Date: 2007-06-10
From: Troutville/Daleville

To: Troutville/Daleville
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: scattered clouds

This is the Mom again. We are driving from RI to VA for a weeks vacation and to help Melk slack pack after she returns from Ryan's wedding in SC. We will be meeting her Monday, June 11. Below are a few notes from our ride down. Just ignore, if you so desire; I won't know....We left RI at 9:00AM, June 9, arriving in Harper's Ferry 5:00PM. We registered at the Hilltop House Hotel. It was built turn of the century and is interesting. It does need serious work but the location is superb, though.We ate dinner at the Secret Six tavern. (The restaurant at the hotel is closed during renovations.) It was quite good. We each had a Potomac Ale. I had chicken Caesar salad and Tom had crab cakes. They were both good.Then we hiked the AT: first north and then south. Both ways we hiked! And we went over the Potomac both ways too, on the AT. (Thru hikers?)Harpers Ferry is very charming. The National Park is lovely and a real tribute to the civil war. On Sunday, we drove from Harpers Ferry to the Peaks of Otter Lodge. That took us through Front Royal to Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway. We had a wonderful experience.First thing in the morning, we stopped at the ATC in Harpers Ferry. We asked when the NJ/NY publication would be mailed with the full set of AT maps and guides we had purchased in December. They originally were to be republished this year and mailed out in early 2007. Then it was delayed to May. They are now not promising any date but giving out the old maps. Well, Liz got the last of the old maps. I suggested that he keep them for a hiker coming through earlier but he said to please take them. I hope they have other options for the other hikers. But, Liz getting to NJ/NY with maps might make her a very popular hiker.Then we visited some of the battlefields outside of Harpers Ferry. It was moving to walk where so many live were lost. The Union did surrender the largest number of troops there in the Civil War. We drove onto the Skyline Drive starting about 10:30AM. The trip from there to the Peaks of Otters Lodge was a little less than 200 miles but took almost 9 hours. We first stopped at Compton Gap and met thru hiker¢s Dog¢s Life and Spirit. They appreciated Tom¢s home made cookies along with a few other thru hikers that arrive a little later. Well, I have forgotten the other fellow¢s name but since he had a dog, let¢s call the hiker Spot. The day before Spot had come upon three bear cubs which the dog decided to bark at (not a good idea). Then the mother bear arrived and stood to Spot (the hiker), at a distance of 20 feet. Well, at that point, the dog reconsidered his position and hid behind the hiker. The hiker calmed his dog and the situation improved. They left friends! (Well they left alive.)Next on the Skyline Drive we saw in this order: a deer at Jenkins Gap on the AT, at a distance of 20 feet, deer at Beahm Gap on the AT also at 20 feet, a young bear on the Skyline Drive from our car, multiple deer at Skyland Lodge; ravines after lunch at Skyland, a mother and a baby deer; another deer running on the road, either a badger or a muskrat, 2 young male deer crossing the road, and a mother turkey with 4 babies. What an experience! The views were good too.The Blue Ridge Parkway was less eventful but the views were more majestic. When we got closer to the Peaks of Otter Lodge, we sort out the AT crossings in case we needed to plan meeting points with Liz. So we would stop and take pictures and enjoyed making little videos. (Boy did Liz laugh at these when she saw them.)We got to the Lodge about 7:30. In the meadow in front of the lodge was a brandy new baby deer. We only picked her out because others were watching her from the lodge. They had seen the mother go into the woods a few minutes earlier. I am afraid that the mother left her. We registered, checked and the fawn was still there. We went to our room and unpacked, and the fawn was still there. We got a byte to eat and the fawn was still there. With any luck, the mother will return after dark but I am afraid that this is a different example of nature¢s ways. (Tom asked me if I wanted a pet deer. Hmmm.)