Appalachian Trail: Crampton Gap to Harpers Ferry

Planned on doing this hike slow and over two days. Left truck at lot at Gathland and hikes to the cliffs. Stopped at the Garvey shelter to recon the area and continued on. On way back from cliffs set up camp and relaxed at Garvey and met some fellow hikers. We were getting weather warning alerts so I decided to head back towards the truck. One nice thing about an out and back was having the truck there just in case. The trail was ok. Would be better during fall and after leaves come off the trees. Not a lot of view. Trail had some moderate sections. So far impressed with the cond of the shelters. Lots of pride.

The uphill hike towards the beginning was very hard but worth it! Make sure to check out the Weaverton Cliffs on the way. Ed Garvy shelter is a decent size but there’s not much room to tent. but the Cranston shelter offers a lot of room to tent or hammock and little room in the shelter.

So far one of my favorite hikes! The hike starts in the park with a gradual ascent onto the ridge of the mountain. After hiking in a few miles you will see one of the AT trail shelters, there is a spring about 3/4 of a mile down a steep descent to its location from the shelter if you need water. Continuing on the main trail you will eventually descend down some steep switchbacks that eventually hit the easy stride of the C&O canal towpath right into the historic town of Harpers Ferry. A great way to spend most of your afternoon on the legendary AT.

this was an amazing hike. I loved the rock formations and the view we had was incredible and so peaceful. It was...breathtaking.

Best hikes on a weekday!!

Ed Garvey shelter can be very crowded. Steep 0.5 mile descend to get to water source

Started this hike in Harpers Ferry, parked one car at a church parking lot near the ATC building, the other at Gathland State Park. It took us 4 hrs to complete this one-way 10-mile hike. The highlight of this hike was definitely Weverton Cliff. The 5.5-mile trail beyond Weverton Cliff was mostly flat along the ridge line. Highly recommended.

Crowded but still a great hike

Nice starting point for day hike. We started here for our A.T. across Maryland trip. If you do not pay attention you may miss the turnoff for the A.T. The A.T. in this area has many access point so day hikers are common. I can borderline on crowded. See the details on my SPOT adventures sites.

https://www.findmespot.com/spotadventures/index.php/view_adventure?tripid=340616

My favorite hike to do in the area. Weverton Cliff is amazing.

Ok trail flat between railroad tracks and a river.

great view

Parked at a small parking lot off of Reno Monument Road and hiked 5 miles south. Would have went farther but the trail was still covered in snow. One good overlook along the route.

For the region this was a good hike. Living in the DC area now it's tough to get out and truly experience wilderness and this was a breath of fresh air. Not a whole lot of views, but it nice to see some Appalachian Trail through hikers.

Walking into Harpers Ferry NoBo or SoBo is always a treat. The 1/8 mile descent detour off the A.T. to Weverton Cliffs is an absolute must! The last 2.5 miles before Harpers Ferry are along the historic C&O canal towpath and the beautiful Potomac River.

There are three shelters here, and actually four, not two, good places to park along this section of the Appalachian Trail. Two are at Gathland State Park, which is about 4/5 the way up the trail segment. The other two can easily be found at appalachiantrail.rohland.org. Hiking in from Gathland is easiest as the terrain in both directions is an easy incline up the ridges. Hiking in from the South end should be rated 'moderate' or 'difficult' due to the steep and rocky incline/decline. We parked at the south side of the park as well as at Gathland for a nice ~8 mile hike one way, and slept at the Ed Garvey shelter, which has a privy and a couple of lean-tos.

Great veiw. Agree with the previous reviewer that you sould eat at the overlook. Several good spots.

Another cool variation on this hike is to leave a car at the parking lot on Weverton road, just below the hill climb to weverton cliffs, then drive further north on 67 into maryland to gathland state park. Head south on the AT. And a few miles up is ed garvey. Then tool on down to your other car. Or for a nice extra long day, go on to harpers ferry - the 3 miles along the C&O canal on the way to HF give your dogs a much needed break.

Wonderful 7.4 mi hike from South Mtn Inn (Alt 40) to Gathland State Park on 12/30/11. The Inn has ample designated hiker parking. Thumbs up! Rocky Run Shelter is a 2mi/1hr level hike. Shelter is very cool and worth peeking at. Proceeded up the long 1.5mi ascent to Lambs Knoll. I'm not in great shape but made it there slow but sure (in 1:15hr). The views start up here. A short jaunt down brings you to White Rocks. Magnificent!! Overlooking the Middletown Valley. What a treat! The next couple miles is along the top of the ridge with splendid views and vistas. Winter hiking affords the better views b/c of lack of leaves. The views end as you walk along a spacious path with an easy gradual descent all the way to Gathland. The last 1/4 mi is steep and my knees felt it. The 7.4mi took us 3:45hr. (We dropped a car at Gathland in the a.m. so we wouldn't have to RT) I look forward to going again. Of note, I think the SoBo is easier than the NoBo. NoBo from Gathland would be that steady 3.5 mi ascent to Lambs Knoll and that might be more challenging than my SoBo was. Great dog hike. No rocky challenges or dangers. Kids, maybe. Might be too long for them.

Started actually in Harper's Ferry and headed N to Pennsylvania.. Really liked HF area. A lot of historic interests. Hike out to Ed Garvey, as mentioned, is not exactly flat and easy.. Beyond Ed Garvey makes for a decently easy hike... Been doing the trail in sections for years and really enjoyed this part.. Was on in June.. Very hot that week. Had 7 days to get to Penn, and took my time and still managed to arrive in 4.. State of Maryland has some beautiful sections of trail.. Highly recommend it for anyone wanting to get a taste of the AT to see if it's for them..