HOSTELING, U.S. STYLE

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This old building perches at a spot where several well-traveled pathways meet. The 2,000-mile Appalachian Trail passes by the front door of the lodge on its course from Georgia to Maine ... the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath accompanies the river on its journey from western Maryland to Washington, D.C. . . . and the Virginia Loop Bicycle Trail pauses here to catch its breath before challenging the highlands. Here, too, the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers join to carve their spectacular water gap through the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The area is steeped in history, as well. George Washington wandered these hills as a young surveyor. Armies of immigrants followed soon thereafter, pushing the frontier before them as they wrestled railroad iron toward the Ohio Valley. Abolitionist John Brown's ill-fated attempt to free the slaves is memorialized in Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, a scant 1-1/2 miles upstream. And various struggles for the rivers, railroads, and ridgetops—all hotly contested prizes during the Civil War—are represented by the Antietam Battlefield, which lies ten miles west.

Each hostel has its own personality, which is made up of its past, its surroundings, and the travelers who call it "home" for a short time. The character of the Kiwanis Youth Hostel was built by the saga of early westward expansion and the War Between the States, the awesome beauty of the rivers and mountains, and the diversity of its visitors . . . all voyagers searching for different islands in the same sea.

PHOTO COURTESY OF AYH. INC.
Pigeon Point Lighthouse Hostel in California.

You can find hostels in 40 of the 50 states in the U.S., with high concentrations in New England, the Mid-Atlantic region, the Great Lakes area, the Rocky Mountains, and along the Pacific Coast. Chains of hostels sometimes make it possible for a bicyclist, say, to tour for a week, staying at a different bunkhouse each night.
Hostel sites are chosen to provide the wayfarer with as wide a selection of activities as possible. Many are located along established hiking, canoeing, skiing, horseback riding, or biking trails in state and national parks. Those situated in cities were established for folks wishing to participate—at low cost—in the cultural and educational pursuits that abound in metropolitan centers. (Many larger urban areas also have "gateway hostels", at which foreign travelers tend to congregate.)
In order to find out the locations of all the U.S. hostels, you'll want to pick up a copy of the annually published AYH Handbook (free with membership . . . but nonmembers can order the guide for $1.75, plus 75¢ shipping and handling, from the address given at the end of this article).
The publication provides pertinent information about each hostel . . . including the address and how to get there, houseparents' names, sleeping capacity, extra facilities, fees, and—when applicable—historical facts about the building or the area. In addition, useful data concerning distances to nearby attractions, public transportation, grocery stores, and bicycle repair shops are given.

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