Appalachian Trail - Day 056 - Wintergreen View to Rockfish Gap

Day: 056

Date: Monday, 19 June 2023

Start:  Wintergreen View (AT Mile 852.0)

Finish:  Rockfish Gap (AT Mile 864.3) but staying in Waynesboro.

Daily Kilometres:  20.5 (Ascent 1703', Descent 3100')

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1453.5

Weather:  Mostly overcast, warm and humid.

Accommodation:  Motel 

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Bacon double cheeseburger & fries.

  Dinner:  Burrito, rice & salad, ice-cream.

Aches:  Dave - still dealing with blistered right heel; Julie - nothing to report.

Highlight:  A bear sighting, up close, around 8:00am.  We had heard there was a bear that had troubled campers north of Humpback Rocks and then, as we hiked through that area this morning we met a hiker coming the other way who told us she had just seen a bear, but that it had run off.  Twenty minutes later we saw a black bear in the undergrowth about 20 metres from the trail.  It didn't seem to be bothered by us, or interested in us, as it moved through the forest to cross the trail behind us.  Julie, retracing our steps, got a couple of good photos.

Lowlight:  None really.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We woke at 5:00am and were hiking by 6:00am, hoping for easier trail than yesterday, and a fast trip to Rockfish Gap, 12 miles ahead, from where we planned to hitch a ride to Waynesboro for resupply, showers, laundry and a soft bed for the night.

The trail initially followed the top of the ridge along Humpback Mountain (3615') with tree-filtered views to the east, but there was a heavy haze, that persisted all morning, and really only the silhouettes of the surrounding mountains were visible in the early sunlight.  Underfoot, the trail was generally easier, and our pace good, despite the long day yesterday and our lack of sleep.

About four miles later, we had some excitement with our second bear encounter on the trail (see above) which have us a fillip.

Our breakfast break, after 6 miles, was taken on a rock shelf in the peaceful forest, before we tackled the remaining 6 miles to Rockfish Gap.  The trail wound around the sides of several mountains passing signs of past human habitation - stone fences, a cemetery and the ruins of an old stone cabin - and was generally good going, but time seemed to drag, as it often does when we are keen to finish.  The hum of traffic noise, which never seemed to get any closer, didn't help.

Around 12:15pm, we reached the busy Rockfish Gap with its freeway passing through, and after walking a few hundred yards to a good hitching spot on the road to Waynesboro, stuck our thumbs out and almost immediately got a lift from a hiker hostel employee on his way into town.  He filled us in on the best places to eat in town and dropped us at our motel.  We were allowed to check in early and were in our room by 1:00pm.

Julie went and bought some lunch for us while Dave showered, and then later took care of the laundry and resupply shopping to give Dave maximum rest-up time.

Around 5:00pm we walked to a nearby Mexican restaurant for dinner with fellow thru-hiker, Tassie, who arrived in town later this afternoon, and then bought an ice-cream at Walmart on the way back, before having an early night.

Appalachian Trail - Day 055 - Priest Summit to Wintergreen View

Day: 055

Date: Sunday, 18 June 2023

Start:  Priest Summit (AT Mile 830.1)

Finish:  Wintergreen View (AT Mile 852.0)

Daily Kilometres:  35.6 (Ascent 5620', Descent 6129')

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1433.0

Weather:  Warm, sunny and humid.

Accommodation:  Tent 

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Trail mix

  Dinner:  Cheeseburgers, banana pudding 

Aches:  Dave - exhausted and both heels playing up; Julie - nothing to report.

Lowlight:  The climb up to Three Ridges (3965') in the Three Ridges Wilderness was exhausting, particularly for Dave.  It was very technical, crossing multiple talus fields with rocks of all shapes and sizes to be negotiated, as well as incorporating some very steep ascents.  The climb went on and on, in warm humid conditions, and it seemed your foot needed to be carefully placed with every step.

Highlight:  After we had been over the Three Ridges (see above) we descended to Maupin Field Shelter where we stopped for lunch and chatted with two other thru-hikers we knew (Grits and Monkey Man) there, watching day-hikers pass by and speculating on what nice cold drinks and food they might have in their light backpacks.  We had all just completed the hike over Three Ridges and were all feeling depleted, tired and over it.  Grits and Monkey Man left and we followed soon afterwards.  Two miles later, as we entered a car park on the Blue Ridge Parkway, there were our friends seated in camp chairs drinking cold drinks and eating appetizing food.  A young couple, who met while hiking the AT last year, were providing food and drinks to thru-hikers.  Trail Magic!  It could not have come at a better time as we were hungry and dreaming of cold drinks.  We spent about 45 minutes there enjoying the company and food.  Dave downed three Mountain Dews in quick succession, hoping to revive himself for the afternoon's hiking.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We were hiking by soon after 6:00am, hoping to cover as many miles as we could today so that we had less than 10 miles to do tomorrow to get to Waynesboro, our next resupply town.

Although it was a beautiful morning for hiking, the trail was immediately very technical and slow.  Not a good start.  After a few hours we reached the end of the descent from Priest Summit, crossed the Tye River, and began what turned out to be an epic climb up to Three Ridges (see above).  The Appalachian Trail was part of a loop with the Mau-Har trail which is popular with day-hikers and we saw plenty on this sunny Sunday.  The Mau-Har trail actually provides a short-cut for AT hikers, not only being shorter, but missing out on the diabolical climb over the Three Ridges.  Later we met a couple of thru-hikers who had done just that.

After descending from the Three Ridges and having lunch (see above) we were well behind our target mileage and hoped the afternoon's trail would be better, but it was a forlorn hope.  There was barely mile of easy trail today and, despite being revived by the "trail magic" we received mid-afternoon, we still found the trail rocky, technical and slow right to the end.

We walked late, not finding a tent site until 7:30pm, and got our mileage up to nearly 22, so not too far short of our target, but a long and tough day.

Appalachian Trail - Day 054 - Long Mountain Wayside to Priest Summit

Day: 054

Date: Saturday, 17 June 2023

Start:  Long Mountain Wayside (AT Mile 809.1) but staying in Lexington

Finish:  Priest Summit (AT Mile 830.1)

Daily Kilometres:  34.0 (Ascent 6050', Descent 4062')

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1397.4

Weather:  Mild and sunny 

Accommodation:  Tent

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  The Waffle House big breakfast 

  Lunch: New York sub

  Dinner:  Rehydrated meals 

Aches:  Dave - still dealing with right heel blister; Julie - nothing to report

Highlight:  It was a long climb to get there but Cole Mt Bald was a beautiful long ridge-top meadow with views all around on a stellar day. We met a number of day hikers on their way up to picnic there, some carrying kites.

Lowlight:  None really.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We got up early and walked across the road to the Waffle House soon after 6:00am for a very filling breakfast seemingly replete with all of the calories we would need for the day's hiking.

We checked out of our motel at 7:30am and were picked up by our shuttle driver, Derek, at 7:40am for the drive back up into the mountains and the trailhead where we had finished on Thursday.

By 8:10am we were hiking on a perfect day.  Of course, it was uphill and it took an hour and a half to reach the summit of Bald Knob (4045') with a couple of hazy views near the top.

We descended a little to a gap before climbing to Cole Mt followed by a beautiful journey across the Cole Mt Bald (see above).

There were a lot of hikers out and we took our first break at Salt Log Gap where there was a full car park.  From there, apart from a few short meadow sections, the rest of our day was spent in the "green tunnel" with occasional tree-filtered views.  Mostly, the trail was good, though some loose rocky sections slowed us down.

The last climb up to Priest Summit (4018') was long and rough underfoot in places.  We had hoped to get one of the prime tent sites we had heard about on the ledges looking north, but we were late, nearly 7:00pm by the time we got there, and they were already taken by other thru-hikers.  Nevertheless, we found a nice site a little further along the summit, although with no views, shortly after.  By this time a cold wind was blowing so maybe better not out in the open anyway.

We were relatively late to set up camp and get to bed, but happy with a nice day's hiking and 21 miles after a late start.

Appalachian Trail - Day 053 - Lexington Day Off.

Day: 053

Date: Friday, 16 June 2023

Start:  Long Mountain Wayside (AT Mile 809.1) but staying in Lexington

Finish:  Long Mountain Wayside (AT Mile 809.1) but staying in Lexington

Daily Kilometres:  0

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos from.her run/walk around Lexington.

Total Kilometres:  1363.4

Weather:  Mild and mostly sunny.

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Cereal, biscuits & jam/Biscuits & sausage, biscuits & jam.

  Lunch:  Mexicali subs

  Dinner:  Bacon cheeseburger & fries, thickshake.

Aches:  Nothing to report.

Highlight:  None really.

Lowlight:  None really.

Pictures: No pictures today.

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

A very lazy day off the trail for us (and well-earned).

We had a sleep-in and then took advantage, we thought, of the motel's "complimentary hot buffet breakfast" which was less than stellar with a very limited offering.  We were regretting not walking across the road to the Waffle House, but won't make the same mistake tomorrow morning.

After breakfast, while Dave did some admin and watched TV, Julie went for a run/walk into Lexington along a local trail, passing through the storied Virginia Military Institute (VMI …. Google it) en route.  In town she stopped at the outdoor store and bought a few bits of gear we need before returning to our motel via Subway where she bought us some lunch.

We just hung around in the motel room for the afternoon, with Julie looking increasingly bored.

Later we walked half a mile to a Dairy Queen restaurant to buy dinner which we ate back in our room.

Back on the trail tomorrow.

Appalachian Trail - Day 052 - Salt Log Gap to Long Mountain Wayside

Day: 052

Date: Thursday, 15 June 2023

Start:  Salt Log Gap (AT Mile 794.7) 

Finish:  Long Mountain Wayside (AT Mile 809.1) but staying in Lexington

Daily Kilometres:  22.7 

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1363.4

Weather:  Warm, humid and mostly sunny.

Accommodation:  Motel

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Cheeseburger & fries 

  Dinner:  Chicken burrito bowl/Chicken tenders & fries, ice-cream.

Aches:  Dave - still dealing with heel blister; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  Hiking along the atmospheric Brown Mountain Creek where remnants of the freed slave farming community that lived there in the early 1900s could be seen amongst the woods.

Lowlight:  None really

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

With the possibility of burgers for lunch, if we made good time, we woke at 5:00am and were hiking by 6:00am.

We started with a steady climb to the top of Bluff Mt (3351') that soon had Dave delayering to his T-shirt despite the early hour.  There was a small poignant memorial at the summit to a 4-y-o boy who had been found dead there in 1891 after wandering away from his schoolhouse several days earlier.  There were also amazing views to the west over rural countryside, mountains and fog-shrouded valleys.

For the rest of our hiking day we were predominantly descending through peaceful woodland and alongside rocky babbling streams.

We took our first and only break at the Redland River Bridge after 3.5 hours of walking to have breakfast.  In total, we had a little over 14 miles to hike for the day to get to Long Mountain Wayside and US Hwy 60, from where we planned to get to Lexington and our motel booked for two nights.

After the breakfast break, when we had phone reception on top of a knoll, Dave messaged a hiker shuttle operator estimating we would need a ride at 1:00pm from Long Mountain Wayside but, unfortunately, we did not have reception again until we actually got there 2.5 hours later and were able to confirm the ride.

Before that, apart from the usual woodlands, there were some bridged river crossings and a lovely stretch following the contours alongside the Lynchburg Reservoir.  Also the journey along Brown Mountain Creek was interesting and scenic.

Not long after we reached the highway an Asian thru-hiker we had last seen weeks ago in the Smoky Mountains emerged from the trail behind us.  His English was limited, but he did manage to say "Long time no see!" with a big smile when he saw us.  He quickly hitched a ride down the mountain making us somewhat regret having booked the shuttle, but it arrived soon after 1:30pm, as promised, and by soon after 2:15pm we were checking into our motel.

Dave went and bought some late lunch while Julie showered and then later, after the laundry was done, we had an early dinner at a restaurant next door before walking to the Walmart across the road where we bought most of the supplies needed for the next leg, so that we don't have too much to do tomorrow on our day off.

Appalachian Trail - Day 050 - Bobblets Gap to Thunder Hill Shelter

Day: 050

Date: Tuesday, 13 June 2023

Start:  Bobblets Gap (AT Mile 749.1)

Finish:  Thunder Hill Shelter (AT Mile 772.5)

Daily Kilometres:  39.6 (Ascent 6801', Descent 5062')

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1304.8

Weather:  Mild and mostly sunny.

Accommodation:  Tent 

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Trail mix 

  Dinner:  Rice & chicken/Rehydrated meal

Aches:  Dave - very tired and small blister on right heel from new boots; Julie - nothing to report.

Highlight:  None really 

Lowlight:  The very long slog up Apple Orchard Mt (4203') in the afternoon was not rewarded with any reasonable views.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We were hiking by soon after 6:00am on a breezy cool morning.  The trail, after some easier ridge walking, descended through pleasant forest away from the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) and we didn't see it again until the evening.

Most of our day was spent in the "green tunnel" winding around the sides of mountains, descending to cross streams and then climbing back up.  There was some very nice hiking, but the hills were sweaty affairs.

We took our breakfast and lunch breaks at shelters (they have picnic tables) and our last break at Black Rock Overlook which had some great views to the west.

We didn't see so many hikers today, but did catch up with "Tassie" and later "Watermelon Man", both of whom we have seen a number of times before.

Generally, the trail was good underfoot and we covered plenty of miles today, yet still managed to finish by 6:30pm.  We are camped near a shelter in not a great spot, but didn't have too many choices.  There are about six other hikers in the shelter and camping nearby.

Appalachian Trail - Day 051 - Thunder Hill Shelter to Salt Log Gap

Day: 051

Date: Wednesday, 14 June 2023

Start:  Thunder Hill Shelter (AT Mile 772.5)

Finish:  Salt Log Gap (AT Mile 794.7)

Daily Kilometres:  35.9 (Ascent 4787', Descent 6112')

GPX Track:  Click here for Julie’s Strava & Photos

Total Kilometres:  1340.7

Weather:  Cool overcast and very windy in the morning, then warmer and mostly cloudy in the afternoon with a very light shower.

Accommodation:  Tent 

Nutrition:

  Breakfast:  Pop tarts 

  Lunch:  Trail mix 

  Dinner:  Chicken & rice

Aches:  Dave - still dealing with a blister on right heel; Julie - nothing reported.

Highlight:  The James River, which we crossed in the early afternoon was something different.  Wide with occasional shallow rapids, we first saw it from high on a mountain and then steadily descended with more river views along the way.  We could hear some lads jumping into the river from the bridge before we got there and when we arrived we had a nice chat with them.  Turns out they were both serious runners and one was soon to visit Australia.  We crossed the river on the very long pedestrian bridge, the longest on the AT.

Lowlight:  Setting up camp, and preparing and eating dinner, was made quite unpleasant by a horde of tiny biting insects.  We couldn't wait to finish dinner and get into the tent.

Pictures: Click here

Map and Position: Click here for Google Map

Journal:

We were hiking by soon after 6:30am and shortly crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway for the first and last time for the day.  It was cool and windy and the trail was good as we passed through the waking forest.

The first hour was mainly downhill but then we had a solid rocky climb to Highcock Knob (3056') with some good views along the way.  We were now on a 10-mile stretch where no camping was permitted because of "aggressive bear activity" but made no bear sightings.  Instead, the forest was peaceful and we began our long descent to the James River, stopping for lunch in a shelter near the bottom.

Dave was struggling a bit with the blister on his heel and for the third time of the day took the boot off and tried some different first aid. This last attempt did improve things and it was more tolerable on the afternoon.

Soon after lunch, we reached the James River and crossed (see above).  After the crossing the initial walking through lovely forest following a babbling Rocky Row Run was very pleasant, but soon we were climbing quickly in humid sweaty conditions to Fullers Rocks (2333') from where there were excellent views back down to the river and then more and very steep climbing up to Big Rocky Row (2911') with more good views.

The tough climb was also rewarded with a long section along a forested ridge with nice even grades.  By this time we were starting to look out for tent sites, which seemed very scarce, eventually finding one surrounded by nettles at 6:30pm.  Not ideal but it will do.