Date: 2016-11-17
From: Reeds Gap

To: Fish Hatchery Road
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

We had a very pleasant evening yesterday in Waynesboro, VA. We are staying again at the Tree Streets Inn (3rd year). It¢s very comfortable and everything we need is close-by. Plus our favorite restaurant in town, The Green Leaf, is an easy walk. As an added bonus, the TV at the Inn carried the Caps game (vs. the Penguins), and the Caps won by a resounding 7-1. It was a home game, wish we were there (sort of).I was especially looking forward to the hike today. We recently joined (long overdue) the local hiking club in Norfolk, the Tidewater Appalachian Trail Club and the TATC has responsibility for maintaining the section of the trail that we hiked today ¢ namely the Three Ridges section. It¢s a challenging section. At the last meeting when I signed up to the TATC, they were planning and organizing their autumn outing to do trail maintenance ¢ a big job. So, today I had the benefit of their efforts on the Three Ridges trail.I¢ve done this section twice before, but this time southbound rather than NoBo. Starting from Reeds Gap, the first climb was up Meadows Mountain. It¢s not a long climb, but it¢s a good warm-up on a cool morning. Then after a brief downhill respite, Maupin Shelter appeared in a gap. I took advantage of the privy. There were 2 hikers at the shelter, but we continued on and the long uphill climb started. The climb to the highest point was about 1200 ft in about 3 miles. It was a struggle and I needed a protein bar and plenty of water to make it to the top.While the uphill was tough, the downhill beyond the peak was even more challenging. In my opinion, this is where hiking poles are most helpful, they help cushion some of the shock from big steps down and maintain balance across loose gravel and slick leaves on rocks. Overall the trail was in great shape, plenty of blazes on the uphill side. But not so many going down on the south side. There was a little trouble following the trail near a flat spot just down from the top where others had camped before. I pulled out Guthook to be sure of the trail. Good news, there were plenty of switchbacks on the upper section. Staying on the trail wasn¢t a problem since there weren¢t any other options (but very few blazes). After the initial switchbacks, the trail tracked along the ridge for some distance and there were several overlook opportunities. A backpacker was resting near the top of the second ridge (Chimney Rock I believe) and he was headed NoBo. He said he saw a bear with 2 cubs early in the climb, but they ran quickly away and he doubted that they would still be there. Fortunately they weren¢t.Harpers Creek Shelter was a little further down, and then after a climb the intersection with the Mau-Har trail (short for Maupin and Harper I think). This trail was created by the TATC and provides a loop trail across the Three Ridges with a return path that leads hikers along Campbell Creek and access to numerous waterfalls. A quick Google search suggests that this loop is one of the most popular Virginia hikes. The lower third of the descent was less daunting with an easier grade than above, just long. And there were a number of gunshots that didn¢t sound very far away, Three Ridges is a wilderness area and I didn¢t realize that hunting was allowed. The Tye River suspension bridge signaled the end of the downhill none too soon for me. An angler on the bridge was lamenting the low water level in the river and the rocks were more prominent than before.The Tye River is at the bottom of the gap between Three Ridges and the Priest. Last year we thought the Priest climb was easier than expected, but this time the opposite was true. It¢s not terribly steep, just endless. There aren¢t many features along the way, although there is one outlook on the upper slope that offers a good view. And the top is anticlimactic, the trail just flattens out through an open woods.After that it was a trudge down and then up to Spy Rock. We never really reached Spy Rock, it¢s a blue blaze. We turned downhill on the old Fish Hatchery Road down to the parking area at the fish hatchery. Our resting point for the evening is at 502 South Main B&B in Lexington, Va. This is a favorite spot of ours and we¢ve stayed here a number of times, both on and off the trail. It¢s a beautiful home just a few blocks from downtown. Lexington is the home of Virginia Military Institute and also William & Lee University, and we¢ve found a number of spots that we really enjoy. It feels good to be back with Mary Stuart and Russ.