Reply to First Long Trip Advice

Hi All,

I am looking for advice on deciding the route of my first long walk/hike. I'm only debating the starting location because I live in Hancock, Md. so my ending point is locked in. I want to do a 2-day, 1-night hike/walk that is between 25-40 miles total with an overnight primitive style camp somewhere along the route (sleeping in a hammock under a tarp). I plan to be dropped off on a Friday morning and then pretty much walk to my house in Hancock and expecting to get home sometime in the evening on Saturday.

Although I consider myself to be in decent shape, I've been "training" for the walk portion for about 6 months by walking 2.5 miles every day on my lunchbreak, and 1 or 2 times a month I walk 10 - 12 miles with about 10 lbs. of gear on me in about 3 - 3.5 hours. Which is about the pace and weight of gear I plan on bringing.

As for the route advice, I am thinking about doing a Paw Paw Wv. - Hancock, Md. trip with camping in Little Orleans, Md. Total distance is 32 miles. Day 1 starts in Paw Paw and will be 15.6 Miles to Little Orleans where I will stop and set up a small camp for overnight. Then, waking up and walking the remainder of the 16.4 miles to Hancock, and then probably another 1.5 miles to my house from the trail.

Does anyone have a different route of about the same distance and ending point?

Does this seem to be to too ambitious or too conservative for a first-time long walk/hike?

Any advice at all? I feel like I'm just getting started, but I'm not a novice at walking long distances or with camping, but with the walking and camping together?

An obvious alternative route would be south of Hancock beginning in Williamsport. It’s a slightly shorter route (25 + 1.5) than the one you proffered There is an overnight campgound about halfway at the Fort Frederick State Park. Having not stayed there, I don’t know if it can accomodate a hammock.

I’ll add some further comments later.

If you wish a somewhat longer trek, you could start a little further south beginning at the McMahon's Mill Recreation Area (approximately 36.5 miles south of Hancock) or even at Dam 4 (40 miles south) and return to Hancock. From there you could ovenight camp at McCoy's Landing State Campground (public pay) or the North Mountain primitive Hiker/Biker campsite.

I'm a biker not a hiker so I can't comment on the feasibility of your first hiking/camping adventure. Its easily done of course in one day on a bike.

I would note that there was a bridge over a creek out on the Towpath north of Hancock last summer. You may well be able to find a way to hike around it successfully. Alternatively, you can circumvent that bridge by hiking northbound on the parallel Western Maryland Rail Trail.

Don't forget some bug repellent for those pesky mosquitos that seem to come out at dusk. Also there's little or no opportunity to obtain water in these areas so plan on taking what you may need or a filter to make some along the way.

Thank you for the information and alternate route suggestions Rivnuts. I didn't really consider coming to Hancock from the Georgetown side of the trail. I like to wake up and walk into the sunrise so west to east routes was all I looked at (for this first trip anyway).

I think I've decided to start in either Town Hill and walk to Hancock. Not much of a difference between them, like 5-6 miles I believe. But if I start in TH, I will be about 18 miles to Devils Alley Bike/Hike campsite for the night and it is about halfway to Hancock. If I did PP to Hancock, my halfway/camp option is one of the options in Little Orleans. I have camped there dozens of times and want to see things I haven't see/camped before while on this trip. Plus, if my start point for day 2 is around Devils Alley, it should be a beautiful sunrise if I hike up to the top of the hill to get to Point Lookout Overlook.


Similar issue with the Williamsport to Hancock route you suggested. I love that area and the idea, but I have camped at Fort Frederick a handful of times over the years.

You seem to know a good bit about the trail which I greatly appreciate. Thank you for the advice. There's three things I consider as essential and separate from "gear", they are a knife, a lighter, and a LifeStraw water filter straw. Outside of an emergency, I think I could take those 3 items make it home alright. Might suck for two days, but I'd make it.