Date: 2006-04-20
From: Black Rock Gap Skyline Gap 87.4

To: Ivey Creek Overlook SD 77.5
Miles today: 12.3

Black Rock Gap Skyline Gap 87.4 to Jones Run Parking SD 84.3 S 2.3 MilesJones Run Parking SD 84.3 to Browns Gap SD 82.9 N 1.5 MilesBrowns Gap SD 82.9 to Doyles River Trailhead SD 81.1 S 2.2 MilesDoyles River Trailhead SD 81.1 to  Ivey Creek Overlook SD 77.5  N 6.3 MilesSplit hikes allow you to carry less and rest more and take better care of your feet.Today is Thursday April twentieth. We spent last night at Sherando Lake and we got going about seven twenty. Yeah we left the the campground and at 9:20am we were on our first hike. We were going from Jones run parking lot, back to Black Rock gap. We started, like I said, nine twenty and at ten thirty five we were coming out. Back to our car, think we got 2.3 miles. Blackrock was nice, it was a big Area of loose rock, and they took you out and around. Always had these great views up here. Trail was very nice, lot of level, and we do it downhill, and it's just been great. we dropped one car down at Browns Gap parking and drove back to Jones Run, and we started that hike at Eleven o'clock. Came out at eleven fifty and we think that was like one point five miles. And we reshuffled the cars again, took car up to a Big Run overlook at Doyles River Trailhead, left there at 12:00 noon, got back to our car at Brown's Gap at Twelve fifty. that was supposed to be Two point two miles. Been very nice but it's getting warmer, it's like around seventy degrees and the bugs are really starting to bug us out there. But we're taking a well deserved lunch break, and trying to figure out where we're going to hike next.One more thing. From Jones run parking lot down to Browns gap was one and a half miles. And supposedly the other one from, Doyles river trailhead at overlook back down to Browns gap was two point two miles. Also the 1.5 mile we did from eleven to eleven forty, and the other one from twelve to twelve fifty. As pleasant as all the other hikes were today, especially today, being so nice and gentle, this last one we decided to do was just the opposite. We started it at Doyle's river trail parking and we went up over the lost mt. campground near there, and we stopped at some picnic table. We started at two fifty five pm. We stopped at some picnic tables up at the campground and they had a nice view and stuff but it was so hot. We were in the sun, we were on the south side in the heat of the day. I don't know any of the details any more but finally we left the campground went down by a couple Ranger houses. We took a couple of fifteen minute, and a ten minute, and a bunch of one minute breaks, also pee breaks and water breaks and just catching our breath breaks. Fantastic view up on Loft Mt. and nice rock outcroppings. But we were starting to realize that things were not going as fast as we thought there were. Finally we got down to Ivy Creek spring. And three hours, at five fifty five, with two point two miles to go. We followed a creek downstream for a little ways before we crossed that. Then, they took us up to the very top of a couple of little knobs. very beautiful up there, but I'm ready to be done. We got real close to the road, one time especially, kept thinking we're going to be there any minute. We finally got right up next to the road, and we saw that we were going to go back down the hill again. So that was very disappointing. But anyhow it was 7:05pm when we came out to our other car, at the Ivy Creek overlook. Supposedly we did six point three miles in four hours and ten minutes, with about forty five minutes of break total. Now let's see where we end up tonight.