Date: 2008-10-20
To: No Car's house - off the trail near Marion, VA
Miles today: 393.5
Weather: clear sky

It's been a long time, but it's finally time for the update. Hope you've got some free time...just read it in the bathroom...Luray, VA - Rock Spring Shelter - Day 89 - 1246.3 - 1260.4 - September 28thAfter getting a late start out of the hotel this morning, we were unsuccessful in getting a hitch on the highway. Thankfully, after walking back into town to the outfitter, the owner there gave us the 9 miles ride back to the park. Today was a very foggy day with little visibility. However, it was still enjoyable, as the trail was excellent and quite fun to be on. The day was then nicely topped off with a baby bear sighting and me getting within 5 feet of 3 big deer while getting water tonight¢¦the wildlife here is completely unfazed by us. I haven¢t seen it like this since I was in Glacier NP 4 summers ago. It¢s supposed to clear up tomorrow so we can see more wildlife and views¢¦hopefully¢¦Rock Spring Shelter - Hightop Hut - Day 90 - 1260.4 - 1284.3 - September 29thWell, the first half of today was excellent with many deer sightings, a bear sighting, many great views, and a hot dog lunch at the campground. After that, we had no wildlife or views, and the terrain was annoyingly hilly. Thankfully, the last climb of the day rewarded us with a nice view right before the shelter. 2 more days in the park¢¦hopefully we¢ll avoid the ¢Isolated Thunderstorms¢ tomorrow and see some more wildlife!Hightop Hut - Blackrock Hut - Day 91 - 1284.3 - 1305.7 - September 30thToday started off quite poorly. Stretch was having major issues with his contacts and we were taking on lots of decent PUDs with no views. Thankfully, our morale improved with a nice break around 11am. A couple of hours later, we arrived at a campground store just as it started to sprinkle. We had hot dogs, potato salad, and ice cream for lunch and ended up taking ~ 2 hours for lunch. That was just enough time to let the skies clear and get us to the shelter. We actually got some great views in the last 10 miles today, which made up for seeing none in the first 11 (and not bears at all). To Waynesboro tomorrow!!!Blackrock Hut - Waynesboro, VA - Day 92 - 1305.7 - 1325.7 - October 1stWell, the hiking part of today consisted of decent views, a bear, some deer, and a bit of rain. Once we got our of Shenandoah, we had one of the Waynesboro ¢Trail Angels¢ take us into town. We decided to splurge tonight on a nice B&B which is awesome¢¦We¢re the only guests tonight. The Chinese buffet for dinner was nice and we¢ll be back on the trail tomorrow!Waynesboro, VA - Maupin Field Shelter - Day 93 - 1325.7 - 1346.5 - October 2ndAfter taking a slow morning with a great breakfast, Stretch and I got out on the trail at 11am (OOPS!). We struggled all day with the time constraint we put ourselves in and the Thru-Hikers Companion was full of huge typos. To make matters worse, my right foot is still killing me after yesterday. It feels like a bruise or pinched nerve and hopefully it feels better tomorrow when we take on the Priest. Maupin Field Shelter - Seeley-Woodworth Shelter - Day 94 - 1346.7 - 1367.0 - October 3rdGreat full day today! After a chilly night last night, we headed up, over, and down 3 Ridges and then up and over The Priest. We spent most of the day hiking with/around 2-Liter. The Priest is one of the top 10 biggest elevation gain climb on the whole trail and is the first time since NH we¢ve been over 4000`. The views and weather all day were spectacular. Hopefully tomorrow will be just as good and my foot will feel as good as it did today!S-W Shelter - Buena Vista, VA - Day 95 - 1367.0 - 1381.0 - October 4thFist off, it¢s pronounced ¢Boona Vista.¢ The hiking part of the day was actually pretty spectacular with out first 2 balds in the South that offered panoramic views. The weather again was great. After that, we hitched to the Food Lion and then the hotel before settling down for a restful Saturday. All I can say for Boona Vista is how great of a rural, rural Southern town (with 2 run down hotels and a few fast food places). 20 out of town tomorrow¢¦should be a haul¢¦Buena Vista, VA - Johns Hollow Shelter - Day 96 - 1381.0 - 1401.1 - October 5thShockingly enough, we got to the trail at 10am this morning and saw a whole lot of nothing until the top of Punchbowl Mtn around 4. Then we hot great views the whole day. It¢s nice to have good weather and be in the amazing Blue Ridge again. We¢re hoping for more of the same tomorrow!Johns Hollow Shelter - Day 97 - 1401.1 - 1422.7 - October 6thAnother day of great weather and views. Today was a difficult day, thought, as we ascended nearly all day to Apple Orchard Mtn at 4200+` (3600` higher than we were earlier in the day when we went over the James River Foot Bridge). Unfortunately, my thyroid has decided to act up the last couple of days and I will be getting it checked out in the ER Thursday. Hoping for more good weather and better health tomorrow!Cornelius Creek Shelter - VA 614 (Roanoke, VA) - Day 98 - 1422.7 - 1431.4 - October 7thWell, after feeling awful today, we decided to be safe and get off today. After getting picked up by Stretch¢s Great Uncle & Aunt (saviors!!!), we got lunch and showered before heading to the ER. After being tested at the ER, Lucien (Stretch¢s Great Uncle) & I headed back to the house where we had Pizza Dinner and then took a drive up to the Roanoke Star. The results of my tests will be in tomorrow. Roanoke, VA - Zero Day - Day 99 - October 8thToday we went to downtown Roanoke to visit Lucien¢s son, Robert. We got coffee and went to the Outfitter there and rested most of the day. I felt much better today and have everything straightened out (hopefully). Robert joined us for a spaghetti dinner as well as Stretch¢s two friends from USC, James & Noah. Roanoke, VA - Zero Day - Day 100 - October 9thAfter getting up late again, Lucien & Stretch went and picked up four other SOBOs to have a reunion lunch today at the house. It was a fun shindig. After the other SOBOs headed back into Daleville, James, Noah, Stretch and I went and played football, confirming my improving health. We then went to Chick-Fil-A before heading to Patrick Henry HS to see Robert¢s daughter¢s volleyball game. After that, we had a great dinner at Outback (thanks again Robert!) and went back to Robert¢s house for a short bit. Back to the trail tomorrow¢¦VA 614 - Wilson Creek Shelter - Day 101 - 1431.4 - 1448.3 - October 10thThanks again to everyone in Roanoke for their hospitality. It was just what I needed to get better!!! After a slow morning, Stretch & I left with Uncle Lucien and James and Noah headed back to Charleston. We didn¢t hit the trail until 11:30 and enjoyed a fairly easy and beautiful day. Tomorrow will be into Daleville to resupply and then off into the wilderness for the evening¢¦I¢m feeling MUCH better¢¦Wilson Creek Shelter - Scorched Earth Gap - Day 102 - 1448.3 - 1469.5 - October 11th After a boring first half of the day, Stretch & I resupplied in Daleville and got to catch the OU/Texas ending and the first quarter of the Tenn/UGA game at a Mexican Restaurant. After that, the trail was terrible and we did ~ 4 miles of night hiking and just stealthed right next to the trail. For some reason, I have gone from loving and being good at night hiking to hating an being terrible at it¢¦ugh¢¦Scorched Earth Gap = Dragons Tooth - Day 103 - 1469.5 - 1487.7 - October 12thToday started out nicely with some good views on top of Tinker Cliffs. After that, the day went downhill. The terrain/trail maintenance was awful and full of PUDs. We ran into tons of people day hiking to the knob which really slowed us down. We ended up having to ration water because there was very little along the trail. Then the last mile or so of the hike today was fantastically difficult with lots of hand over hand up to Dragons Tooth. The sunset was amazing and out stealth location is the best so far on the entire AT. It was just what we ended to get out morale high again!!!Dragons Tooth - Laurel Creek Shelter - Day 104 - 1487.7 - 1514.4 - October 13th The ups and downs of the trail are ridiculous. We had a continuation of the awful trail up and down the first 13 miles. We arrived at the VA 621 Valley crossing only to find 10 USFS trucks and a bus and a sign that said ¢AT Closed.¢ It turns out that a forest fire is on the trail, so the forest service is shuttling hikers (we were 2 of the 4 for the whole day) across the mountain to the valley on the other side where it is safe. It was a great (and legal) skip of 11.3 miles. We then hoofed it up to the next shelter and called it a day. Thanks to USFS for the Gatorade and the ride¢¦our tax dollars at work!!! Laurel Creek Shelter - Pine Swamp Branch Shelter - Day 105 - 1514.4 - 1532.9 - October 14thAfter a steep up and down early this morning, we stopped at War Spur Shelter for a snack and water. Evidentially, the shelter has a resident stray cat. Stretch fed it some tuna and goldfish, but I was uninterested and figured it will probably die within the next month or so anyway (natural selection). Anyway, after that we climbed up to Wind Rock where we enjoyed a great view and lunch (and met on of the most interesting people we¢ve seen so far). After that, it was a boring hike to the shelter, which has no roof thanks to a tree falling on it last year. Additionally, yesterday, today, and tomorrow will/has/is seeing record temps above 80 degrees!!! It sure isn¢t helping the drought and lack of water along the trail¢¦Pine Swamp Branch Shelter - Pearisburg, VA - Day 106 - 1532.9 - 1552.8 - October 15th Well, we ascended to a ridge early today where we connected with the West Virginia border. Along this ridge, we crossed a great Apple Orchard where we stuffed ourselves with apples¢¦yum!!! The entire day otherwise was spent dealing with our scheduling issues with NoCar and Stretch¢s family coming to Damascus. Thankfully, they have all been worked out. After crossing the New River, we headed to the Holiday Lodge in Pearisburg where we ran into Rainfrog, Emergency Shit, and Shepard staying at the same hotel. We enjoyed a pizza dinner while watching the final presidential debate and Comedy Central.Pearisburg, VA - Wapiti Shelter - Day 107 - 1552.8 - 1568.8 - October 16thAfter getting up late, we resupplied and got lunch at Dairy Queen. Getting on the trail at 1:15 meant ~ 2 miles of night hiking on an overcast and drizzly type of day. One large climb at the beginning of the day today and then a decently simply finish sums up the day¢¦until tomorrow¢¦Wapiti Shelter - Helveys Mill Shelter - Day 108 - 1568.8 - 1592.8 - October 17thWell, we wither needed to do 24 miles today and 14 tomorrow or the opposite. After the first 7 miles, we decided since we were already cold and wet to push it the 24. Today was a rainy, cold day with no views at all. Thankfully, the terrain was easy, so we made it in before dark and didn¢t have to night hike for the second night in a row. We also hiked with Shepard, Rainfrog, and Emer. Shit sporadically all day. Tomorrow will be a short day now which is good since it is Stretch¢s birthday tomorrow¢¦oh, and we¢re going to Bland to pick up some packages!!!Helveys Mill Shelter - Jenkins Shelter - Day 109 - 1592.8 - 1606.8 - October 18thHappy Birthday Stretch!!! Today was uber-fun with an early stop in Bland to pick up the cold weather gear, get hot dogs at the store, and have lunch at Dairy Queen. After the 5 of us hitched back (2 5-person hitches in one day is impressive), we walked ~12 miles to the shelter where we had a party for Stretch¢s birthday (w/ Steve, Pocket, & Timber). It is supposed to be 32 degrees tonight and tomorrow night! Thankfully, we are now stocked with our cold weather gear¢¦tomorrow should yield some great views and trail!!!Jenkins Shelter - Knot Maul Shelter - Day 110 - 1606.8 - 1625.9 - October 19thAfter being joined late last night by 6 NC State guys and staying up around the campfire, we didn¢t start until 9:45 this morning. By then the temperature read 32 instead of the 7am low of 28...buuuurrrrrrr¢¦I actually hiked nearly the entire day by myself as Stretch hiked with Rainfrog, Emer. Shit, and Shepard. It was my first solo day since Mass. And was a nice pace change. We are going to NoCar¢s house tomorrow and will not see those guys on the trail again for a good while. The hike today included one highlight¢¦Chestnut Knob. It included a 2 mile walk on the bald and was actually the Vanderbilt¢s first choice for Biltmore. It¢s supposed to be cold again tonight, but warm up to 70 during the day tomorrow¢¦whohoo!!!Knot Maul Shelter - NoCar¢s House (I-81 crossing) - Day 111 - 1625.9 - 1639.8 - October 20thAfter getting up fairly early, the 5 of us hiked it to the interstate where NoCar was waiting for us. It wasn¢t near as cold this morning, but still was not too comfortable. The hike today was fairly average, and was fairly cool throughout. It¢s been great seeing NoCar again and he has hooked us up with some great hospitality before heading out again tomorrow. Damascus on Friday night!!!