Return to the Billy Goat Trail – Training Hike #10

Because of Labor Day weekend, this was a “plan my own” training hike. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to find anyone to go with me, but little did I know so many people would be in town this weekend. I just want to thank everyone for getting up early and coming out with me on Saturday: Jessica, Ryan, Scott, Julie R, Rachel, Julie M, Kaustuv, Carey, Katie, Grant, and Minh. I had a great time on the trail – I hope you did too!

A little after 8am, we started out on the towpath north towards the entrance to Section A of the Billy Goat Trail. (I had done this part on an earlier training hike with the group.) Once we got through the wooded area, we started the rock scramble through boulders overlooking the Potomac River. We stopped a couple of times for snacks, on the sandy beach area and at the top of a high shelf of rocks.

We made it back to the parking lot area in about 2 hours and 20 minutes. We bid farewell to those who weren't continuing onto Section B, and continued down the towpath. None of us had ever hiked this section before, so we weren't sure what to expect. It was much more even than Section A, with a low trail paralleling the river. We made it back to the towpath and headed back to the parking area. On the way, we saw lots of fish and turtles in the canal. All in all, it was a beautiful day in the low 80s, not a cloud in the sky. We finished the entire 6.2-mile hike (with breaks) in about 3 hours and 45 minutes.

Here's a picture of the group partway through the towpath portion of the hike. Click here to view the entire photo album.