Date: 2015-04-25
From: Blue Ridge Parkway 76.3

To: VA 43 Bearwallow Gap
Miles today: 20.3
Weather: moderate rain

There were sprinkles on the windshield as Homer drove us to the trailhead this morning. Princess worked with him to find a point where the trail crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway. Homer is a great shuttle driver for this area, he's been an AT maintainer with the Roanoke AT Club for so long that he knows virtually every twist and turn on the trail, and all the access points along the trail. We've enjoyed talking with him in the car almost as much as hiking the trail. Our starting point today was near the top of Apple Orchard Mountain. Today we headed SoBo and tomorrow we'll start at the same point and head NoBo. As we approached our drop off point, we noticed a large number of cars in the closest BRP parking area, unusual for 7:00 in the morning. When we arrived we donned our ponchos and set out. Less than a mile from where we started we came to a rock outcrop and as we went through the rocks the trail went between two tall rock walls with a large rock trapped between them over the trail. The formation is known as the "guillotine". I've included a pic. Not long after that we came to a meadow with an FAA tower on the uphill side and views of the surrounding valley - mostly covered by clouds and mist. A couple of miles later we crossed the Apple Orchard Falls trail and discovered why all the cars were in the BRP parking area. A trail run was in progress on the Orchard trail and we saw a number of joggers pass by as we descended and crossed the other trail. (The AT is intended for hiking and races are not permitted.)The first hikers we saw this morning were Happy Feet & Cookie Monster. Happy Feet was ill for several days and she has been putting in some long days to get back on schedule. But in the process she is now having trouble with shin splints, likely due to the longer distances. Princess has run a lot of marathons and offered some suggestions on taping (leukotape has really worked well for us). We hope she gets straightened out soon. We saw a lot of other hikers on the trail today. We talked with Guiseppe for a few minutes. He caught a nasty bug that took him off trail for a few days, but he's back in stride now and looking great. Later in the hike we saw Code Red. She had a problem with her backpack and Osprey sent her a replacement that's working well now. She spent a little time with her parents and is making tracks again. We also saw Boondoogle and That Guy (his 11 yr old son), they're back on the trail after spending a little time with the rest of their family. And there was a group of a dozen or so Boy Scouts with their leader as well. So it was a social trail today, in spite of the weather. The warm weather earlier this week has colorized the landscape. The trees at lower elevations are turning green. The redbuds have been spectacular (I love their color) and the dogwoods are blooming too. I see more new flowers (new to me) every day. I've tried to take some pics, but I don't have good close-up capability, so I'm disappointed with the results. But trilliums are starting to open, mayapples are getting large enough to bloom, we've seen several azaleas blooming and lots of other wildflowers that I can't identify. Speaking of weather, today was not the best day we've had. The early morning sprinkles continued and eventually turned into a drizzle around noon. The temps started in the high 40's and I think it got colder during the day, especially on the ridges. The rain is projected to continue tonight and through tomorrow morning with temps in the mid 30's and climbing into the 40's later in the day. Clever of us to trade out our winter gear for summer stuff earlier this week. We just have to get through tomorrow and the weather should improve on Monday. Homer is taking us back up the mountain tomorrow and then picking us up at the end of our hike and ferrying us on to Lexington, VA. We plan to stay at 502 South Main for a couple of days while we hike that area, then relocate to Waynesboro for the rest of the week. If the long-range forecast holds, we'll be back in the 80's in two weeks - with a whole different set of issues.