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Former Admin
10-19-2002, 11:46
Info, questions, comments, experiences (good or bad) regarding - Rocky Run Shelter

Past/Present hikers - what can future hikers expect here? Have any good stories or memories from here?

Future hikers - any questions?

Jumpstart
10-21-2002, 20:36
This shelter was pretty small, one of the older ones, you can't sit upright in it without smacking your head. But it does have a really nice cooking/kitchen area with benches, and a great porch swing, and afew tenting spots. Good place to shoot for if you are coming out of Harpers Ferry and want an easy day...

Mini-Mosey
02-28-2003, 19:14
Ah, Rocky Run will always have a special place in my heart because it was where I went on my very first backpacking experience!! That was in March, 2000. I was over-packed, wrongly-packed, and thought I'd die when I started up the hill from Crampton Gap.(I forgot the name of that state park) I only went 5 miles and it started to rain with thunder and lightning. I met some other guys on the way and then stopping by the shelter and they knew I was new at this game, as I asked them some questions and definitely looked the novice! Like I said, the shelter was only a 5-mile hike but quite enough for me!! I survived it, learned from it as I have continued to do on all of my subsequent backpacking trips.

Mini-Mosey
03-02-2003, 02:21
I forgot to add that the water source was awesome-plenty of water strongly flowing through a pipe . I haven't been to this shelter for a couple of years or so, maybe longer, but back then the water source was great.

Ezra
03-02-2003, 10:45
Nice location. Large tent area. half mile north is a campsite with hot showers. I would stay at Rocky Run again. I remember a small memorial in memory of John Denver there, it was shortly after his death that I was at Rocky Run.

Papa Bear
06-01-2003, 13:03
Here's (http://gallery.backcountry.net/papabear_2003_HF_Duncannon/aav) a shot of Rocky Run Shelter.

Here's one (http://gallery.backcountry.net/papabear_2003_HF_Duncannon/aat) showing the flowing spring.

And here's one (http://gallery.backcountry.net/papabear_2003_HF_Duncannon/aaw) of that renowned wooden swing.

Pb

FlyPaper
07-21-2005, 17:31
Was there in October 2004.

Stopped here early in the afternoon of a short day. Beautiful location with a great water source. It is obviously maintained by people who care. It has a nice porch area with some outdoor furniture ready and waiting.

texashiker
08-11-2005, 03:38
There are campsites up the hill across from the shelter. If it is going to rain it is worth the walk up the hill. There is room for about 5 tents. There is a fire pit also.

glessed
08-18-2005, 13:00
What a joy! There are about 5 tent pads up the hill from the shelter. Also have fire pits. Moss is growing in the immediate area and the tenting area is really fantastic. Much cooler than at the shelter.

I was the only one there on August 8th. I highly recommend this location. If you are going North, I recommend that you stay here before making the 2 mile climb getting to the top of the ridge again.

Programbo
08-23-2005, 18:34
>>>Good place to shoot for if you are coming out of Harpers Ferry and want an easy day...<<<

I always used to do Pine Knob<->Weaverton Shelter or Sandy Hook(Back when there was a shelter there) so I never stayed at Rocky Run on any of my trips..Once I started cheating and just stayed on the hard top road all the way down Lambs Knoll I never even used to go past it..But the few times I did stop there it was a very nice quiet little shelter

Mini-Mosey
09-03-2005, 04:48
I must have missed those tent pads at the top of the hill. There was a sign that read "Campsites on Ridge" and I went up there but I didn't notice tent pads up there, just moss and rocks. I stayed at the camping area just down from the shelter before you go up the hill. I really enjoyed the swing as I was drinking my coffee the next morning!! But unfortunately, I was disappointed that not only was there some trash strewn around that camping area(which has a couple of fire pits)but bits of broken glass.

Mini-Mosey
09-03-2005, 04:50
I was just there Thursday night-Friday morning.

glessed
09-12-2005, 12:36
[QUOTE=Mini-Mosey]I must have missed those tent pads at the top of the hill. There was a sign that read "Campsites on Ridge" and I went up there but I didn't notice tent pads up there, just moss and rocks....

The Tent Pads are up to the right of the "moss and rocks". (A little higher on the ridge).

Mini-Mosey
09-12-2005, 13:50
Thanks, Glessed, I'll check them out when I get up that way again.

knicksin2010
07-02-2006, 13:08
Stopped here for lunch coming out of HF because I wanted to see this swing (very cool). I wouldn't want to be stuck sleeping in there though

Crash
07-02-2006, 15:26
It was great in the cold winter because its so small and has a low ceiling & the entrance had a tarp to keep out the wind.
Ya really want to be out in the open in one of them new Hiltons being rained or snowed on?
I like the old shelters like this one,

EarlyBird2007
09-05-2006, 08:21
Camped there last Friday night (9-1-06) with 4 others, 3 of them southbound thru-hikers. It's a mighty small shelter, only about 4 feet tall at the front. We were there during Ernesto, and there was a small leak. This one could stand to be expanded or replaced. The swing is nice, and so is the outside eating area. Couldn't use the latter, since it was pouring. Good spring too.

Crash
09-05-2006, 09:08
If it's expanded or replaced then more will go there.
Don't do it!

MacYoda
12-14-2006, 16:35
We just put a new cedar roof on the shelter, removing 3 layers of asphalt shingles in the process. In the early spring of 2007, we will jack up the shelter and replace the bottom back log - it is rotten. Then my understanding is in 2007, a new additional shelter will be built nearby, holding about 12 hikers. The original, by the way, is CCC built, around 1940.

MacYoda

EarlyBird2007
12-14-2006, 17:18
We just put a new cedar roof on the shelter, removing 3 layers of asphalt shingles in the process. In the early spring of 2007, we will jack up the shelter and replace the bottom back log - it is rotten. Then my understanding is in 2007, a new additional shelter will be built nearby, holding about 12 hikers. The original, by the way, is CCC built, around 1940.

MacYoda

That section of the AT gets a lot of traffic. The old roof leaked. An additional shelter is a good idea too. Get ready for some objections from the purists. :)

Programbo
12-20-2006, 20:24
What kind of "purists"?...Shelters were always part of the AT and are part of it`s history and tradition.....I seriously doubt there is anyone who could object who was hiking the trail when there wasn`t a shelter at this location! :)

Green Bean
12-21-2006, 23:01
Stayed here once. There were a group of college students camping there. They gave me a ride into town. so nice = ) but theres a parking lot up a blue blaze trail by the bridge. hope i'm thinking of the rite place. ~GB

rswanson
02-27-2007, 18:43
FYI, posted on the blue blaze shelter sign was a notice that this shelter is closed for repairs starting 03/01/07. Did not visit shelter iteslf, but its apprently undergoing renovation.

veteran
02-28-2007, 14:56
From the PATC Newsletter:

Henry Horn and Jack Adams continue their good work with shelters in Maryland. Henry is leading the construction effort of the 21st-Century Rocky Run Shelter. Work has ended at the site for the winter; Henry expects to start back up as soon as the mountain thaws out. Henry is also pressing forward with the new Raven Rock Shelter. Raven Rock is a replacement of the Devils Racecourse Shelter, which will eventually be removed and rebuilt elsewhere. Likewise, Jack Adams' crew is restoring the historic (1941) Rocky Run Shelter as a showcase of CCC construction. Rocky Run is one of only a handful of wood-construction CCC shelters in the East.

partly cloudy
05-28-2007, 16:15
Rocky Run Shelter is CLOSED The crew is busy re-building it and many beams have been removed. The campgrounds are open and the spring flowing as of May 24 '07.

DO NOT plan on using this shelter. Notices posted along the trail.

EarlyBird2007
06-09-2007, 19:51
PATC has torn down this shelter and is in the process of replacing it.

Undershaft
06-25-2007, 16:48
As of 5/21/07 the shelter was boarded up and had signs indicating it was unsafe to stay inside, but the shelter had a brand new roof, so I don't think it will be torn down, just renovated. The spring was gushing and cold. The tent sites on the ridge are nice and it's worth the climb up the hill.

Newb
07-18-2007, 07:22
I was making use of the privvy in 2006 (door open) when a warbler landed at my feet and gave me a preturbed look. It was trying to build a nest and my "constitutional" was interrupting its efforts.

Bubble Toes
08-01-2007, 15:56
The shelter is currently closed for repairs, but the campites and swing are still open. It even looks like they are building a new shelter nearby. It was a great place to stay even with the shelter closed! Just don't camp on the ridge if a storm is rolling in, we saw it get hit a few times.

MrStargazer
09-16-2007, 21:06
I was out for a hike last weekend and visited the shelter. Although we are in drought conditions, and have been all summer, the spring is still running with excellent and strong flow. The sign posted at the the turn-off from the AT says that they are replacing just the two lower courses of logs which were American Chestnut. When I got back to my car in Turner's Gap there was a notice on my windshield saying that parking was by permission only and cars could be towed. The lot is owned by the Olde South Mountain Inn. I didn't investigate further. I've been going there for years and this is new. I don't know how serious they are, but there is a lot of public and historical significance in the gap for access to be strictly limited. The hiker Dahlgren campground is a short walk away.

wpbucher
01-18-2008, 15:28
What is the status of the rebuild effort? Any target date for completion? I found nothing on the PATC website.

Critterman
01-18-2008, 15:54
What is the status of the rebuild effort? Any target date for completion? I found nothing on the PATC website.

Past by there two weeks ago and the walls are up but no roof.

dessertrat
01-18-2008, 15:59
When I got back to my car in Turner's Gap there was a notice on my windshield saying that parking was by permission only and cars could be towed. The lot is owned by the Olde South Mountain Inn. I didn't investigate further. I've been going there for years and this is new. I don't know how serious they are, but there is a lot of public and historical significance in the gap for access to be strictly limited. The hiker Dahlgren campground is a short walk away.

Sorry to hear that. There doesn't seem to be any other convenient parking very near there, either.

Topcat
01-18-2008, 20:41
You can park at Washington Monument State Park and walk down past the chapel and on to Dahlgren very easily.

Del Q
01-18-2008, 20:52
Awesome shelter, when I was there it was a bit chilly. A few inches of ice in the morning made the jaunt to the privy interesting.

bddeck1
01-25-2008, 16:53
As of last weekend (jan 18 2008) the new shelter had 3 walls and a floor on it but no roof. A group of people put the extra logs across the front to block the wind and threw a tarp over top of it. We stayed in front of the old shelter and by extending the "porch" with the old floor boards.

Aesculus
03-05-2008, 22:41
Was @ Rocky Run this past weekend (3/2/08). The old shelter has all of the floor boards removed and is tied up to prevent it from collapsing. Howerver, just a little farther up the blue blazed trail towards the AT is the new Rocky Run shelter that is coming along nicely. The building has its three walls and floor, but still lacks a roof. I stayed in the campsites above the old and new shelter on the ridge. It was a bit windy but still a nice site. Spring was flowing well. The swinging bench was still outside of the old shelter and was a nice treat. I'll post some images that I took of the old shelter. I wasn't able to take any photos of the new structures. I hope to see it when it is finished.

veteran
06-12-2008, 22:57
New Rocky Run Shelter (http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/396055.JPG)

d_dawg6969
10-18-2008, 16:03
Hey all, just signed up. Decided to google my old love in the hills, and came across this site. For what it is worth, I was the overseer of this shelter from 1986 until 1998. A then member of PATC and ATC.

Glad to hear that he PATC is rebuilding the original, at least that is the gist of what I have been reading. I was never crazy about the 'Hilton' style shelters that they are currently building. During my tenure at this site, many family members and friends helped me along the way to build the nice additions to the place that seem to be still there.

I'll assume that the deck is still out in front of the shelter, with the railing?...also is the platform still there that had a picnic table on it, just to the left of the shelter?...I know the outhouse should still be there as that was built new while I was overseeing it. I installed the shingles and skylight on the roof along with the 2 tone interior paint scheme inside.

I have not been out to the site since 2005. I moved to South Carolina in 2006, so when every fall comes around I get a little lonesome thinking about the place.

I'm glad to see that the swing has survived all these years since it was installed. That was quite an undertaking as all the materials were hauled in by sheer muscle and no power tools were used in the making.

My thanks to the current overseer who seems to still uphold the strong values that I had in keeping up with the place and keeping it the quaint and unique area that it is.

Thanks for letting me ramble.

Karl

Toolshed
10-18-2008, 21:42
I was there Sunday night and slept on the Deck next to the shelter, under the stars. Some good ole boys were in the shelter and were nice. I got there after dark and thought I saw a shelter across the valley - and asked them - they said it was the old shelter which was being torn down. I looked at the one I was standing in front of (CCC 1940's) and thought they must be nuts to think this was the newer one.
Ran into a ranger a day later and she confirmed. It is being dedicated in the next week or so.

dudeijuststarted
10-18-2008, 21:55
I talked to the PATC when they were building the new one. Looked really nice (the old one was in shambles and snake infested). Ended up at the campsite north of there and some annoying, VERY overweight girl gave us a hassle about the way we smelled. We were so ticked off we hiked another 8 mile to some state park to sleep!

Toolshed
10-19-2008, 16:47
May have been the same fatass I followed for about a mile along the AT as she yacked into her cell phone - I was ready to strangle her. I finally stopped and let her get some distance.

Saentis18
11-08-2008, 13:04
Was through this section of trail in early June *after some BAD storm had blown through and left TONS of blow downs on the MD stretch of trail* The NEW shelter appeared to be entirely complete BUT had the entrance boarded off ... so I assume there are some finishing touches needed. Looks to be a nice shelter BUT I personally would opt for the OLD one when its restored as I like the less Hilton style shelters and think its a bit more rustic and scenic down by the old shelter. Its also nice to listen to the gushing water from the spring and to spot critters in the evening or early AM coming for a drink.
I'm sure by now the new one has been opened? I ended up hiking down to the water source which is directly down the hill next to the OLD Rocky Run Shelter. GREAT water source! Anywho old shelter was all warning tapped off, read up that its going to be restored. I'm glad they're even acquiring the same kind of logs from the same type of tree to do the restoration. The privy is out near the old shelter and was nice for AT standards. Spent the night at the "tent site" area near the shelter with a young man named Bill from near Lancaster PA. Nice place to stay the night, get up early and hike the short distance to Dahlgren for a FREE HOT shower and use of REAL toilets.

veteran
11-13-2008, 14:05
The Frederick News Post (http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/art_life/display.htm?StoryID=82154)has an article on the new shelter and the restored old shelter w/photos.

twisted
11-17-2008, 23:49
stayed at the new shelter and was there while the ld was being worked on great stop great water

RockDoc
12-08-2008, 00:40
Stopped in on Nov 23 to see the upgrade. Nice deck! Good spring.
Brings back old memories for me, staying here in the '70's and 80's.
A real nice spot, in a quiet nook on the side of Lamb's Knoll.

DuckFat
03-09-2009, 09:14
Overnighted at Rocky Run on 3/7/09. Both shelters were in good shape and the spring was running nicely. The deck on the new shelter was nice and the chairs were comfortable. There is a composting privy that is a bit more open than others but the opening was facing away from the shelters so it's okay.

I was expecting to be away from civilization but there was a house visible about 800 feet away from the tent sites on the hill above the shelters. It wouldn't be seen if there had been leaves on the trees.

However, the home owners apparently own a four wheeler that needs a tuneup. They rode it around for about an hour midday on Saturday and it was backfiring a lot. I didn't hear any traffic noise and otherwise the stay was uneventful.

the_ox
09-21-2010, 21:25
Any updates on this area? May stop here on my way south for the night and wanted to know the status of the spring and availability of tent sites.

Thanks in advance

RETCW4
09-22-2010, 12:32
Any updates on this area? May stop here on my way south for the night and wanted to know the status of the spring and availability of tent sites.

Thanks in advance
There are plenty of tenet sites and the spring is a pipe next to the old shelter.

Tumblreweed

couscous
09-22-2010, 14:11
Old Shelter
http://www.twchikers.com/mta/old-rocky.jpg
Spring
http://www.twchikers.com/mta/spring-rocky.jpg
New Shelter -
http://www.twchikers.com/mta/new-rocky.jpg

Limo
10-13-2010, 20:11
Stopped here for lunch on 10/9. Spring was flowing well enough. New shelter looks great. Unfortunately, stink bugs have taken over and were dropping onto my head while I stood on the porch. Nasty little things.

RockDoc
12-11-2010, 15:02
If you look around in the woods nearby, you will find trenches that were used during the battle of South Mountain. Yes, this is an old battleground.

kerosenehat
07-16-2013, 06:53
Anyone been through there lately? What's the water source like? will be there later this week

Ezra
07-16-2013, 10:02
Anyone been through there lately? What's the water source like? will be there later this week

Water is plentiful in MD right now.

gabriel_price1976
01-06-2015, 09:56
Just stayed at Rocky Run on 01/03/2013. It was a cold and rainy night, but the new shelter was awesome! No fire, because of the rain, but I was nice and warm anyway...

294382943929440

brsecu
05-30-2017, 12:13
I just wanted to add to this thread since it was a little dated. I stayed there on 28/March/2017. Just like the pics above show, there are two shelters there. An old one and a newer one. There are 5 tent pads up the hill from the newer shelter and each have a fire pit. The pads are just 4x4s making a square. They aren't really leveled off and rocky. It's going to be hard to avoid the rocks if you have a tent bigger than one man. There are other places to put your tent or hammock just past those. On your way to the older shelter, farther down the blue blaze, there is a much nicer place to put your tent with fewer rocks but no individual fire pits. The place is huge and can accommodate a lot of people. You have to pass the old shelter to get to the water. It's a bit creepy looking but someone stayed in there and I didn't hear any complaints.

Se7en
11-11-2020, 22:32
Found 11/8/20: cypress/cedar walking stick.