I slept well at the Wattstull Inn in Buchanan but not long enough. Sixlegs arrived in Buchanan just before midnight Thursday May 24th. I got up at 5:30AM to repack my bag, grabbed some packaged breakfast from the hotel, and were on the road by 6:45 to drop off his car in Glasgow. We stopped at the Pink Cadillac Diner for another breakfast - it seemed like the type of place that should have waitresses on roller skates. MacGyver picked us up from the parking lot at US 501 and dropped us off back at Bearwallow Gap (AT mile 750.8) where I left the trail the previous day. MacGyver is thru hiking the trail this year but does work-for-stay at hostels along the trail to finance his trip and was working at Stanimals Hostel in Glasgow while the owner was down in Damascus for Trail Days.
We started hiking at around 9:00AM - the morning miles were easy, we stopped at a popular swimming hole at Jennings Creek about 7 miles into the day. The water was cold and the day wasn't hot enough to take a dip but we stopped for a snack. We climbed up and over Fork Mountain before stopping for another snack. At about 10 miles in we took another snack break at Bryant Ridge Shelter, a 2-level, 20 person shelter with a large porch. Obviously we weren't in a rush, we did almost as much snacking as we did walking. It was warm and sunny and the next 5 miles were mostly climbing, so at the top of Black Rock Overlook we took another snack break! We saw very few hikers that day, only a few section hikers all going south.
The last climb of the day was about 2.5 miles and 1,000' up Apple Orchard Mountain. Even with all the snack breaks we were getting hungry and decided to make dinner before starting up the mountain. We looked for a place at the next dirt road crossing but couldn't find a good place to sit so we pushed a little further. After starting the next climb we still couldn't find a good spot and ended up on the top of the mountain before we found a clearing to sit and eat. It happened to be next to another FAA facility. The last 1.2 miles to Thunder Hill Shelter (AT mile 771.4) was mostly downhill and went through the Guillotine - a short rocky section of trail where a large boulder is wedged overhead in the rocks.
We tented uphill from the shelter since there were no flat spots. For the better part of an hour we pulled ticks off Calvin (the owner of 4 of the Sixlegs). I still haven't found any on me but it's obvious they are out there. It was a nice evening and we were both exhausted after getting up at 5:30AM and hiking 20.6 miles and we passed out quickly.
Friday morning we slept in slightly and didn't start hiking until 7AM. The miles were mostly downhill so we were expecting an easy day. It was sunny and got hot quickly and we were caught off guard by the climb up Highcock Knob - it was a forested summit and basically just an annoyance. From there we had around 8 downhill miles to get back to Sixlegs' car at US 501 (AT mile 786). The last mile the trail paralleled the James River and crosses on the longest foot-use only bridge on the AT. We finished our 14.6 mile day around 1:30 so we drove into Glasgow for milkshakes. After free showers at a campground up the road in Buena Vista we returned to Glasgow for laundry, pizza, and found a nice spot to tent just north of US 501.
When we woke up Saturday morning at 6AM we found that someone had pitched their tent within feet of us. Pretty weird. They woke up as we were packing and apologized for arriving so late and said they had tried to get into town the night before with no luck. Still rude. I started hiking around 7 and got the first climb over with pretty quickly. Then came the second. And then third. I was pouring with sweat. The third climb brought me to the top of Bluff Mountain and I was starving and ready for a snack break. However, at the top there was a swarm of bees and a note about a copperhead living under a random set of concrete steps at the top of the mountain so I decided to descend and look for another spot.
A thru hiker passed me just before crossing VA 607, a road leading into Buena Vista - he asked if I was going into town and I said I wasn't and he sped past me without saying another word. I found him sitting on the roadside and I continued past him since clearly he was in no mood for conversation. Moments later I came up behind section hiker Dave! Last time I saw him was the day before I hiked up Dragon's Tooth almost a week before. We caught up on the past few days, talking about the weather, trail, town stops, and other hikers. It was his last day on the trail and we hiked the next couple miles together. I didn't eat enough and was running out of steam. We arrived at Brown Mountain Shelter (AT mile 806, 20 miles into the day) at around 1:30 as storm clouds were moving in. Dave had to meet his ride about 2 miles further and had no choice but to depart in the rain. I hung out in the shelter, intending on getting a few more miles in.
By 4 pm the shelter was full and I lost motivation to leave, even though the storm eventually passed. This is the first time in a while I was around so many other thru hikers. Now that Trail Days was over hikers were popping back up all over the trail. Nugget and Beamer, two hikers from Texas who had started February 28, talked about hiking through weeks of cold and snow. Zuzu had 6 friends who had joined her for a couple days and they were fun to hang out with. One had hiked the PCT last year and we chatted for awhile about the differences in the trails. For once there were more females around than males, even after Jackrabbit and Jackrabbit (guess they couldn't decide who would keep the trail name) came into camp. It turned into a fun evening, even though the shelter became so stinky it was almost hard to sleep.
Part of me felt bad for not continuing, and almost felt like I had wasted the afternoon. But there are a lot of trade-offs to make while thru hiking. On one hand meeting new people and making friends is part of the experience. But a lot of time can be wasted when waiting around for hiking partners to get motivated to hike. I hike a lot faster when I hike alone so I woke up early the next morning and didn't expect to see anyone from that shelter again.
Sunday May 27th I started hiking at 5:55AM. Knowing I had a long day planned I took my time up the climb out - it was about 4.5 miles and 2,700' to Bald Knob, which wasn't actually bald. It was the last 4,000' summit that the AT would cross for a long time. After the climb the trail stayed above 3,000' until the Priest, about 18 miles later but had a series of ups and downs. I took the side trail to Spy Rock which turned out to be a pain in the ass - great view but the trail to the rock outcrop wasn't well defined and I ended up in some thorn bushes. On top of the heat rash and bug bites, my legs were now scratched to pieces. From the view I could see more storm clouds rolling in - a daily occurrence it seems. As I climbed the next 4 miles to the Priest Shelter thunder was following me but thankfully I didn't get rained on. It's a tradition on the trail to confess your sins in the log-book at the Priest Shelter. I didn't have anything to write in the log-book, but some of the things I read weren't really believable (like a girl getting revenge on some guy by pooping in his sleeping bag?!).
The descent down the Priest was slow, lots of slippery rocks, it was obvious it had rained there shortly before I arrived. My legs were worn out - after 30 miles I arrived at Harper's Creek Shelter (AT mile 836) and found a good tenting spot next to some weekend hikers. I sat around the fire ring with three hikers doing a 7 mile loop. We chatted and they asked me questions about thru hiking and my experiences so far - it was kind of nice to talk to new people so interested in the journey. It started rain and I retreated into my tent around 8:15 - they were amazed I could go to bed so early. Guess they didn't know 8PM is hiker midnight.
It rained a little through the night but everything was pretty much dry by morning. I didn't get up right away but I couldn't sit still after 5:45AM so I got packed and was on the trail by 6:15. The day again began with another climb. Three Ridges was more challenging than I expected, about 2,000' over 3 miles - the first bit up Chimney Rock was steep and rocky. There was a slight reprieve before up to the top of Three Ridges, about 3.5 miles into the day. I was having a bad morning, everything was pissing me off - every second there was another annoyance. If it wasn't the bugs it was cobwebs or rocks or my trekking pole getting stuck or birds chirping too loud. It was close to 10AM and I had only gone 6 miles. There were lots of hikers out today - oh yeah, it's Memorial Day! I got to Reeds Gap, Blue Ridge Parkway mile 13.1, and could see nothing through the fog. Devil's Backbone Brewery isn't too far from here and they let hikers camp for free so it's a popular place to stop, but it was only a little after 10AM I didn't feel like I could justify stopping so early, even for beer. At the next parking lot I found trail magic! A couple had set up a table with snacks and drinks so I stopped and chatted for a while.
I wanted to get into Waynesboro that day and still had 18 miles to go. The air was heavy with moisture. The last climb up Humpback Mountain just kept going and going. Since it was so foggy there was no reason to stop at any of the view points. I had made a tentative plan to meet my friend Mike who I knew from working at triathlon races at Rockfish Gap that afternoon. I found that cell phone service on the trail comes and goes with the wind. Sometimes I'll turn my phone off airplane mode and I'll get a bunch of messages, but then I'll try to respond and service will suddenly disappear and then suddenly my phone battery will have drained by 10%...constant battle.
I only had a few miles left when the clouds were getting darker by the minute. I was looking forward to getting into town and I was literally running some of the downhills. I was actually really impressed with myself in that moment - I had hiked 30 miles the day before and was closing in on 27 miles on the day and was feeling so good I was running with a full pack on! In the last 1.5 miles it started raining and instead of stopping to put my pack cover on I just ran faster. I came out of the woods and up to Rockfish Gap (AT mile 862.9) where Mike was waiting for me. I was soaked and exhausted after hiking over 75 miles in the past 3 days but pizza and beer was in the near future so all was good in the world.
We started hiking at around 9:00AM - the morning miles were easy, we stopped at a popular swimming hole at Jennings Creek about 7 miles into the day. The water was cold and the day wasn't hot enough to take a dip but we stopped for a snack. We climbed up and over Fork Mountain before stopping for another snack. At about 10 miles in we took another snack break at Bryant Ridge Shelter, a 2-level, 20 person shelter with a large porch. Obviously we weren't in a rush, we did almost as much snacking as we did walking. It was warm and sunny and the next 5 miles were mostly climbing, so at the top of Black Rock Overlook we took another snack break! We saw very few hikers that day, only a few section hikers all going south.
The last climb of the day was about 2.5 miles and 1,000' up Apple Orchard Mountain. Even with all the snack breaks we were getting hungry and decided to make dinner before starting up the mountain. We looked for a place at the next dirt road crossing but couldn't find a good place to sit so we pushed a little further. After starting the next climb we still couldn't find a good spot and ended up on the top of the mountain before we found a clearing to sit and eat. It happened to be next to another FAA facility. The last 1.2 miles to Thunder Hill Shelter (AT mile 771.4) was mostly downhill and went through the Guillotine - a short rocky section of trail where a large boulder is wedged overhead in the rocks.
Friday morning we slept in slightly and didn't start hiking until 7AM. The miles were mostly downhill so we were expecting an easy day. It was sunny and got hot quickly and we were caught off guard by the climb up Highcock Knob - it was a forested summit and basically just an annoyance. From there we had around 8 downhill miles to get back to Sixlegs' car at US 501 (AT mile 786). The last mile the trail paralleled the James River and crosses on the longest foot-use only bridge on the AT. We finished our 14.6 mile day around 1:30 so we drove into Glasgow for milkshakes. After free showers at a campground up the road in Buena Vista we returned to Glasgow for laundry, pizza, and found a nice spot to tent just north of US 501.
When we woke up Saturday morning at 6AM we found that someone had pitched their tent within feet of us. Pretty weird. They woke up as we were packing and apologized for arriving so late and said they had tried to get into town the night before with no luck. Still rude. I started hiking around 7 and got the first climb over with pretty quickly. Then came the second. And then third. I was pouring with sweat. The third climb brought me to the top of Bluff Mountain and I was starving and ready for a snack break. However, at the top there was a swarm of bees and a note about a copperhead living under a random set of concrete steps at the top of the mountain so I decided to descend and look for another spot.
A thru hiker passed me just before crossing VA 607, a road leading into Buena Vista - he asked if I was going into town and I said I wasn't and he sped past me without saying another word. I found him sitting on the roadside and I continued past him since clearly he was in no mood for conversation. Moments later I came up behind section hiker Dave! Last time I saw him was the day before I hiked up Dragon's Tooth almost a week before. We caught up on the past few days, talking about the weather, trail, town stops, and other hikers. It was his last day on the trail and we hiked the next couple miles together. I didn't eat enough and was running out of steam. We arrived at Brown Mountain Shelter (AT mile 806, 20 miles into the day) at around 1:30 as storm clouds were moving in. Dave had to meet his ride about 2 miles further and had no choice but to depart in the rain. I hung out in the shelter, intending on getting a few more miles in. 
Sunday May 27th I started hiking at 5:55AM. Knowing I had a long day planned I took my time up the climb out - it was about 4.5 miles and 2,700' to Bald Knob, which wasn't actually bald. It was the last 4,000' summit that the AT would cross for a long time. After the climb the trail stayed above 3,000' until the Priest, about 18 miles later but had a series of ups and downs. I took the side trail to Spy Rock which turned out to be a pain in the ass - great view but the trail to the rock outcrop wasn't well defined and I ended up in some thorn bushes. On top of the heat rash and bug bites, my legs were now scratched to pieces. From the view I could see more storm clouds rolling in - a daily occurrence it seems. As I climbed the next 4 miles to the Priest Shelter thunder was following me but thankfully I didn't get rained on. It's a tradition on the trail to confess your sins in the log-book at the Priest Shelter. I didn't have anything to write in the log-book, but some of the things I read weren't really believable (like a girl getting revenge on some guy by pooping in his sleeping bag?!).
It rained a little through the night but everything was pretty much dry by morning. I didn't get up right away but I couldn't sit still after 5:45AM so I got packed and was on the trail by 6:15. The day again began with another climb. Three Ridges was more challenging than I expected, about 2,000' over 3 miles - the first bit up Chimney Rock was steep and rocky. There was a slight reprieve before up to the top of Three Ridges, about 3.5 miles into the day. I was having a bad morning, everything was pissing me off - every second there was another annoyance. If it wasn't the bugs it was cobwebs or rocks or my trekking pole getting stuck or birds chirping too loud. It was close to 10AM and I had only gone 6 miles. There were lots of hikers out today - oh yeah, it's Memorial Day! I got to Reeds Gap, Blue Ridge Parkway mile 13.1, and could see nothing through the fog. Devil's Backbone Brewery isn't too far from here and they let hikers camp for free so it's a popular place to stop, but it was only a little after 10AM I didn't feel like I could justify stopping so early, even for beer. At the next parking lot I found trail magic! A couple had set up a table with snacks and drinks so I stopped and chatted for a while.
I wanted to get into Waynesboro that day and still had 18 miles to go. The air was heavy with moisture. The last climb up Humpback Mountain just kept going and going. Since it was so foggy there was no reason to stop at any of the view points. I had made a tentative plan to meet my friend Mike who I knew from working at triathlon races at Rockfish Gap that afternoon. I found that cell phone service on the trail comes and goes with the wind. Sometimes I'll turn my phone off airplane mode and I'll get a bunch of messages, but then I'll try to respond and service will suddenly disappear and then suddenly my phone battery will have drained by 10%...constant battle.
I only had a few miles left when the clouds were getting darker by the minute. I was looking forward to getting into town and I was literally running some of the downhills. I was actually really impressed with myself in that moment - I had hiked 30 miles the day before and was closing in on 27 miles on the day and was feeling so good I was running with a full pack on! In the last 1.5 miles it started raining and instead of stopping to put my pack cover on I just ran faster. I came out of the woods and up to Rockfish Gap (AT mile 862.9) where Mike was waiting for me. I was soaked and exhausted after hiking over 75 miles in the past 3 days but pizza and beer was in the near future so all was good in the world.
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