Knoxville, Md.

The last thing I expected to do yesterday afternoon was hike.

I’ve finally gotten back to the Trail after several weeks off, spent back home in New Hampshire. But I suppose this isn’t exactly a thru-hike anymore.

Because of the time I’ve had to spend off the trail, I’ve decided to skip a section and do a flip-flop. I got into Harpers Ferry, W. Va., yesterday afternoon, and I’ll complete the section between there and Erwin, Tenn., later. I did this because I wouldn’t have enough time if I hiked all the way up from there, since Baxter State Park in Maine closes October 15. Once I’ve done Katahdin, around late September, I’ll come back for this last section.

So I got off the train in Harpers Ferry yesterday and promptly found every hotel, hostel, and hole in the wall in Harpers Ferry completely full. The town was bursting at the seams with tourists who were there to check out the Civil War exhibits and spend their money. I got an overpriced sandwich at an overpriced tourist trap restaurant with a barely functional waitress and then hiked out of town.

The Trail out of town follows the C&O Canal Towpath for about 2.9 miles before veering northward. The Towpath follows the decommissioned C&O Canal for 184 miles from Washington, D.C., to Cumberland, Md. From there it connects to other trails which go all the way to Pittsburgh. The canal was built because upstream of D.C. the Potomac River is too shallow and rocky to navigate safely.

The sun was going down and I wanted to make it to the hostel outside of town before it got dark, and so I was almost flying past a couple of slack-jawed day hikers who couldn’t believe I was carrying much more than them and still moving faster. I hardly believe it myself.

So I hiked the virtually flat 2.9 miles in almost record time, and then another 1.1 miles off the Trail to the Harpers Ferry Hostel, where I discovered I have a blister. This is the first one I’ve gotten on this hike. I finally get to break out the moleskin I’ve been carrying for three months! I’m taking a day off to deal with it and I’ll start hiking for real tomorrow.