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Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The town's population was 269 at the 2020 United States census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, where Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia meet, it is the easternmost town in West Virginia.
The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost 2,200 miles (3,540 km) between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy claims the Appalachian Trail to be the world's longest hiking-only trail. More than three million people hike segments of it each year.
The Tuscarora Trail is a 252-mile (406 km) hiking trail in the eastern United States, following the Appalachian Mountains through portions of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. Its route is roughly parallel to, and to the west of, the Appalachian Trail.
The Allegheny Mountain Range, informally the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the Eastern United States and Canada and posed a significant barrier to land travel in less developed eras. The Allegheny Mountains have a northeast–southwest orientation, running for about 300 miles (480 km) from north-central Pennsylvania southward, through western Maryland and eastern West Virginia.
The Potomac Heritage Trail, also known as the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail or the PHT, is a designated National Scenic Trail corridor spanning parts of the mid-Atlantic region of the United States that will connect various trails and historic sites in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia. The trail network includes 710 miles (1,140 km) of existing and planned sections, tracing the natural, historical, and cultural features of the Potomac River corridor, the upper Ohio River watershed in Pennsylvania and western Maryland, and a portion of the Rappahannock River watershed in Virginia. The trail is managed by the National Park Service and is one of three National Trails that are official NPS units.
Old Rag Mountain is a 3,284 feet (1,001 m) mountain near Sperryville in Madison County, Virginia. A part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the peak is located within Shenandoah National Park and is the most popular hiking destination within the park.
The New York – New Jersey Trail Conference (NYNJTC) is a volunteer-based federation of approximately 10,000 individual members and about 100 member organizations. The conference coordinates the maintenance of 2,000 miles of foot trails around the New York metropolitan area, from the Delaware Water Gap, north to beyond the Catskill Mountains, including the Appalachian Trail through New York and New Jersey. It also works to protect open space and publishes books and trail maps. The organization's headquarters are at 600 Ramapo Valley Road, Mahwah, New Jersey.
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of the Appalachian Trail, a route in the eastern United States that runs from Maine to Georgia. Founded in 1925, the ATC is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Appalachian Trail under a cooperative agreement executed with the National Park Service. It is the lead non-governmental organization in protecting the trail's 2,193 miles (3,529 km), 250,000-acre (1,000 km²) greenway and coordinates the work of some thirty-one Appalachian Trail maintenance clubs, performing almost all of the on-the-ground maintenance work. The National Trails System Act, which established the National Trails System and brought the Appalachian Trail into the federal estate, enabled the trail to be managed as it had been since 1925, with central agency and NGO (ATC) coordination, but most trail work being performed by, in 2019, almost 6,000 volunteers.
The Potomac Highlands of West Virginia centers on five West Virginian counties in the upper Potomac River watershed in the western portion of the state's Eastern Panhandle, bordering Maryland and Virginia. Because of geographical proximity, similar topography and landscapes, and shared culture and history, the Potomac Highlands region also includes Pocahontas, Randolph, and Tucker counties, even though they are in the Monongahela River or New River watersheds and not that of the Potomac River.
The Appalachian National Scenic Trail spans 14 U.S. states over its roughly 2,200 miles (3,500 km): Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. The southern end is at Springer Mountain, Georgia, and it follows the ridgeline of the Appalachian Mountains, crossing many of its highest peaks and running almost continuously through wilderness before reaching the northern end at Mount Katahdin, Maine.
Fort Valley is a mountain valley located primarily in Shenandoah County, Virginia. It is often called "valley within a valley" as it lies between the two arms of the northern part of the Blue Ridge mountain range in the Shenandoah Valley in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians geological zone.
The Corbin Cabin is a log structure built by George T. Corbin in 1909 in the Nicholson Hollow area of what is now Shenandoah National Park. Corbin was forced to vacate the land on which the cabin sits in 1938, when the land was added to Shenandoah National Park. The cabin is unique in that it is one of a small number of buildings located in Nicholson Hollow spared during the creation of the park, and still remains standing despite recent forest fires.
Shenandoah National Park is a national park in the Eastern United States that encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its broad valley to the west, and the rolling hills of the Virginia Piedmont to the east. Skyline Drive is the main park road, generally traversing along the ridgeline of the mountains. Almost 40% of the park's land—79,579 acres —has been designated as wilderness areas and is protected as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. The highest peak is Hawksbill Mountain at 4,051 feet (1,235 m).
The Massanutten Trail is a 71-mile (114 km) National Recreation Trail located in George Washington National Forest in Central Virginia. Much of the path is steep and rugged terrain, and presents many mountain vistas. The trail traverses the Massanutten Range around its inner valley. Shenandoah National Park is to the east, and Great North Mountain is west.
Signal Knob is the northern peak of Massanutten Mountain in the Ridge and Valley Appalachians with an elevation of 2,106 feet (642 m). It is located in George Washington National Forest in Shenandoah County and Warren County in Virginia.
Ramsey's Draft Wilderness is a designated wilderness area in the North River Ranger District of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests of Virginia in the United States. The wilderness area was established in 1984 and comprises 6,518 acres (26.38 km2). It is administered by the US Forest Service.
The Rocky Run shelter(s) are backcountry shelters located on the Appalachian Trail near Boonsboro, Maryland. They are situated next to the Rocky Run spring and a steep hill side. The original Rocky Run shelter sleeps six people, has a flat floor, and provides enough space to sit up. The new shelter can sleep up to sixteen and features a wood floor and a plywood-floored loft, as well as a covered front deck and large windows which flood the shelter with light. Accommodations available include two decks, a grill pit, porch swing, and semi-enclosed privy.
The Bull Run-Occoquan Trail (BROT) is a hiking trail in the U.S. state of Virginia. Designated in 2006 as a National Recreation Trail, the Bull Run-Occoquan Trail invites hikers and horseback riders to discover more than 4,000 acres of scenic woodlands.
Edward B. Garvey thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1970 and in 1971 published a book about his adventure, Appalachian Hiker, that raised awareness of thru-hiking.
Paul Jay Bradt (1904–1978) has been called the father of rock climbing in the Washington, D.C., area. He was instrumental in developing interest in the sport, was a founding member and first chair of the rock climbing branch of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, and pioneered historic climbs and cave explorations in the 1930s and 1940s. Bradt was introduced to rock climbing by Gustave Gambs (1868-1958) who had learned the sport in Europe. He soon became an active proponent of rock climbing, introducing many people to the sport, some of whom became leaders in the field, such as Don Hubbard, Arnold Wexler, and Herb and Jan Conn. Bradt and his colleagues explored and developed early climbing routes at Great Falls, VA, Carderock, MD, Seneca Rocks, WV, Old Rag Mountain in Shenandoah National Park, VA, and in the Teton Range.
References
- ↑ Shenandoah National Park - PATC Cabins (U.S. National Park Service). Retrieved from the NPS website February 12, 2008.
- Notes
- The Potomac Appalachian, the newsletter of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club.
- The Bulletin, the original newsletter of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (early years).
- Shenandoah National Park - Appalachian Trail History