Date: 2023-10-01
To: Stealth Site 607.9
Miles today: 123.8

Google Photos Photo AlbumDay 109Troutville to Campbell ShelterAT miles 16.8Miles hiked 16.8The hike today would take me to the beginning of the Virginia Triple Crown. I was looking forward to this section as it promised awesome views and included the iconic McAfee Knob. Shigley and I parked where we left off yesterday and started off up the trail. Before we got too far we came to the 2/3 completion sign. The trail was parallel to I-81 for quite a ways but it was a very nice hike. After crossing Tinker Creek we started heading up. There were some really nice views along the trail including views of Carvin Cove.After reaching Hay Rock Shigley needed to head back home. Plans were for all of us to meet at McAfee Knob for the sunrise. I continued hiking to Tinker Cliffs. Tinker Cliffs have amazing views and it looked like I was about to get a very nice sunset. Speedo caught up with me and we talked for a bit and I started to hike to the Pig Farm Campsite which is a bit less than a mile from McAfee. Instead, looking out over the horizon, I decided to eat dinner and watch the sunset, deciding to hike to my campsite afterwards. I called Robin and talked to her while watching the sunset and eating dinner. I noticed that it looked like Speedo was also eating dinner and watching the sunset.  Once it was getting dark I put on my headlamp and started hiking. I had a little over four miles to go to get to Pig Farm. The night hike started off to be a nice hike. However, there were some stretches where the trail was not obvious and not blazed. I was able to keep going though. There was a rocky stretch where the blazes seemed to disappear and try as I might I couldn¢t find the trail. Finally, looking over a ledge I saw a blaze down below. Going into New Hampshire mode I figured my own way down. When I got to the bottom of the climb there were blazes everywhere. Almost to the point of being confusing. I finally figured out which way to go and was back on track. When I came to the Campbell Shelter at 9:00 I decided to stop there instead of going .2 more miles to Pig Pen.There was nobody in the shelter and there was one tent set up. Whoever was camping there had left a bag of trash on the picnic table even though there was a bear box less than 10 feet from the table. I stowed my food which woke up the people in the tent. I went up behind the shelter and found a place to set up my tent. Once in my tent the people in the other tent couldn¢t stop talking. Most of the conversation was: (Man) ¢Are you comfortable? (Woman) Yeah, I¢m comfortable. Are you comfortable? (Man) Yeah, I think so.¢ Or, (Man) ¢I need to pee. I¢ll be right back.¢  This went on almost all night. Something I¢ve noticed about couples who sleep in the same tent. They talk to each other like the tent is a soundproof barrier. Newsflash. A nylon wall the same thickness as a sheet of newsprint is not soundproof.  Day 110Campbell to Pickle Branch ShelterAT miles 17.0Miles hiked 17.6The couple in the tent were awake and already talking when I got up at 5:30. I asked the guy where the privy was and he didn¢t know. Amazing. I doubt they got there in the dark (they didn¢t seem savvy enough in the outdoors to accomplish that) and didn¢t know where the privy was. I tried to find it in the dark but gave up. I packed and started up the trail. After about 10 minutes I caught up with two hikers using one headlamp. It turned out to be Teva and a friend who came to hike with her for a couple of days. I got to the place I thought was McAfee Knob at 6:15 and wondered where Shigley was. There were several people there all waiting for the sunrise. We could see the lights from Roanoke off in the distance and the sky was beginning to get lighter. Speedo and Crocstart arrived around 6:30 having camped at Tinker Cliffs the night before and started hiking at 4:30 AM. Shigley came over and told everyone that we were not at McAfee Knob. It was about 100 yards more up the trail. We all thanked him and went over to the real McAfee Knob.The sunsrise was spectacular. Shigley took our McAfee photos for us including an amazing photo of Speedo that could probably win a photography award. After the sun was up Shigley and I headed out while the others fixed breakfast. When we got to the 311 parking lot Shigley busted out a package of some very delicious cinnamon rolls and chocolate milk.  After eating we started the trek towards Dragon¢s Tooth, the final segment of the Triple Crown. Given how relatively easy the hiking was to Tinker and McAfee I was surprised at how challenging the hike was to Dragon¢s Tooth. There were steep climbs and the trail was rocky in places. Making things worse was it was hot and there was hardly any water on the trail. We made it to Dragon¢s Tooth and I¢ll have to say, after New Hampshire and Maine I was a bit underwhelmed. I mean, it was cool and you could climb it and get some good views but after all the hype I expected it to be this challenging obstacle on the trail. The climb up was purely voluntary and you could walk right past it without even realizing you could climb up it.  After Dragon¢s Tooth Shigley and I parted ways planning to meet again when I got around Burkes Garden. The rest of the day was a struggle from the heat and limited water combined with steep climbs. Water was scarce and I was running very low. I hiked to two sources that were dry. Although I had planned to bypass Pickle Branch Shelter not wanting to take the long spur trail down. The water situation made it a relief to get to the shelter where there was a good flowing stream downhill from the shelter. There was already a family doing a section hike camped there. I filtered water and cooked dinner while talking to them. The dad hiked a section of the AT every October and one or more of his sons always accompanied him. Teva showed up just as I was finishing dinner. The rest of the crew stopped a few miles behind.I set up my tent and went to bed just as it got dark hoping to get an early start tomorrow.Day 111Pickle Branch to Stealth SiteAT miles 19.9Miles hiked 20.5I was up before 6:00, cooked breakfast, packed, and was on the trail by 7:00. Very fast for me. I was looking forward to visiting the Audie Murphy monument and also wanted to get in some good miles before it got hot. The hike up Brushy Mountain to the monument was pretty nice as most of it was on an old forest road. There were some rocky sections along a ridgeline but they didn¢t last very long. Along the way I saw a grouse walk out onto the trail. I tried to get a pic but my camera wasn¢t cooperating.Walking along the forest road I saw a small American flag to my right. This must be it. There was a trail lined with small American flags going up an incline. At the top of the climb was an impressive monument erected by the VFW where Murphy died in a plane crash in 1971. People have left mementos over the years as a tribute to one of the most decorated soldiers in WWII. I remember watching the movie To Hell and Back with my dad and brother when I was a kid. I¢ve been a fan ever since.After spending some time at the monument I got back to hiking. I got to Craig Creek about lunch time. A storm had made the bridge unsafe. The stack of lumber by a fire ring makes it look like the bridge was dismantled. I made a place to sit and cook and fixed some lunch then leaned back against a tree for a break. Just before I was asleep Teva and Camelback arrived happy to see water. I was getting ready to leave and they were fixing lunch when a guy on the other side of the creek yelled to us asking if we wanted some spaghetti. Was I imagining things? Then he asked us again telling us he¢d been waiting at the road wondering where we were. Who was this guy? But. The thought of real food and our curiosity had us rock hopping across the creek.When we got to the road there was a sticker covered white van with what could pass as an outdoor restaurant set up. Meet Fresh Ground and his Leapfrog Cafe. Fresh Ground had tried hiking the trail three times and had to get off the trail each time due to injuries. Wanting to be involved in the hike he started driving around cooking meals for groups of hikers. Not only on the AT but the PCT and CDT as well. He operates as a non-profit and absolutely will not accept donations from current hikers. I know this because we tried to give him some money for all the food. No dice. Anyway, we got there and dropped our packs. He directed us to the hand washing station then invited us to be seated. He then began making a salad, talking non-stop. I felt like I was on the set of a cooking show. Pretty soon we had huge plates of spaghetti, hot garlic toast, and plates of salad. He had found out about us from other hikers and had been looking for us to feed us. He asked about Speedo and Crocstar and we figured they were one or two hours behind us. Everytime we thought we were finished eating he came up with more food. I could hardly move when I stood up. Then he offered to slack pack us and gave us small day packs saying he would meet us at VA Route 630 for dinner. Wow!We took off hiking as fast as our overfilled stomachs would permit. A couple of hours into the hike we crossed the Eastern Continental Divide. This was the third time I¢d crossed the divide while on some sort of adventure. About 20 years ago I crossed it while on a bike trip on the Allegheny Passage Trail. Most recently, I ran the Eastern Divide Ultra in the Blacksburg area. The hike was more challenging in reality than it appeared on Far Out so we were not making great time. About an hour before the road I caught up with Camelback. As soon as I caught him he picked up his speed and we were practically running the trail. I got behind when we got to a field where the Keffer Oak was located. The Keffer Oak is estimated to be 300 years old and is the largest oak tree along the AT in the south. While it was big it had nothing on the two oak trees up north. I also found a couple of other things that captured my interest. I finally made it down to Fresh Ground. Given the hour of the day he gave us some snacks and told us where to meet him for breakfast the next day. Teva showed up about 30 minutes after we got there. Fresh Ground told us that Speedo showed up just as he was leaving the lunch spot and Crocstar showed up a bit after that. Speedo and Crocstar finally caught up with us at the roadside.We traded our day packs for our real packs and said goodbye to Fresh Ground then started our hike up to the stealth site. We found the site just at dark and set up our tents and hammocks and went straight to bed. Breakfast was being served early so we would need to get up and get moving in the morning.Day 112Stealth site to Big Stony Creek RdAT miles 19.0Miles hiked 19.0We didn¢t need an alarm clock this morning. Today was the opening day of bear season and the hunters wasted no time getting started and we could hear the dogs on the trail. For a while it sounded like they were headed straight towards us. Thankfully, the bear turned and led them away from where we were camped. The hike was through a field so our shoes got soaked. But worse were the briars that wrapped around our legs and left their bloody marks.Fresh Ground was already set up and another hiker was there when we arrived. What a spread! Deep fried bacon, deep fried home fries, eggs, orange juice, freshly ground coffee, and the best pancakes I¢ve ever eaten anywhere or anytime. Like yesterday with lunch, Fresh Ground kept pushing food at us even after there was no way to eat anymore. Then the ziplocs came out and he started making us To Go bags. I left with bacon and four pancakes. He had us sign his van and we took some pics then started our hike for the day in a food coma.The hike started through a cow pasture before getting into the woods. Soon we were in the Mountain Home Wilderness (think location of Dirty Dancing). There was a good bit of climbing today but nothing too taxing. However, the going seemed to be slow for some reason. I got to Wind Rock and stopped for lunch and a break. Had I known what was coming I would not have wasted an hour of daylight here.  Shortly after getting back on the trail the trail started getting overgrown. Since flipping down south these overgrown areas don¢t last very long. This started going from annoying to bad to maddening. Inexcusable. As it was getting dark the overgrown trail turned into a rocky overgrown trail. I was not a happy hiker. Before long it was dark dark and the hiking became really slow.  Finally, Big Stony Creek Road. I found a trail then found the crew. They were on the other side of a creek. They directed me around to an impressive bridge that I can¢t believe I didn¢t see. I crossed the bridge and met up with them and fixed dinner then set up my tent. We did our bear hangs off the bridge since there were no easy trees to use.Day 113Big Stony creek to Angel's Rest Hostel AT miles 21.9 Miles hiked 22.2Town day today. The plan is to hike to Pearisburg and catch a shuttle to the Angel¢s Rest Hostel where there were restaurants and a Food Lion.Everybody was up early since it was going to be a long day. And long it was. The heat, limited water sources, overgrown trail, made for a rough day. I somehow ended up behind everybody. We were now in the Peter¢s Mountain Wilderness and the weeds were terrible. It turns out that the Virginia Tech Outing Club is responsible for maintaining these two sections of trail and nothing happens when school is out and they are slow getting started when school is in session. I¢ve said it before and I¢m going to say it again. If you are going to volunteer to maintain the trail then you need to show up and maintain the trail or give up your section. One part of the trail went up through an old apple orchard. Some of the trees were full of apples. I figured for sure I¢d see a bear or deer with all that food there but outside a couple of squirrels and a few birds, nothing.Several more miles later brought me to Rice Field Shelter. The view from this mountain was amazing. I was wishing our mileage would have worked out better to be able to stay there for the night sky views. I changed my mind when I went over to the shelter and there was a hiker with a snarling dog with his tent set up in the shelter.  Hiking down off the mountain I was flying and figured I¢d start catching up with the others. I caught Camelback and he appeared to be struggling. His hip flexor had been bothering him and now he was in real pain. I decided to stick with him so we hiked down to the Pearisburg Cemetery parking area and called for our shuttle for the Angel¢s Rest hostel.Our ride showed up about 15 minutes later and soon we were at the hostel. Speedo, Crocstar, and Teva were already at the Mexican restaurant. Camelback and I quickly showered and headed to the restaurant. I was really hungry so the big meal was more than welcome. After I ate I left the others to go to Food Lion to buy food for the next few days. The others planned to buy their resupply in the morning.Back at the hostel there was a guy who worked for the forest service who was basically living in his tent for a couple of months while working. I really enjoyed hearing about his job. He joined the USFS after getting out of the Marines. Most of his assignments had been out west and now he was working in the east for a couple of months.As soon as it was dark I was in bed asleep.  Day 114Pearisburg Cemetery Pkg to Woods Hole HostelAT miles 11.9Miles hiked 12.4I got up and planned to walk to Hardees for a couple of breakfast sandwiches but DQ was closer and they served breakfast. I ordered the biscuits and gravy bowl and it was pretty good. I was tempted to order another but I had other things that needed to be done. I went to the Tractor Supply to get a pair of gloves. They didn¢t really have what I was looking for so I settled for a pair of cheap gardening gloves. Better than nothing and I could always send them home to use in the garden. Then to Food Lion for a sandwich and chips to carry with me for lunch. Back at the hostel I was packing up and talking to the guy who worked for the Forest Service when Speedo told me they had cooked breakfast.  Camelback announced that his mom was coming to pick him up because he could barely walk since his hip flexor hurt so bad. I really felt for him as I know how bad I¢d feel if I had to abandon my hike for some reason. Especially after hiking over 1800 miles through some of the weather that we¢ve endured. His plan was to join us at Grayson Highlands then go back and finish the section he missed at a later time.After eating and packing our shuttle driver drove us back to the cemetery parking lot and we were on our way to Woods Hole Hostel. Woods Hole is one of those must visit places on the AT and none of us wanted to miss the experience.  It was a nice hike to the hostel and we were greeted by Jaws and a couple of other hikers turned hostel staff. Unfortunately, Neville was out of town attending a funeral so we didn¢t get to meet her. Still, the hospitality, accommodations, and food all lived up to their hype.While checking in with Jaws I noticed he was wearing an IU Track and Field t-shirt. I made some comment about being fellow Hoosiers and asked if he really ran track at IU. He enthusiastically responded with a version of ¢Heck Yeah, I was teammates and best friends with Steve Heidenreich. I was blown away remembering that I ran the Hoosier 8 Miler in Columbus, Indiana and met ¢Heidy¢ shortly after his unbelievable return to running after being hit by a car and left to die on a Bloomington street during a training run. He couldn¢t believe I knew this. Jaws was one of the people who found Heidy in the street. As we continued to talk track and field he mentioned that one of his arch rivals in Indiana High School track was Rudy Chapa. So I asked if he knew Stan Mavis. Boy did he. He recalled racing Stan in both high school and college. What a small world.When it was dinner time we all assembled back at the main cabin. Besides our crew there was G-man and a group of section hikers from Atlanta that we¢d met a few days earlier out on the trail. There is a tradition at Woods Hole that all those present gather in a circle and one by one state something they are thankful for before getting dinner. Neville had prepared Mexican lasagna before she left and one of the other hikers had baked cookies and homemade bread. The meal was very good and very filling. After dinner we all sat around and talked about our non-hiking lives and about our hikes. I¢m always amazed at how quickly hikers go from being complete strangers to good friends in such a short period of time.It wasn¢t long before it was lights out. We all went to our bunks and turned in. Breakfast was early.Day 115Woods Hole to Stealth Site 607.9AT miles 17.6Miles hiked 18.1Almost overslept breakfast but managed to make it in time. Once breakfast was finished I picked up a few resupply items and packed up before settling up and heading out. Jaws and I talked some more then I was off albeit a lot later than planned.It was a cool sunny day, perfect for hiking. I stopped at the overlook on Sugar Run Mountain for lunch. As I was leaving 3 people came riding up on horses. There is supposed to be no horse riding on the AT but judging from the quantity of horse poop on the trail I'd sat this wasn't their first day riding up the trail.  I could play offended AT thru hiker and complain but if I complain about anything it would be about the lack of trail maintenance on the trail.I passed several northbound section and weekend hikers. One I met stopped me to apprise me of the upcoming water situation. I was very thankful for this.I came down off the trail at Highway 52 and walked to Trent's Grocery for dinner and to fill my water bottles. This would be the last water for over 20 miles. When I got there just after 6 the lady working there was mopping the floor and ignoring me. I asked if I could get something to eat and she said they were getting ready to close but she could fix me something deep fried since the oil was still hot. I ordered some chicken fingers and onion rings. While I was waiting a guy who I guess was probably Trent came out and her demeanor changed. He was a pretty friendly guy and we had a great conversation. Once my food was cooked I went outside to eat and get out of their way.Just before dark I was on my way. This was going to be a night hike. I had to stop to change the batteries in my light after a bit because I was starting to trip over stuff I couldn't see. After changing batteries it was amazing what I saw. I was looking for a campsite just off the trail and soon enough, found it. I found a good tent spot, dropped my pack, grabbed my bear line and went off in search of a tree. When I threw the rock my headlamp flew off my head and all of a sudden, my world was dark. I felt around on the ground hoping to find my headlamp. No such luck. I desperately needed light. It was windy and cold. I started shuffling my feet in the direction I thought the fire ring might be. I then would have a landmark to help find my pack. It took awhile but I found it. From there I used the arm flail/foot shuffle technique to find trees. At each tree I felt around for my pack. After what seemed like forever I finally found my pack.  I took out my phone so now I had light. I was able to set up my tent then went to find my headlamp. I found it but it didn't work. Back to the tent to go to sleep with hopes that no critters would visit me looking for a midnight snack.