Date: 2021-08-09
From: Stealth Site 

To: BaileyÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs Gap shelter 
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: clear sky

It got surprisingly cold and damp last night, probably attributable to camping near a creek and on the west side of a ridge. Cold enough that I pulled out my top quilt and laid it over my legs about 3 am and damp enough that my hammock was noticeably wet to the touch when I packed up. Also being on the west side of the ridge meant that the sunrise was further delayed and I didn¢t head out until 6:30. The first three miles of the day took me through gorgeous rolling pasture land that was being lit by the rising sun and was awash in golden light. Just an awesome morning to be out for a walk. I must have seen or spooked two dozen deer as I passed on thru and even saw a deer grazing amongst some cattle on a ridge. I was able to have a nice conversation with a spike-buck, telling him he could enjoy this year, but next year he¢s better watch out for hunters.I had left camp with one liter of water and armed with information from the Guthook app that there was a flowing stream 3.5 miles distant. This turned out to be¢¦optimistic.  When I reached the stream it was barely flowing and I had to use a scoop and a little patience to get a liter and a half for the 1600 foot climb up to Kelly Knob. The trail was fairly tight with many large bushes on either side, which naturally meant a LOT of silk blazing. But I endured (hopefully my medal is already in the mail) and took the side trail to the Kelly Knob overlook. To get the best view required a large, four foot stride over a crevasse between two rock slabs with a potential 20 foot fall in one slipped. This one didn¢t and I was rewarded with a ¢meh¢ view over some trees. A mile ridge walk gave way to a three mile downhill section and then another  half mile uphill to the Warspur Shelter and the last water we¢d see for about 10 miles. The first three of those miles took us up 1900 feet to a ridge that is over 4000 feet tall. It was after the climb that the real challenge began. The next six miles along and up and down the ridge was on trail mostly overgrown with grass, weeds, and pricker bushes. When that came to an end then the loose rock section began. It was like Maryland all over again: I say nice things about the trail and the next day it turns into a torture chamber.Quiksilver had passed me as I stopped for lunch back at Warspur shelter and we agreed to meet at Bailey¢s Gap shelter before deciding if we¢d hike farther - which was our original plan. When I stumbled into Bailey¢s Gap scratched, bleeding and footsore I was delighted to find Quiksilver in the same condition. Well, not delighted he was scratched, bleeding and footsore - but glad he didn¢t want to hike any further today either. So we called it at 3:30 and then sat and did nothing for almost an hour. It¢s now 6:00 and we¢ve cleaned up, eaten, hung out food bags and are now staring longingly at the hammocks. We¢ve also decided to do a shorter 16.5 mile day tomorrow and then have a 10 mile day into Pearisburg on Wednesday. We¢ll see if that plan holds. I hope everyone reading this is finding a way to enjoy this last month of summer.