The Gear House

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Friday I got the chance to head out to Harper’s Ferry, WV with my fiancé for the day. We weren’t really too sure what we would do while we were there (it’s not that big of a town) because we were not sure if we would get some hiking in or not. For those that do not know, the Appalachian Trail runs right through Harper’s Ferry and most hikers consider it the half way point.

Harper’s Ferry is a very historic town and area going back to the days of the civil war. Here is a quick excerpt from the National Park Service’s website about the history of the area.

THE HISTORY OF HARPERS FERRY HAS FEW PARALLELS IN THE AMERICAN DRAMA. It is more than one event, one date, or one individual. It is multi-layered – involving a diverse number of people and events that influenced the course of our nation’s history. Harpers Ferry witnessed the first successful application of interchangeable manufacture, the arrival of the first successful American railroad, John Brown’s attack on slavery, the largest surrender of Federal troops during the Civil War, and the education of former slaves in one of the earliest integrated schools in the United States.

As you can tell Harper’s Ferry has a lot of different history and shows it in the atmosphere. The lower section of the town is set up in a historical period with many different time period stores such as a general store, a book store, a dry goods store, and more. Then, the upper part of the town is more of a “shopping district” with many little different boutiques, small restaurants, and the best part of all - an outdoor outfitter!

If you are in the Harper’s Ferry area, I suggest you check out The Harper’s Ferry Outfitter. He has a great little store set up in an old building where you can walk in the bottom level and actually walk through rock cut out in the ground and then up some stairs. The store is a great little stop for any thru-hikers as well as anyone just in town for the day. Besides having the retail store, he also has a large online business where he sells through his website and eBay. The site is at http://www.theoutfitteratharpersferry.com

Here are some of the pictures from the town and our little adventure!

Courtney is on the top of Jefferson Rock, a landmark at Harper’s Ferry. This spot offers one of the best views of the valley area as well as of the town. With the trees full of leaves it was sort of hard to make out the town from the spot, but I would imagine in late fall/winter you can get a perfect view.

This is view from Jefferson Rock towards the town (you can see the church in the distance) and then the river behind it. The rest of the town would be the left.

This is a sign that we didn’t see until AFTER we climbed up Jefferson Rock that warns you that the rock is unstable and climbing on it is prohibited…sorry!

My Fiancé, Courtney, and I on top of Jefferson Rock with the River in the background.

A view down the street of the upper part of the Harper’s Ferry town.

Here are some pictures of the town.

The walkway along the rail road bridge is apart of the Appalachian Trail as well as leads you down to the C&O Canal pathway.

Harper’s Ferry is a great day trip and definitely recommend you check it out if you are in the area. Being only an hour from Washington D.C. and Baltimore, it is a great location and easy to get to! If you are in MD, VA, WV, or D.C., there is no reason you should not check it out at least once during your life!