Mountains Under Foot

From Hazard’s notes:
Day 49: June 27, 2009
Travel:
From: Dripping Rock parking overlook, VA (Rusty’s Hard Time Hollow)
To: Waynesboro, VA
Beginning: 10:00am
Ending: 3:00pm
Number of miles hiked:
a) Trail – 14.3
b) other
c) AT Mile Marker – 852.5 cumulative
Weather:
Am & Pm: Awesome! The dry streak continues.
People: Iceman and Cattywampus.
Animals: Townfolk…?
Money: $11 for dinner, $810 cumulative.
Notes of the day:
AM: Woke up at Rusty’s earlier than usual probably from the roosters. Had breakfast and Rusty gave us a ride back to where we left off yesterday. Iceman and Cattywampus had left to try and hitch a ride much earlier. We moved down the trail pretty fast and took a video on some rocks overlooking Wintergreen ski resort. Got to Paul Wolfe Shelter around 1pm and Iceman & Catty were there taking a break. I had some tuna and Spoon went without. Got back to work 30 minutes later and punched out 5 miles by 3pm. Not too bad. We were at Rockfish Gap, which is mile marker 0 on the BRP, taking pictures and a van pulls up and they where trail angels shuttling people into town. The easiest hitch we’ve ever had, didn’t even have to stick our thumbs out.

PM: They gave us the tour of Waynesboro and dropped us off at the YMCA suggesting we needed to take advantage of the free showers before we went anywhere. Got showers and then headed to the library next door to get some things uploaded and check emails. Iceman came rolling in 30 minutes later and sat down at a computer. Catty was off meeting up with her parents and he was planning on staying at the church hostel with us. At 5pm the computers kicked us off and we shuffled out of the library. While Spoon and I were walking to the church we saw Iceman hurrying over waving his hands. We thought “Oh no, the hostel is full or something” but he came over and said, “What is the greatest trail magic you’ve ever gotten?” We both kinda looked at each other confused and then he told us Catty’s parents wanted to get us a hotel room. They brought an ice cream maker and wanted to meet some of the hikers. So we rode out to the edge of town to the Marriot Residence Inn and got hooked up with some posh digs. After dropping our stuff and taking advantage of the flat screen TV we got a ride out to a Chinese buffet while Catty and the parents went to Outback Steak House. We stuffed ourselves silly with as much food as we could and then lounged around to digest and wait for our the others to finish and come back for us. Once our ride returned, we resupplied and came back to the hotel. There was more TV, repackaging of food, Catty’s parents had brought her MacBook so there was Internet access. We were in Heaven. But wait, there’s more, after re-showering (because the YMCA just didn’t de-grease our hair) we got called to the other room for homemade ice cream and poundcake. Yum! Good conversations, good times. The rest of the night was me updating blog stuff, uploading more pictures, chatted with Kim (Setting up some Massachusetts trail magic) and my mom, splitting one of our videos to fit on YouTube, and catching up on Cat’s blog. That took a little more time than I anticipated. Going to bed late…

From Hazard’s notes:
Day 48: June 26, 2009
Travel:
From: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter, VA
To: BRP mp 9.6; Dripping Rock Parking Overlook. Then to Rusty’s Hard Time Hollow.
Beginning: 8:00am
Ended: 7:20pm
Number of miles hiked:
a) Trail – 27.1
b) other -
c) AT Mile Marker – 838.2 cumulative
Weather:
AM: Overcast sky for the morning, sun peeked through.
PM: Had some dark clouds come in, but they were short lived. A few drops of rain but it didn’t even break through the canopy. By my vote it doesn’t count and we are still on the rain-free streak.
People: Rusty (Owns the hostel), Iceman and Cattywampus. Wheels came in late and I had referred to him as Chef before but that was actually the Canadian girl he was hiking with when we first met him.
Animals: Same old
Money: $0, $799 cumulative.
Notes of the day:
AM: Morning was an easy 7 miles from our shelter to the next which was Priest Shelter. So easy, in fact, that Spoon exceeded 3mph and I got there right at 10:20am. Not a bad start on the day. Once up on top of the Priest there really wasn’t much to see, so we began our 3000 vertical foot decent to the Tye River. It was about lunchtime and there were some cool rocks to sit on and watch the river from beside the suspension bridge so we decided to have lunch.

PM: There were some locals picnicking below us and a couple of little girls swimming in the river. I was dreading the next section of trail as we had to climb back up those 3000 feet up to three ridges. And it was soooo hot! If you ever want me to soak my clothes to the point where you can see my boxers through my shorts, throw me in a pool or ask me to hike up three ridges. The rest of the day wasn’t too bad. Came down about a thousand feet and then followed along the Blue Ridge Parkway for the rest of the day. Had a short spat of rain that wasn’t enough to moisten the ground, but it rained further up the trail more, so the rocks were nice and slippery when we got there. By the time we got to Cedar Cliffs it was getting late and we were spent. The original plan was to stay at the shelter 7 miles back but we decided to push to make the walk into Waynesboro shorter. Ended up being the best decision we could have made. While sitting at the cliffs a couple came strolling down the trail and clearly the guy was taking his girlfriend down to the cliffs for an evening picnic with wine and a sunset. Well played, sir. I will have to use that move one day. Anyhow, it was a 10 minute hike up to the parking area where we met Iceman standing on the side of the BRP. He told us about Rusty’s and it sounded a lot better than sleeping next to the bug infested water source. Cattywampus was already getting a ride from a teenager in a convertible, that called Iceman “sir”, because he could only fit one at a time. We decided if we could find a ride we’d go to the hostel. Got a ride from a friendly crew that thought our car had broken down. We should stand beside other people’s cars more often. Rusty’s was a cool place, for more info, check out the Video Blog 08.

From Hazard’s notes:
Day 47: June 25, 2009
Travel:
From: Punchbowl Shelter, VA
To: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter, VA
Beginning: 8:20am
Ending: 7:15pm
Number of miles hiked:
a) Trail – 25.3
b) other – .2 out of Punchbowl to AT
c) AT Mile Marker – 811.1 cumulative
Weather:
AM: Sunny and nice like everyday this week.
PM: Some clouds rolled in later and the sky grew overcast. Scared us a bit, but produced nothing. Heard there was 30% chance of rain tonight.
People: Knees and Curio went into Buena Vista for resupply. An old couple with their grand kids gave us and a SOBOer some magic. A couple of older guys, Pacer and one other…
Animals: A really green snake across the trail. Too quick for me to get a picture. Usual deer too.
Money: $0, $799 cumulative. My total spent is finally lower than my total miles! Yay!
Notes of the day:
AM: I awoke and the frogs were still croaking. Don’t they ever take a break? Broke camp quickly and started moving down the trail. The first 10 miles to the next shelter were super easy and it felt good to have that much done before noon. The creek, for about a mile leading up to the next shelter, was home to a freed slaves community up until about 1920 when the land was sold to the forest service. Rock formations and rubble were scattered along the banks and it was interesting to imagine what life would have been like in such a place along the creek. When we got to the shelter we decided, after pulling the book out, that we better stay and eat lunch and fill water because it was our last chance to fill water for the next 10 miles.

PM: Two miles uphill to US 60 and some magic! A car pulled up as we were about to re-enter the woods and an older couple and their grand kids came out of the car. The walked toward us with genuine interest for thru-hikers. They asked us the standard questions of when did you start and where. Then they offered us some Gatorade that we happily accepted and then some peaches that we munched down. As soon as the peach was gone the lady came back with some salami and Swiss cheese for us to snack on as well. I love salami! A SOBOer had come down the mountain and was joining in the magic and telling us about all the perils that lay ahead to the north past Harpers Ferry. We thanked the couple for the magic and thrust ourselves uphill; 3.8 miles of climbing that didn’t feel too bad, it only took 90 minutes or so. In between that climb up Bald Mountain (there was no bald) and the next one up Cold Mountain we took a candy break and recorded a video. Then from the top of Cold Mountain we pretty much didn’t talk or stop until we reached the shelter. Two old guys were there (Pacer & the other guy was named after a town in Puerto Rico) and had made a fire. Standard end of day routine and straight to bed. Well, I had to stay up and write this of course. Gotta make tomorrow really count. Only about 40 miles to Waynesboro, VA.

From Hazard’s notes:
Day 46: June 24, 2009
Travel:
From: Marble Spring, VA
To: Punchbowl Shelter, VA
Beginning: 8:30am
Ending: 6:30pm
Number of miles hiked:
a) Trail – 18.2
b) other – .2 down to shelter
c) AT Mile Marker – 785.8 cumulative
Weather:
AM & PM: Sunny with blue skies and white puffy clouds. Wooo!
People: Same crowd from last night plus Slackass, Croc (impostor), Sarah, Shannon, and Kelly.
Animals: The usual.
Money: $7 for lunch, $2 for resupply, $7 for shuttle back to trail. $799 cumulative.
Notes of the day:
AM: Not the best night sleep under Spoon’s hammock. He kept sagging lower and lower so I shuffled to the side. Once we woke up and got some food going we finished off the last of the leftover cereal. Spoon was concerned we’d go hungry without it supporting our breakfasts. So he suggested a quick resupply in Big Island or Glasgow and have lunch there as well. Really quick 5 miles to Matt’s Creek then another 2 miles to the James River foot bridge. We crossed over the James shortly after 11am and the tried to hitch into town for almost an hour before asking the guys fishing under the bridge if they were heading into town anytime soon. Thankfully they were and we finally got to town after noon.

PM: The local gas station on the edge of town was outfitted with made to order foods and a deli. I had a ham & cheese sub because I can’t remember the last time I had cold cuts for lunch, it was certainly before the hike. Spoon had some monster bacon cheeseburger per usual. This is where we met the three girls who are hiking together. Over at the Dollar General we picked up two things, a bag of sugary cereal and mini Oreo bites. Then we spent 30-40 minutes trying to find a ride without luck before we had to call a shuttle service. The three girls walked across the street and within 5 minutes had roped a guy into taking them back to the trail. To be honest I’m pretty sure he was headed the opposite direction before he stopped. Anyway we took our silent ride with Turtleback back to the trail and we each handed Leon the driver our $7. The whole trip down to town seemed so pointless at this moment but it made Spoon happy so whatever. Just 10 miles and 3 really nasty uphills to the next shelter and we were done with the day. We got to where we had planned but I felt like we could have done much more today. I’d really like to make Harpers Ferry on schedule so we might have to blaze through the Shenandoah’s. The frogs from the pond were croaking the whole night making quite a loud symphony of noise. It kinda reminded me of when I went down to Fort Bragg with Cat for work. Around 1:30am I woke up and felt my foot in searing pain like it had been poked with an ember. Some spider or other insect bit or stung the bottom of my toe. It left this bubble of skin that I poked with the tweezers until clear fluid came out. That made it feel somewhat better, but that spot and actually other spots on my foot remained puffy and painful. Good times…

From Hazard’s notes:
Day 45: June 23, 2009
Travel:
From: Middle Creek Picnic Area, VA (Va. 614, Jennings Creek)
To: Marble Spring, VA
Beginning: 9:15am
Ending: 7:30pm
Number if miles hiked:
a) Trail – 20.9
b) other – .3 to trail from campground.
c) AT Mile Marker – 767.6 cumulative
Weather:
AM & PM: Beautiful weather again, same as yesterday. I could get used to this!
People: Hardee (and Bruce the dog) joined us during lunch. Alex gave us some magic on the BRP. Turtleback, Knees & his hiking partner (her name is Curio) at the campground tonight.
Animals: The usual number of tamer than normal deer.
Money: $0, $783 cumulative.
Notes of the day:
AM: Day began with the sun shining brightly in my face. Breakfast, then filled our water at the creek per the usual routine then cruised down the road to the trailhead. First thing in the morning we climb 1100 vertical feet to the top of fork mountain and then back down to Bryant Ridge Shelter. This shelter was the king of all other shelters in terms of size. It was a massive tri-level mansion that made us wish we weren’t on a schedule. We reluctantly left because ahead of us was Floyd Mountain, a 2300 vertical foot climb. This mountain is a textbook example of what we lovingly call a “kick-in-the-pants mountain”. It starts with a long and well graded climb that gets you into the mindset that “Hey, this isn’t so bad”, but just when your muscles are getting really tired the trail flattens out or even goes downhill. This is where the fun begins because the trail makes a turn and proceeds straight up the next mountain. This pattern of turning and going straight up the next hill continues, each time the trail flattening and appearing to be on top of everything, but of course it wasn’t. This ascent took us a good two hours and we were ready for lunch coming off its view less summit.

PM: Lunch was had at Cornelius Creek Shelter with a guy named Hardee. We had passed him on the way up Floyd and he stopped for a bite to eat as well. He had fallen on some rough times and was getting off the trail on Friday. This meant he had lots of time to take it slow and check out side trails like the Apple Orchard Falls. He left and we wished him good fortune. We pumped some water and continued along our way. Next big hurdle of the day was Apple Orchard Mountain, which was once an Air Force radar base and is the highest point on the AT from Chestnut Knob and Mt. Moosilauke in NH. We stopped on top to take in the view and for me to eat a Snickers. Down the trail, a short way, is the Guillotine which is a big rock stuck between two other big rocks. The rest of the afternoon seemed like it was going to be pretty easy, or so we thought. We got to an overlook and met a guy named Alex who took our picture and our trash. He even offered up some water he had in his car. We graciously accepted and then Spoon went so-far as to ask if he had any food. He had some bananas. Jackpot! It has been since Kincora that I’ve had a banana and it was delicious. We thanked him and moved on. The final great feat of the day was High Cock Knob (bring on the jokes) and it really lived up to its name; 700 vertical feet over about a mile with a false peak. It was super steep coming both up and down. Not the best way to end the day. Good thing we planned on this day being tough so we rolled into camp at a reasonable time today and had dinner before it was dark. We also built a fire and had time to relax. Feels good.