| We are in the process of creating a calendar for the trip. The final calendar will include prep hikes, crew meetings, and "MANDATORY" shakedowns.
Tentative Prep Hike Dates:
May 18, 19 & 20 MANDATORY shakedown
June 16th
Please plan your life around them.
Saturday July 22, 2006
C&O
Canal
– Point of Rocks to
Point of Rocks
,
MD
(Parking area under Rt. 15 Bridge)
As our first Philmont prep hike we will take a rather easy trail along the C&O canal for approximately ten miles from Point of Rocks to the Monocacy Acqueduct. Many claim the Monocacy Aqueduct to be the most outstanding structure in the
Chesapeake
and
Ohio
National
Historic
Park
. The Monocacy Acqueduc was built to carry the canal over the confluence of the Monocacy and
Potomac
Rivers
.
The seven-arch aqueduct was completed in 1833 and is built of white and red quartzite, the same material used to construct the
Smithsonian
Castle
. It spans 516 feet, with each arch at 54 feet.
Saturday August 19, 2006
Billy Goat Trail
Please join us on our second Philmont prep hike as we will enjoy the three sections of the Billy Goat Trail (12 miles).
We will begin this hike along the towpath of the historic Chesapeake and
Ohio
Canal
, completed in 1850 after 22 years of work and mishap, and operated for 73 years between
Georgetown
and
Cumberland
,
MD.
The blue-blazed Billy Goat Trial turns toward the Potomac River at Widewater (a natural wide basin where the barges were able to pass) and leads backwards in history 180 million years to the time when the palisades of the
Potomac
were first forming. The trail skirts the edge of
Bear
Island
, passing giant potholes as it follows along the top of the cliffs of Mather Gorge. Portions of the hike are quite rugged and necessitate a good bit of rock scrambling. The blue blazed painted on the rocks help to locate the route. Scenic river views and a small waterfall are encountered on the trail.
Please read the profile on the Billy Goat hikes.
Saturday September 9th, 2006
Appalachian
Trail
Lock 31 0f C&O Can
al at
Weverton Cliffs
to Reno Monument
Our third Philmont prep hike we enjoyed a 15 mile section of the
Appalachian Trail
. We started at Lock 31 of the
C&O
Canal
, hiked up to Weverton Cliffs. Made a stop at the Edward Garvey shelter, had lunch at
Gapland
State Park
, viewed the
Townsted
Monument.
Continued North to Lambs Knoll Look Out and then concluded at the
Reno
Monument
.
Click here to view the actual route we will be taking in a 5MB or a 2MB PDF file and the route profile (34k).
Also provided is a link to a profile on the first portion the AT at Weverton Cliffs.
Saturday & Sunday October 28th & 29th, 2006
Appalachian
Trail
at
Route 7 North
Neersville
, Virginia
Our fourth Philmont prep hike will be in participation with the Goose Creek District Fall Hike-O-Ree. This outing is a hike-in camping event with 4 in route graded events. We will start at the AT access on Route 7 and hike to the Neersville field. En-route events include
1.) pack content - weight average
2.) timed tent pitching
3.) 1st aid
4.) bear bag drill
Challenge events will be patterned after Philmont activity. There will also be a Saturday evening dinner cooking competition at base camp.
Saturday March 24th, 2007
Washington and Old Dominion Trail
(W&OD)
Purcellville to Sterling
, Virginia (22 miles)
We conducted our
5th Philmont prep hike along the historic
W&OD trail. You may want to read up on the trails history by visiting the Friends of the W&OD website.
Click below to view or right click and save the:
- Trail GPS Log (600k MS Excell workbook with log detail - profile and map)
- Trek Map (141k gif)
- Trek Profile (9k gif)
Saturday April 21st, 2007
Appalachian
Trail over Old Rag Mountain (11.1 miles)
Shenandoah National Park
Old Rag is one of the most beautiful views of the Shenandoah Valley from its high elevation. You can search any search engine and find many pictures and history of this area. We recommend that you review the USGS and the NPS websites as your starting point.
For your preparation we have placed the USGS "Hikers Guide to the Geology of Old Rag" and the NPS "Old Rag Trail Map" on this site.
Click below to view or right click and save the:
- Trail GPS Log (512k MS Excell workbook with log detail - profile and map)
- Trek Map & Profile (204k PDF)
Friday May 18th - Sunday May 20th, 2007
Catoctin Mountain Park - Poplar Grove
Thurmont, Maryland
We held our May outing at Catoctin Mountian Park. Philmont crews utilized this opportunity to conduct a full pre-Philmont shakedown. Both crews participated in a 11.1 mile backpack trek with full gear, cook trail meals on trail stoves and utilized this as a dry run in our final preperation phase for Philmont.
Click here to download Catoctin Mountian Park Map (pdf)
Catoctin's diverse cultural resources provide several vignettes of our nation's history in one small location. Native Americans quarried rhyolite for the production of lithic tools. A charcoal and iron industry is still visible today, along with smaller industries including farms, sawmills, and an old moonshine still. Historic structures and
products
of the Works Progress Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps, along with the site of our nation's first
Job
Corps
Center
, are tangible reminders of the capability of vigorous youth programs to strengthen the nation’s economic and social fabric. The totality of resources found in
Catoctin
Mountain
Park
reflects much of the early fabric of our country
Click below to view or right click and save the:
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