Date: 2021-10-08
From: Seeley-Woolworth Shelter 

To: Maupin Field Shelter 
Miles today: 20.4
Weather: overcast clouds

October 8 - Seeley-Woolworth Shelter to Maupin Field Shelter - 20.4 miles (111.6 trip miles) - 50885 steps A lot to relay so this entry may be long. Last night was strange. I was alone at the shelter but that doesn¢t bother me. It was foggy and the trees were dripping moisture. A very ominous feeling. Acorns and other nuts were falling out of the trees. The drips and drops made it sound like someone was shuffling their feet. It was incredibly dark again. I woke up around 1 to pee, and lo and behold, the sky was crystal clear with stars, the air was dry, and maybe I¢d see the sun in the morning. I awoke before 6 and you know what happened? Thick fog. A bit disappointing. But, when hiking you make the most of it. I left the shelter at 650 in the dark with head lamp on. There were many deer out near the trail. I sent them all running while I jumped a little each time they took off. The ground really shakes when they scurry. The first 6.6 miles would get me to the Priest shelter over some rolling hills. They weren¢t that large but I found them very challenging both ups and downs. I don¢t know why because I felt good. At one point I climbed above the clouds and did see the sun. I was at a viewpoint called Spy Rock. I took the long .1 side trail and was rewarded with great views of the surrounding mountains and the clouds down below. The Priest Shelter is within the Priest Wilderness area. The shelter has a reputation where hikers attempt to document their sins while on trail in the shelter logbook. Usually this is mostly comedy and silly type things. It¢s very entertaining to read this logbook to see what people have come up with. Unfortunately, the logbook was changed out just a few weeks ago. Usually the north bounders put some very interesting comments in that logbook but I didn¢t get the opportunity to see them. So be it. Not being a thru hiker I chose not to sign this logbook. I had a tortilla with tunafish as a snack at the shelter.From the Priest Shelter it¢s a short climb up to the summit of the Priest. From there it is approximately 5 miles all downhill to get to the Tye River. Now things start to get a little strange. While at the shelter a southbound hiker came in and mentioned that there were some dogs hanging around the summit with no people there. She said they were friendly and there wasn¢t anything to worry about. Really, on the trail dogs can be the scariest animals you encounter. When I got to the summit, the dogs were there. There were three of them. Some kind of hound, probably a bear hound. They looked a little like tall beagles. They were emaciated with ribs showing. Each of them had on a very expensive looking radio collar. Clearly, these dogs have to be hunting dogs and were lost. All three of them were skinny but at least they were friendly. I started down the mountain and now I had three followers. I kept checking on them to see if they were going to leave and go back where they came from but they seemed more interested in following me. One of them was very friendly and kept right on my heels. The other two were a bit more standoffish but continued to follow. After about 2 miles of rugged rocky downhill, other hikers were coming uphill. At this point my new companions disappeared. I suspect they simply climbed back to the top of the mountain with these other hikers. When I got down to the parking area at the Tye river I was hoping to see a sign about lost dogs. There was no such information so off I went.Once at the bottom the trail crosses a Virginia highway then crosses on a suspension bridge across the Tye River and begins to climb up. At this point I had done 11 miles. My initial goal was to reach the Harper River shelter. That would take another 3 miles of hiking and over 1000 feet elevation gain. The grade in this area is very steep. I also now entered the Three Ridges wilderness area. Once I got to the shelter I was beat. However, it was only 230 and that¢s far too early to stop. The problem was that it was over 6 miles up over the Three Ridges peak to the next shelter. Furthermore, it is all uphill, over 2000 feet of steep grade. The grade mildly bothered me but the terrain would crush me. After a quick snack and some fluids, I started up. I was doing well for a while but then the dreaded rocks showed up. There were cliff climbs, rock climbs, all kinds of climbs. Rocks were loose and solid and went on in places for tenths of a mile and were very challenging. I spoke to a few folks coming down this mountain and they said I had a long way to go in a lot of rocks. But, I committed to going over the mountain now so I had to do it. It took over two hours to climb those 2000 feet but I finally made it to the summit with a lot of choice words coming out of my mouth along the way. One other thought on the climb up the Three Ridges peak. I mentioned yesterday that I had four climbs that were large on this trip and I had completed three of them. I can easily say that the first three climbs were for the rookies, they were weak compared to this climb. This mountain reminded me a lot of the Smokies or Georgia for the steep terrain and the rugged jagged rocks. After the summit, it was about 2 1/2 more miles to reach the shelter for the night. The terrain down initially was very rocky like the ascent. After about a mile the rocks eased a bit and I was able to move more quickly. I arrived at the shelter at approximately 6 PM. It was still light enough to get all my chores done before dark. I gathered water, set up my tent, cooked my Mountainhouse meal, and I¢m now laying in my tent while I write this. I chose to tent because the shelter was damp and there were reports of spiders.Today was a very long challenging day, but in a good way. I enjoy challenging myself when I am out here. It keeps me just a little bit out of my comfort zone and that¢s what I enjoy.Tomorrow¢s plan is now changed a bit. I am only 2 miles from the road that can take me to the Devil¢s Backbone brewery. At that point I will either hitch a ride to the brewery and have lunch and a few beers or I will call the trail Angel i met last week to give me a ride. I will be in no rush in the morning because it should only take me about an hour to get to that trail head. At this point I am undecided whether or not I will stay overnight at the brewery¢s camping area or get a ride back to the trail and continue on. Unfortunately, the brewery no longer provides shuttle rides to hikers. I have been told that it is 5 miles all uphill from the brewery to the trail head, not something I have any desire to walk. I suspect I will just play it by ear.Until tomorrow.