Date: 2021-08-06
From: US Rte 220

To: Campbell Shelter 
Miles today: 15.4
Weather: broken clouds

After a somewhat fruitless search for an open restaurant this morning, Quiksilver and I left the hotel and walked the 100 yards to the trail just about 8:30. Being my first day back hiking after being off trail for 16 days, Quiksilver agreed to take it easy in me with a 15 mile day.  While there was a decent amount of elevation gain, the trail itself was a dream: soft ground at times, few rocks or roots compared to the northeast, and the presence of switchbacks when going up a grade. In fact, even with a late start we got in 10 miles by noon and 11 miles by 12:30 when we reached Tinker Cliffs where we took a midday break for an hour. Tinker Cliffs is the first of the Virginia ¢Triple Crown¢ when heading southbound and surrenders magnificent views of the valleys below and mountains in the distance. There was even a nice breeze to keep the flies as bay as we lazed about for almost an hour. Truly idyllic. Once we got up to leave I did notice some discomfort on my right glute (a literal pain in the ass) that persisted the over the last 5 miles of the day¢s hike. Also, both Harry¢s and Dudley¢s big toe nails are sore from trail-breaking my new pair of HOKA shoes, this despite the shoes having being worn for over 75 miles of walking since I got them after completing Maine. Again proving that flat walking Michigan terrain is NOT hiking. Other aches and pains are sure to surface when I get up tomorrow as I get back in trail shape. The non-view highlight of the day came a mile from the Campbell Shelter when we had a fun and exciting trail encounter!  Quiksilver was about 15 feet ahead of me when he suddenly executed this complicated dance-hop-high step-spin move while looking wide-eyed to his right. I thought ¢just an old dude, turning an ankle¢. I was wrong. Quiksilver had been surprised by the warning rattle from an honest to goodness rattlesnake about 6 inches off the trail. When I can up it¢s upper body was coiled as if to strike and it¢s rattle unmistakably counseled caution. I wisely chose to exercise some. I moved uphill and off the trail to the left, but that just seemed to agitate it more. Once I moved past it and about 5 feet away, it stopped the rattling. We decided to wait for a few minutes to see what it did as there were a few day hikers behind us and I thought that letting them stumble across a rattler with an attitude could be considered bad form. After a minute, it started to cross the path and we could see it was about two and a half feet long. Sure enough, once it crossed the trail it went where I had been standing, slithering away on some inscrutable snake business.Blood pumping (but shorts still unsoiled) we covered the last bit to the Campbell Shelter.  We had met a Ridge Runner back at Tinker who told me that this shelter had the last water source for another 10 miles. The only water we had passed in the previous 15 was a non-flowing stream that had some pools of water. The water source here at Campbell is slightly worse (it¢s high summer and Virginia has been dry) so we pulled water from a tiny puddle, using a cup to scoop about 4 ounces at a time. Both Quiksilver and I took the extra step of treating the water first - him with iodine/chlorine tablets and me with Aquapure drops - then filtering it normally. Staving off gastrointestinal distress is worth a little extra expense and effort, at least in my book. After dinner, a troop of about 10 kids aged 12-16 or so came into camp - this seems to be a reoccurring theme and a welcome one. I¢ll gladly trade the additional noise and perhaps a little less sleep if that means kids are getting outside and into the woods. It¢s amazing out here.   Tomorrow we¢re planning to break camp by 5:30 or so and climb the last half mile up to McAfee knob and hopefully catch a sunrise. Being it¢s a Saturday, we surely won¢t be alone as this is one of the most popular spots in Virginia and the most photographed point on the trail (yes, more then Katahdin because more hikers make it here than make it all the way there!).  Pleasant rest to you, dear reader, if it¢s evening where you are, and if it¢s not, have a pleasant whatever-is-left of your day!