Date: 2007-05-07
From: Pearisburg

To: Symms Gap Meadow
Miles today: 11.6

At 7AM we were at Hardee's for breakfast and then at the P.O. before 8 because the companion book said it opened at 8. When we got there the sign on the door said it opened at 8:30. I think they did open a little earlier because there were several people waiting in the lobby for it to open. We sent our summer gear up to Daleville and our SD card home for our son-in-law to put on the computer. I hope he is putting them on a CD also in case something happens to the computer.   We stopped at the Rendezvous Motel to purchase a new fuel cannister in case the one we have runs out of fuel before Daleville. It looked like as nice of a motel as the Holiday Motor Lodge but not close to the P.O., drug store, food store, or eating places. Actually, it could have been nicer---I did not see any of the rooms. The climb up out of Pearisburg was quite a climb---it took us 3 hours to get to the ridge where we walked along Peters Mountain with West Virginia on one side and Virginia on the other. The first shelter, Rice Field Shelter, is about 7 miles from where we started so did not want to stop for the day there. We did stop there for a short break. It is a nice shelter, built in 1995, with plenty of tenting spots around it.Since the next shelter is over 12 miles north we decided to stop where I tented 2 years ago. There is water here but in 05 I did not look for it. It sounded like the small pond that the companion book mentioned was the water source and it had green scum on top of it. Toto followed it down, though, and found a great flow of water from a spring. We were the first ones here at the campsite and while Toto was down getting water, McQueen showed up and asked whether there was water nearby. I directed McQueen back toward the pond that he had just passed and hadn't seen.   McQueen's hiking partner, Beach Bum, came hiking in next and then it was not long until Flint came by. Hobo, who has been hiking with Flint, has an injured ankle and is off for a while tryng to get it healed. We all fixed our dinners and then others came: Mountain Mike, Brue, Larry, Signage, and Ole Yeller. What a nice crowd we have here. In 05 I tented here all by myself. It is a beautiful spot and the sunset is magnificent. Toto just took some pictures of it. We are on a ridge and the view of the valley below is great. The sky is so clear that we should be able to see lots of stars. It is getting chilly now with the sun going down. Some are cowboy camping (without benefit of a tent or tarp). but I see someone has set up their tent since it has started getting cool. There were frost warnings down in Pearisburg this morning so we are not away from the cold weather yet. This morning when Toto mentioned that he lost his hat Magellan said that Boo Boo had written in a shelter register that she had it and would leave it at the outfitters in Daleville if she did not see Toto before that. She knew it was Toto's because she was at the restaurant where he most likely left it and the hat had his name on the bill. So it looks like he may get back after all. In the meantime he bought a replacement. It is getting dark and I am getting tired so am going to crawl into my sleeping bag and try to sleep. Toto is catching up on his journal and the other hikers are around the campfire talking, but they will not keep me awake. The wind is starting to blow up here on the ridge and it feels like it will be a very cool night. Sure glad we still have our winter gear!!         Life is Great!Dorothy & Toto