. If not there, maybe Bear's Den.
First attempt, the heat, the rain, the roller coaster.

I stopped in '93. The cabin was open. Nothing else. I never did notice the rollwe coaster. I kept looking for it, but eventually I ended Harpers Ferry.

I met Bjorn in '95 when I went back to pick up Connecticut and Massachusetts, that time had required me to bypass two years earlier. Bjorn was still into yellow blazing at that time. I didn't particularly object. HYOH. But he didn't strike me as a serious "thru hiker."

Weary

[troglobil]

If its the same place,I stopped for the night here in '86 during a section hike. I slept in the screened in porch on a couch and watched the bats flying around catching bugs. I guess the screen had a few holes in it. I couldn't tell you who the caretaker was, but very friendly.

[Skyline]

Bjorn was one of a kind. Whatever happened to him? Last time I saw him must have been a Trail Days five or six years back--maybe longer.

[no_granola]

I'm planning on finishing my section hike somewhere at Blackburn Center in a couple of weeks. Does anyone know if I can park there?

I'll be starting out from the Susquehanna River.

[dovecote]

Yes you can. There are several spots to park your vehicle right before you reach the Center. I have been there on a couple of occasions and safety has not been a concern. The road is gravel/dirt for the last few miles and a high clearance vehicle is preferred. Sounds like you will be parking your vehicle long term there, You certainly should notify the caretaker at Blackburn about the duration.

[Patrickjd9]

The roller-coaster was a nightmare when I did it...so, so hot and humid.

The heat and humidity are a lot more an issue than the physical difficulty of the trail. It is also at a low elevation--making it that much hotter.

It's also not very scenic, being a section of low scrubby trees with a lot of vines.

As for us DC people, being parked behind a desk all day makes hiking (and trail work) that much more worthwhile

[Peanut]

I'm trying to do a section hike from there...can anyone give me directions? (Coming from Baltimore) Thanks!

[Lilred]

The Blackburn Center is being run now by Hopeful and Redwing, thru hikers from last year. Great folks.