| July 11, 2005 |
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The sun is shinning already. It looks
like it's going to be a pretty day. Left the shelter at
7:35am. |
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I should be coming to Annapolis Rock in
about a mile. I'm still hiking up this road, really rocky, but
the road is clear, don't have any weeds to contend with. It's
made up of little rolling stones that just naturally come up out of
the ground. I had a couple of gray squirrels jump out in front
of me. Hiking along this road with the dappled sun coming
through the tree canopies is really pretty this morning. I bet
its going to be hot today! |
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I must be starting to hike along the ridge
line, there's some huge big boulders beside of me along the road.
There are many patches of ferns as undergrowth of the trees.
It's very still this morning. I hear a few birds, I must be
hiking rapidly enough that I'm getting the air sound by my ears. |
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I just met a couple of early morning day
hikers, but no one else on the trail. Yesterday I met probably 20
day hikers. I have a quarter of mile off the at to the
Annapolis rock. It looks like its straight down, but I think
it's going to be worth the view. Annapolis was the same view
that I had seen from the Washington Monument, except a little
farther north. |
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Back on the AT, still hiking the road bed
with lots of laurel growing up beside the road, lot of undergrowth
now getting into the woods. I stopped to rest at the Pogo
Campsite for a little while. |
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The trail now is really rocky, a lot more
rugged, but more like a washed out RV road, very wide and has been
all the way down through here. It's getting a lot more
rockier. The goats beard is blooming along side the trail.
The spider webs and worms are out in full force. Most of time
the spider webs catch me right across my nose or chin, underneath
the neck, some place I have to battle with them and have to try to
wipe them off. It's getting late enough that I'm beginning to
pas day hikers. There are a lot ankle busters in the trail in
this area, but at least the trail is flat. Most of the AT in
Maryland has been flat. Smooth, park like hiking. |
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In the last 20 minutes this trail has
gotten very rocky. I'm rock hopping from one rock to another.
Also I must be right on the ridge top because the span of the land
goes out a little bit from the trail and then it kind of drops off
over the hill. These rock must be getting me ready for the PA
rocks. All though I've had enough rocks by now. |
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Rock piles that I was telling you about
previously, they look like they've been dumped and then they built a
trail right through them. Rough! There goes a little
guarder looking snake, brown with yellow stripes. Crawling
right through the middle of the path. Simon saw it first!
It's amazing how the maintainers can put a trail through those
rocks. I can see now why they took us off the top of the
ridge. I'm standing here looking at huge boulders that are
right on that ridge line. They are probably 30 feet high.
There's more boulders over my head, some are vertical and some are
diagonal. |
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I've been walking downhill and there's been
a break in the rocks, but now the trail has turned and is going
straight up hill, and right over the rock piles. I had to take
the rock pile straight up over the hill, over the top of it and the
trail is bringing us straight down the rock pile on the other side.
I headed on the east side of the mountain, where I was on the west
side. After I got the stoned trail switchbacks the trail
became smooth down hill and I was practically running off the hill. |
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I just crossed Maryland 17 and I going into
the Ensign Cowall Shelter for a break and rest get something to eat. |
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It is now 1:30pm, back on the AT. I
ate lunch with a group of boy scouts, taking a day of rest and
leaving tomorrow. Immediately the trail went straight up and
rocky. Going very close to some large boulders and up
underneath them. I must be up over the hill now. The trail is
smooth, except it's down to a foot path now. It's very weedy
and the underbrush in the woods comes right up to the trail. |
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Going through the partial stone fence again, it's right
on the trail. There are some popular and oak trees in
this area, probable 18 to 24 inched is diameter. I see why it
was so small going through there, it's private property on both
sides. I'm in a open hot field that looks like it's private
property that they let the AT people go through. Several small
houses in this community. Looks like a guy working in his
garden. The land is getting pretty hilly form this point on. |
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It looks like were going into a cow field,
where we have to step in between the patties. Here again I'm
crossing this partial stone raw fence. Some pretty white
yarrow and daisies and black-eyed Susan's in the field along with
some clovers that are blooming. Very hot and open. They
do keep the trail cut here, I don't have a lot of weeds brushing up
against me. |
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Now I'm back into the woods, the
shade and the weeds! I'll have to check myself after a while
for ticks. Sounds like I'm very near Foxville Rd. I've
been taking advantage of these very weedy areas, where the weeds are
very close to the trail, because there's a lot of raspberries in
them and so when I see them I pick a hand full or two. |
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Right backs into the rocks and boulders,
with mosquitoes buzzing in my ears. |
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Swing'n Jane and
Simon |
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