Date: 2018-11-13
From: Hurricane Mountain Shelter

To: Thomas Knob Shelter
Miles today: 16.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Rain all night. When I got up after sunrise I was surprised it seemed warmer out. I called Heartrock to check the radar and she said I'd be in the rain for awhile. I decided I'd leave no later than 9 a.m. even if it's raining. At 8:30 the rain stopped and I was on the trail at 8:48. The trail was great all morning. While not much for viewing due to the fog, the forest was beautiful. Two bedded down deer right next to the trail jumped up and startled me as I startled them. Today I planned to do 5, 6, and 5 mile segments, approximately. That is the distance between shelters. I arrived at Old Orchard Shelter at 11:48 a.m. This is where I thought I might have gotten to yesterday pending the rain. I'm glad I did not come here yesterday. Hurricane Mountain Shelter was well built. This shelter was old and made of logs. Huge gaps were between the logs possibly allowing wind and rain through. I camped in the fields in front of the shelter 20 years ago. Now those fields are a new growth forest. The trail climbed up over Stone Mountain. It was foggy and windy though temperatures were not bad. Wide open fields in all directions. Normally the views of the terrain would cause a person to believe they were in the Rocky Mountains but today the fog limited how far one could see. Earlier I saw horse tracks on the AT and I thought how horses are not allowed on the trail. Then I realized the tracks were from the wild ponies that roam the highlands. Not too far after that I saw seven wild carefree ponies grazing and paying no attention to me. After crossing a few bridges in the Wilson Creek drainage area I arrived at Wise Shelter at 3 p.m. The trail left Mount Rogers NRA and entered Grayson Highlands State Park. I saw more ponies in the foggy grasslands. In the wind I was chilled and out of the wind I was warm. The trail climbed onward towards Mount Rogers. I left Grayson Highlands State Park and reentered Mount Rogers NRA. The trail climbed through fields and rock outcrops. At Wilburn Ridge Trail as it was getting dark, briefly I did not know which way to go due to various human trails and multiple pony trails. Then my headlamp picked up a white blaze and I veered in that direction. The trail went through deep dark Rhododendron thickets, foggy and spooky. This area had been closed in August due to bears behaving badly and I was hoping not to encounter any. There have been bear warning signs posted frequently along the trail and at shelters. In the dark and fog I followed the trail while being blasted with the winds. Now out of the Rhododendrons I was in the open except for a few patches of trees. I could smell balsam in the air reminding me of the New England mountains. I also smelled smoke reassuring me I did not pass the shelter in the dark. At 6:20 p.m. I saw two slanted alien eyes looking towards me. They were the reflectors on someone's pack hanging in front of the shelter. Seven people were there camping for three days. They made room for me on the first floor. I dropped my gear out front and headed for the water source. I went down the hill in the dark and fog following a path. I found the piped spring and filled one liter. On the way back up my headlamp stopped working. I thought I might not get back up to the shelter easily but after fiddling with the batteries the light worked. I got into the shelter and found my place. Four people upstairs and, with me, four people downstairs along with an Irish Wolfhound. The doorway was now blocked by a big tarp to keep the wind and cold out. However, the tarp was being thrown around violently by the wind. Also, one of the women on the first floor began snoring. No problem because I stuck my ear plugs in. I stuck them in so far I think they could touch each other. It was uncomfortable, but for the most part it blocked out the noise. At 10 p.m. I was awakened by a constant loud noise. I took out the ear plugs to hear the horrid snoring of a guy five feet from me. It sounded like a moose not only with the flu but a moose that snorted a running chainsaw. He would have gotten gold at the Snoring Olympics. After five minutes I concluded this was not going to work for me. I simply packed up and hit the trail into the cold windy night. Despite all the bear warnings this group left dog food open outside and a pan of leftover mashed potatoes on the picnic table. No camping is allowed next to the shelter so I went a short distance and found a place with some wind protection in some woods. It was cold, very cold. I got the tent up quickly, got inside, and lit my stove to warm things up for a little bit until I got situated.