Date: 2014-05-19
From: Gravel Springs Hut

To: Front Royal
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 68-May 19, Gravel Springs to Front Royal, VA, 13.4 miles. We got up at our usual time of 6 AM to discover everyone else was already up and moving! I guess they wanted to take advantage of another perfect walking day. Although we were one of the last ones out of our tent, only 2 of the sixteen people at this shelter got out ahead of us. We needed to do a resupply for a couple of days so we planned to come into Front Royal, 13.4 miles from Gravel Springs, get some groceries and spend the night. The miles were fairly easy and we made good time. We stopped to talk with two trail maintainers who were hiking south to do some work on a switchback. These guys told us of a slight detour we may want to take to get across a swollen creek just downhill from where we were. That was good info because the stepping stones across the creek were under water but the detour led us to a culvert which made this a dry-foot crossing! We also thanked these guys for their work, they were going to work hard today!As we hiked the last mile down to the road Front Royal we noticed a huge chain-link fence running through the woods. It seemed too tall to be someone's private fence to keep hikers out and it just went on and on. We didn't see anything inside the fenced area so we had more questions than answers. Closer to the road we noticed a group of buildings with red roofs on a hillside opposite from where we were walking. Again, we were curious about what we were seeing. When we arrived at the road, I started one of my new favorite jobs: hitch hiking! It was 3+ miles into Front Royal and I was optimistic about getting a ride because there was a fair amount of traffic. After a few minutes of having my thumb out a car pulled over. A young woman was driving to town to pick up her child from pre-school. She said she couldn't take us all the way to the Super 8 but we'd be close. She also told us she has always wanted to pick up hikers but hasn't because she has had her kids in the car and didn't think that was a good idea, plus there would be no room for the hikers! So she was happy to be able to help us and we were happy for her help! This young Mom also answered our questions about the fence and red roofs. They are both part of the Smithsonian National Zoo, a place where endangered species are given a second chance. Wow! I bet that would be an interesting place to visit-I wonder if tours are an option? Lunch was high on our agenda and the place that had been recommended by several people (including our driver) was a hamburger joint right across the street from the Super 8 called Spelunkers. Burgers and milkshakes filled us up! We may go back for dinner!We spent a big chunk of time planning the next week or so. There is a hostel we wanted to be sure to stay at as well as a stop at the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. We also have an invitation to stay with another Syracuse Cross-Country family in PA and would like to give them some idea when we might be in their area. Once we had a schedule we planned how many meals we needed and looked at what food we had. Then we walked to a nice grocery store, Martins, and bought what we needed. Showers and resting rounded out our afternoon. The trail has passed by lots of civilized areas in the last week which has provided us with lots of opportunities for "real" food! We have been eating well and have probably balanced our calories out and calories in! All is well.