Date: 2011-04-28
From: US 220, VA 816, Daleville, VA

To:  .2 miles past Harveys Knob Overlook
Miles today: 16.3

Woke up at 6:15am and looked outside. It was raining. I heard the thunder last night but quickly fell back to sleep. I have not been sleeping very well on the trail. My legs keep tighting up when I lay down. By 8:00am the rain has let up. I go over to the UPS store and send back some of my winter clothes...about 2lbs worth...didn't realize my gloves long johns and hat weighed so much. I checked the weather radar when I returned and it didn't show much rain in the area so at 10:08am I hit the trail. The hike was a nice steady climb out of Daleville. Made it to the first shelter right at 2hrs. A good 5 mile start to the day. Had a huge (almost a pound!) chedder cheese and pretzels for lunch. After lunch the trail changed by going deep intgo creek valleys then back up. A lot of ups and downs.Just as I made it to Black Horse Gap AT's southern most encounter with the Blue Ridge Parkway. I met a man named Gordon Smith. He was sitting in his van just off the parkway next to the trail. He asked as I came up if I would like some Gatorade. SURE I said! Gordon pulled a chair out of his van for me to sit on and gave me my drink. We talked about 15 minutes. Gordon is 70 and has been involved in hiking for over 30 years. It started as an activity he and his blind sister did...yes I did say blind. He was her caretaker for over 25 years and she loved to hike. They hiked many AT sections and other trails in the US. His sister eventually developed kidney problems. This didn't stop her from hiking. They installed a dialisys machine in their van and off they went. She died a few years ago. He now helps out hikers providing shuttles and long distant trek support. For instance he recently helped a thru-hiker (for a fee). The hiker preferred not camp out instead wanted to stay in motels nightly. So he would drop the hiker on the trail and pick him up down the trail where the road crossed a road. A fasinating person.I decided to set up camp just off the trail at 6:00pm. I had hiked 16.3 miles today and did not want to push to the next shelter. I felt good and wanted to keep it that way. For dinner I boiled up a couple of cups of water in my pot. Then added stove top stuffing, instant loaded potatoes, bacon bits and the last of my cheese. It was a receipe from STRETCH and ZIPPER. It was very good. I saw only one person today. A thru-hiker named Jeff...no trailname yet...who I saw a few days ago hiked by azs I set up camp.Gordon Smith.A number of AT miles go through private property.First Previous Next LastHiker Entries April 28, 2011JournalistDestinationTrailCanaryNeels GapAppalachian TrailBowleg-- View Entry --Pacific Crest TrailDad's GrinSt Jean Pied de PortCamino de SantiagoVictusCrampton Gap ShelterAppalachian TrailLOLmuskrat creek shelterAppalachian TrailFraser Firpunchbowl shelter entry three on the dayAppalachian TrailFraser Firpunchbowl (entry two on the day!)Appalachian TrailFraser Firpunch bowl Appalachian TrailPeruThomas KnobAppalachian TrailHoldenBarrel SpringsPacific Crest TrailMore...Grouped By Trail... Hike your own hike: yep, all day long¢¦ from sunrise until sunsetFind your own trail: couldn¢t avoid that, but we would have loved if there would have been one! Nobody stopped counting the crossings of the river when he came to 30 (only today!)But we also had time to be amazed by the beauty and force of nature!...    Swiss Miss and Nobody ¢Continental Divide Trail2017HikingTrailsJournalsPhotosCalendarGearLinksPartnersULA EquipmentREIPatagoniaNetworkTrail ForumsTrail NewsAbout UsContactDonateJoinLoginHelpFollow UsFacebookInstagramTwitterPinterest LinkedinTop Photo © Cindy - The Appalachian Trail, 04/01/2002 by MrsGorpTrailjournals LLC © 2024All Rights Reserved. privacy policyNewburyport, MA 01950Terms under which this service is provided to you. Build: 20210226:165913Manage Settings