Date: 2013-10-26
From: Campbell Shelter

To: Four Pines Hostel
Miles today: 10.3

Last night was the coldest night on the trail so far. My thermometer showed 24 outside when I got up. Inside my tent it was a balmy 28. Fortunately, I had brought my water containers inside my tent and none showed any signs of beginning to freeze. However, if the overnight temps get much colder I'll have to start putting my water filter and one water bottle inside my sleeping bag. After a short uphill climb, I found a beautiful morning on McAfee Knob, clear and cold with a sharp gusty wind and the sun just peeking over the distant eastern horizon. It was also crowded with 15+ people who had hiked up very early to catch the sunrise. They were a young and rowdy bunch, not very sociable, so I didn't hang around for long. There were several tents and a campfire going just down the trail, right next to a "No Camping" sign. Apparently McAfee Knob is a busy and popular spot on a fine autumn weekend. I had hoped to spend a bit more time there and try to get some early morning photos but with the crowd and the noise and the hustle and bustle it just didn't seem right. What a contrast from yesterday afternoon when I had the Tinker Cliffs and their gorgeous views all to myself. As I continued down the trail toward the trailhead I passed at least 30 more day hikers all headed up to McAfee Knob. A popular weekend hike indeed! When I reached the trailhead parking area it was packed with cars and people getting ready to head up the trail. But when I crossed to the south side of the highway, I had the trail to myself again. It wound up and down and around the spine of a narrow rocky ridge with occasional partial views both east and west through the tree tops that were rapidly losing most of their leaves. Between VA Routes 785 and 624 the trail crossed Catawba Creek and wound through some very nice farmland and pastures, crossing two more branches of Catawba Creek on bridges. These stretches of rural farmland are relatively rare on the AT as the trail is almost entirely on ridge tops and public lands. Because these stretches are so different from most of the rest of the trail I enjoy them as much as other sections of trail. I got to Newport Road about 2 PM and decided to walk the road to the nearby Catawba Grocery for snacks and a drink. After buying a few things and looking at the map I decided to call the owner of the nearby Four Pines Hostel and see if there was room to stay tonight. A big part of this decision was that it is Saturday night and the famous Homeplace Restaurant would be open. When I had passed through here in '07 I remembered hearing how good the 'All you Can Eat' dinners at The Homeplace are, but my timing was off and the restaurant wasn't open. Today, my timing was just right so I might as well try it and see for myself. There were only 3 other folks at the hostel, Foot plus another couple. I was the only one wanting to go to dinner so off I went by myself. The Homeplace Restaurant is in a large early 1900's Virginia plantation style farmhouse with paintings of Robert E Lee, Stonewall Jackson and other Confederate Generals hanging in every hallway and sitting room. The waiting line for tables to eat stretched far out the door and around the long covered wrap-around porches. I waited a little over an hour and was told this was a relatively short wait compared to the usual crowds. Dinner was served family style, with a choice of two meats and four veggies and peach cobbler for desert, all you can eat of course. It was excellent! The conversations with families eating at nearby tables made the evening that much more enjoyable, and very different from most of my evening meals on the trail. It was a fine, but brief, diversion from life on the trail.