Harpers Ferry, WV - June 3
Good night's sleep under the pitter and patter of rain, which became quite a bit more than a pitter and patter!!! The thunderstorms made me wonder what was the river was going to be like in the morning.
My wonders were correct. In the morning the water was up with the current much faster with a strong west wind in my face. Started the day by biking and met some very nice people along the way. Ran into a boy scout group which was out in their first overnight camping experience. Took a picture with the group and had a nice chat with the young men. They were very excited by what I was doing.
I continued on my way and found an area where the river seemed to be quite calm. I put in to paddle for as long as I could. It turned out that calm water was not very calm and was flowing very strongly in the wrong direction. Between the swift current and the wind in my face, I made maybe 3-4 miles in about 2 and 1/2 to 3 hours. During that time I found that my knee had stiffened quite a bit. Between the knee, the fast current and the many rapids, it was time to get biking again, which I did for the rest of the day.
For those who are not aware of this, I should explain this knee problem. Due to an old injury and pretty much wearing it out during the last 500 miles of the PCT, I finally figured I should do something about it, which I did on May 1. I had a right half knee joint replacement. Recovery has been coming along good. In fact, maybe a little bit better than the doctors anticipated. And I feel it's strong enough for me to be out here. The biking is definitely good for it. And with the combination of paddling and biking, by the time I get to the Ohio River, I'm expecting it will no longer be a concern.
So back to my day,,, I made camp near Harpers Ferry, WV, a famous Civil War site and it is where the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers come together. All in all, it was a good day and I met many nice people. Both the Potomac and the towpath have been very scenic and should continue to get even better as I head west. I'm also very pleased with my biking and portaging setup. This combination of paddling and portaging is what will make it possible to make it to the Ohio. I will definitely paddle as much as it can, but it is also very enjoyable to bike and portage. So far,,,I'm as happy as a clam in the Potomac!
My wonders were correct. In the morning the water was up with the current much faster with a strong west wind in my face. Started the day by biking and met some very nice people along the way. Ran into a boy scout group which was out in their first overnight camping experience. Took a picture with the group and had a nice chat with the young men. They were very excited by what I was doing.
I continued on my way and found an area where the river seemed to be quite calm. I put in to paddle for as long as I could. It turned out that calm water was not very calm and was flowing very strongly in the wrong direction. Between the swift current and the wind in my face, I made maybe 3-4 miles in about 2 and 1/2 to 3 hours. During that time I found that my knee had stiffened quite a bit. Between the knee, the fast current and the many rapids, it was time to get biking again, which I did for the rest of the day.
For those who are not aware of this, I should explain this knee problem. Due to an old injury and pretty much wearing it out during the last 500 miles of the PCT, I finally figured I should do something about it, which I did on May 1. I had a right half knee joint replacement. Recovery has been coming along good. In fact, maybe a little bit better than the doctors anticipated. And I feel it's strong enough for me to be out here. The biking is definitely good for it. And with the combination of paddling and biking, by the time I get to the Ohio River, I'm expecting it will no longer be a concern.
So back to my day,,, I made camp near Harpers Ferry, WV, a famous Civil War site and it is where the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers come together. All in all, it was a good day and I met many nice people. Both the Potomac and the towpath have been very scenic and should continue to get even better as I head west. I'm also very pleased with my biking and portaging setup. This combination of paddling and portaging is what will make it possible to make it to the Ohio. I will definitely paddle as much as it can, but it is also very enjoyable to bike and portage. So far,,,I'm as happy as a clam in the Potomac!
posted by Coach at 2:10 PM
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