Where would you go? Looking to shake things out in early march around the mid Atlantic region for the weekend. Suggestions? I'm thinking a base camp with daily loops.
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Where would you go? Looking to shake things out in early march around the mid Atlantic region for the weekend. Suggestions? I'm thinking a base camp with daily loops.
The AT is a linear trail so there aren't too many places one can effectively do a loop hike, other then to hike in / hike out to the same spot. Typically a weekend is Sat/Sun so your basically hiking into someplace for the night and returning the next day. Now if you have 3-4 days, then a base camp might make sense, but not on the AT.
Pick a weekend with nice weather (at most you only have 4 to pick from, so that might be easier said then done) and stick close to home. Somewhere in MD or PA would be a logical choice depending on exactly where in the state you live and how long you want to drive. With only a weekend, you don't want to spend much time driving.
Quehanna Trail area has many loop possibilities. The area offers diverse scenery from rhodos to balds, and the occasional elk. In a normal year early March would have snow and high runoff on that plateau. However, the paved road that bisects the main and many of the side loops offers relatively good access and parking spots tend to have been plowed for xc ski access. (In many other locales, the gravel roads are not plowed, most trailheads aren't either, and will be sheets of ice in early March.) Usage is relatively low but trail maintenance has been active recently through forest volunteers, spurred by the closing of the former club. Jeff Mitchell's "Natural Beauty of Pennsylvania" Facebook page has some recent pictures from this area.
If NJ is an option, think about combining the AT with some of the trails in the parks (Delaware Water Gap NRA, High Point, Waywayanda) to make a loop. Trail conditions have been good, if a bit wet and muddy in areas. No real snow to speak of this winter. Camping is restricted to the shelters on the AT (no shortage in NJ), so plan accordingly. The state parks in the area of the AT are free until Memorial Day.
Harriman State Park is an option. Plenty of loops to be made there. About an hour north of NYC.
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I would suggest Shenandoah National Park in Virginia if it is close enough to make the trip. You could make Big Meadows your base camp and get a tent site to call home base for the week. There are a number of loops from there that range in types of "traditional" green tunnel hikes in the woods, along with fairly strenuous over-the-rocks type trails up and down the mountains. You could also do an out and back loop on the AT either going north and/or south since the AT cuts right through Big Meadows. You could make it as close to a back country experience as needed by packing in your tent, food, etc. But there is always showers, bathrooms, a small camp store, and a grill if needed.
EDIT: Looks like Big Meadows campground and the Wayside (camp store and grill) opens March 24. Not exactly in your early March time frame so I don't know if my suggestion is as good as I might have thought ;-)
You can also fashion loop hikes in the George Washington National Forest. The forest sprawls out for some distance but closer to where you live, hike either on Massanuten Mountain or the Great North Mountain area west of I-81. Contact the PATC for maps and guides.
You don't need a campground to set up a base camp in the park. Simply pitch your tent near a hut, if you so desire in the vicinity of day loop hikes of interest .Quote:
Originally Posted by Chive
Use the AT as a connector to traverse from one loop hike to another. By virtue of tenting your base camp becomes wherever you make it for as long as you make it .
u want base camp with daily loops.
Mount Pleasant hiking area off rt 60 in virginia. base camp at Hog Camp Gap.ie park 50 ft from AT.
mt pompey loop, Mt pleasent trail, hotel trail loop includes cow camp gap shelter, at south and back. and AT north and back include sedley wood worth shelter. up the road a bit, reeds gap, AT to Mar Har trail and back, has a 3,000 ft up and is rough.
All those ideas are great, but remember this guy lives in Maryland and only has a weekend, so he has to stick close to home. Unless he defines "weekend" differently then the rest of us (After work Friday to Sunday night).
For a basecamp with day hike loops, hard to beat Quehanna Wild Area, Black Forest Trail, or possibly the Loyalsock Trail. Michaux State Forest is close to you and has tons of dayhiking loops.
There are a couple nice loops in the Big Measows area of SNP. Could hit Rock Spring Hut and a few nice waterfalls - Lewis Falls, Dark Hollow Falls, and another nearby. Lots of loops around there.
Thanks everyone for the great suggestions. We made it up to Quehanna. It had the first snow I'd seen all year. Attachment 39064