Date: 2015-04-26
From: Blue Ridge Parkway 76.3

To: US 501, VA 130
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: light rain

I was apprehensive about hiking this morning. It wasn't raining when we woke up at 4:30, but rain was predicted for most of the morning. And the temp in Daleville was hovering around 40, so it was likely to be much cooler up at 4,000 ft where we planned to start hiking. We planned to hike NoBo today with slack-packs and we loaded the rest of our gear into our backpacks. As Homer drove us up the Blue Ridge Parkway the rain set in as well as fog and it rained most of the way. We have Thermoball jackets that are good for cold windy weather, but they're not waterproof, so we stowed those in our slack-packs and pulled on our ponchos. When we arrived, there was a light drizzle, but the temp was above freezing. We used our arm-warmers, and our polypropylene gloves with waterproof shells. We only had Tshirts, but we usually warm up quickly on the first climb, and the ponchos provide good wind protection. We left our backpacks in Homer's car - he (or his wife Therese) will met us at the end of the hike and drive us to Lexington, our new base. Our clothing strategy worked well. It didn't take long to warm up and we never really got cold. It rained from time to time, but never heavy so we never got soaked. Unfortunately, the mist and fog stayed with us for most of the hike, so we missed the views from vantage points along the trail. We never saw another hiker on the trail. We passed several shelters that appeared to be empty. We actually remembered some of the trail in this section, and recalled staying in the Matts Creek shelter last year. The trail paralleled the creek for almost a mile. After that there were some great views of the James River and we hiked along the bank of the James for about a mile before we finally crossed the river. The James River bridge is the longest footbridge on the AT. Crossing the bridge marked the end of our hike for the day. Therese picked us up a few minutes later (with our backpacks in the trunk) and drove us to the 502 South Main B&B in Lexington. We stayed at this B&B in Lexington last year and really liked it, so we elected to return. Mary Stuart and Russ, the owners, are fabulous hosts and really make you feel special. Lexington is farther from the trail than Buena Vista, but it's a great town to take a breather from the trail and perhaps a zero day. Washington & Lee University and VMI are both located here and the town has a great history. Plus it has several good restaurants and some local brews to make it more worthwhile. And an outfitter. Now, we're comfortably situated in the B&B and plan to stay for several days as we hike in this area. It should be a good place to do some mending. Besides my recent blister, today I developed a shin splint issue on the other leg. Just coincidental that we talked with Happy Feet yesterday about her shin splints, and now I have the same problem. Anyway, I've been icing it and Princess plans to tape it for me tomorrow morning. We have a long tough hike scheduled for tomorrow and I hope I can work my way through it. At least the weather is improving, the sun reappeared this afternoon and it should be warmer tomorrow.