Date: 2005-10-06
From: USFS 48, Hog Camp Gap

To: Montebello Fish Hatchery road
Miles today: 10.0

Salt log gap USFS 63 to Montebello Fish Hatchery road    N 7.8 mileUSFS 48, Hog Camp Gap to  Salt log gap USFS 63   N 2.2 mileYesterday was Thursday October sixth. And we had spent the night at Days Inn Exit 217 outside of the Staunton on I-81. We got up. And. We got packed and went to the office and had our free continental breakfast with hot waffles and other good food, and we took off. For Salt log gap. We went up 56, yeah, up and over the Blue Ridge Parkway and down on the other side was a side road called Irish Creek Rd. And so we went on, it was very nice winding down this valley next to creek. And just a nice drive that went on and on. And finally we came to another road and we turned left on it and went underneath The Blue Ridge Parkway. And didn't think we could get on there, but turned out later I was wrong. So went by the Stratton falls again didn't get out but saw where they were. Then got up to Salt Log gap and it was raining and raining. We had to each do our own duties and got ready. So we just need to go out and start walking, so we started walking and of course it's uphill right away. And we started at 9:40. And then we got up to the Greasy spring road, 1.7 miles at 10:45 so we are doing 1.7 miles per hour.  We¢re at the high point, that's not in the data book and then we're at Wolf Rock at about 11.20. We took like a five minute standing break there because it was raining. And we continued on and it started down. And at 11:50 we hit the North Fork of the Piney river which was 3.6 miles into the hike. And then at 12:40 was the Elk pond branch at 4.8 miles. It was actually going pretty easy. Nice easy hike, temperature was really good, and the rain was very light. For the most part drizzle. And at one o'clock we were at the Sealy Woodworth shelter. We stayed there longer than we expected to, forty minutes, we took our shoes off and relaxed and tried to stay out of the rain. It was possible although the shelter was kind of wet inside. I never saw anybody. Shelter was at 5.5 mile. And we continued on. At 2:10 we got to Porter's Field, it's 6.6 miles. A lot of Apple trees around. We got on like an old rail bed. Then at 2:45 we came to the Montebello Fish Hatchery road that was 7.8 miles on the Appalachian Trail. And then of course there was the last mile going down to our car. Off the trail on an old gravel forest road and we got to our car at 3:15 at Montebello. We went east on fifty sixth down through the East Valley there, following Tye river. At Massie Mill we turned on to Jack Hill run. Wasn¢t sure we're on the right rd. Stopped at an orchard, nobody around, I could take all the apples I wanted. But I didn't. I went on up the road, gravel, real muddy, but there's a guy there at the orchard on a tractor. So we stopped and talked to him, and when we told him we were trying to get to Salt Log gap, he kind of laughed a little bit. But then he said, yeah you can make it in your car, no problem. So he gave us directions and we actually got on asphalt road going up the Piney River for a while. It was just a little while and we got up to our car. Got cold soda, and then we decided to get on around to Hog Camp Gap and get that 2.2 miles done too. We drove around there. Got on the trail at 5:05 and you could barely see, but by the time we got up to the top on to Tar Jacket Ridge at 0.9 miles, the clouds had rolled in and we were in total, pretty much totally fog. But it was still a nice hike, wasn't too strenuous. What can I say, we were just trying to get it done, want to get done before dark. Terry had forgotten his headlamp, he left it in the car. I had mine, but we walked on and exactly one hour later 6:05 we came out at Salt Log Gap.  And then we got both our cars and headed down to Buena Vista for the evening. Go to the Buena Vista motel and I don't think we got as good a deal as last time. It was like $49.95 plus tax, came to fifty three dollars total. And the worst part was two queen beds, that's one thing, but they were both so saggy. So, we didn't get a very good night's sleep. We managed to get to watch Survivor and I got to watch CSI, and Terry ordered a couple pizzas. But Terry had to go pick it up. You know we stayed in, and the rain started right then. The rain started at nine o'clock last night and it rained all night.