Date: 2003-07-22
From: Spring at 854.6

To: Blackrock Hut
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Have you heard Virginia's state motto? "Virginia is for Lovers"? Well, out here on the AT, we have good naturedly changed that to "Virginia is for Liars"!! :) For years, we have been told that Virginia is easy. We have been told that Virginia is fairly flat.   And we have been told that the Shenandoah National Park is flat, easy, smooth, and covered with places to buy food. Lies! All lies! :) Now, I will say that as of today, much of the trail was smooth and well groomed. And the ups and downs were well-graded. But a lot of the trail was hard!!! And a LOT of the trail was uphill!! Of course, for the last ten years, people also said that it is all hard....there are just relative states of difficulty. However, like all dreamers, I refused to listen to anything resembling reason, so I find myself here in the SNP feeling somewhat cheated. I guess that will teach me to bury my head in the sand! :) Todays hike was long and arduous for both Bumpkin and I. We are having such a hard time finding that rhythm that we had a week ago! I think that I have learned some hard earned lessons. No more conscutive slack-packing days! You lose your trail legs a little bit each time you do it!   One day is fine, but more than that and we are just asking fr re-entry problems! The trail was hard, but it sure was neat! Much of it was beautiful, and we did a lot of ridge walking so the views were varied and stunning. The trail, like yesterday, changed a lot throughout the day. One change that was welcome was the return of the blueberries!!   All of the sudden, they are everwhere!! And they are so ripe! I sported a purple tongue for much of the day, which by itself isn't to bad. However, when you add the purple hands I got from all of the ripe blackberries that I found....well, I guess I looked a little strange! :)   my favorite part of the trail today was an area that had been scarred by a wildfire. Imagine this...bright blue skies, black charred pine trees, and waist high undergrowth in every shade of bright green you can imagine! The contrast between the sky and undergrowth and the knarled, creepy looking pine trees is stark.   The desolation of the burnt trees mixed with the vibrant plant life gives you the idea that the forest is springing back to life. However, I know better. A forest ranger friend of mine taught me that all of that scrub growth isn't considered true growth.   It will take many years for this forest to look like it did. In the meantime, however, it sure is something to see! There were several highlights to the day in addition to the beauty. We met a young couple out for a section hike and it turns out that they are vocal students in college! When we asked what they did, they both said that they were opera singers. Bumpkin sat back and said, "I might as well get comfortable...this is going to be a long conversation!".   Well, we didn't talk to long, but it was nice to meet other classical musicians on the trail! We will be hiking in the general vicinity for a while, so hopefully, we will get more chances to spend time with them! The funniest part of the day was when all four of us were siting by the road eating lunch. Having just told them the story of the trail magic we had encountered yesterday, I shouted out at a passing truck, "Oooh, you don't have anything for us to drink, do you?". Would you BELIEVE....the truck pulled right in! Looking up, we saw our friends from yesterday afternoon, Buzz and Chris! Talk about a small world!! Well, we didn't really need anything to drink. Instead we spent a few minutes swapping trail stories before they took off.   I just know that next year, I will be doing trail magic, and they are going to walk right up! I can't wait!! :) As the hiking came to a close, I arrived at the shelter. The weatherman says that big storms are coming this way and sure enough, they hit as soon as dinner is over. I chat with the vocalists for a few minutes after they arrive before finally wrapping myself up in the sleeping bag.   Tomorrow, we hike into the campground!Another AT day has come and gone....