Date: 2016-06-17
From: Waynesboro, VA

To: Waynesboro, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 65 Zero in Waynesboro, VA.This story goes back to the Smokies of North Carolina. When we were slogging through the snow, we were trying to come up with things to look forward to that would help us make it through. My idea: wine tasting in Virginia. The crew instantly thought it was an amazing and much hype was built up around all we would do. I knew the logistics might be tough, but doable. Sam had grandiose plans. We should all dress up (she loves to), guys could have fancy hats, etc. Every day she thought of ways to dress PeaceFoot and I. You would think we were her stuffed animals or something. How she would pull this off was a mystery to me, but 600 miles stood between me and wine tasting. I was not too concerned. Well, we actually made it to Waynesboro and it was time to go wine tasting. I got up early and had the free breakfast at the hotel. I initially sat withThe Dude. He had all kinds of funny stories for me. I saw Braveheart for the first time in 700 miles. He was taking a little time off to recoup and reported on many folks I had not seen in a while. After breakfast, I got a car from Enterprise. I got a little car as they did not have any of the bigger cars I wanted. I was nervous about driving as I hadn't in two months. I had seldom even been in a car! Well, I did just fine. A relief! I drove a little slow on the freeway. I just was not used to high speed. If only I had my car!I got back to the room about 08:30 and went to the coin op and did our laundry. I washed our socks separately. It was the first time our socks came out OK!! Man, they were bad. With the rain and humidity, a worn pair of socks would not dry. I had discovered that hiker shoe and sock funk is the prevalent bad smell. And our packs.At 10:30 I rounded everyone up and we left for the Salvation Army Thrift Store. It was the usual gang of Helen, Sam, PeaceFoot and I. However, C-sharp was hanging around and we had another seat, so we asked him to come along. He was very excited to join us. We worked our magic in the thrift shop. I picked out shoes, shorts, and a tie for PeaceFoot to go with his new blue shirt. For under $10 each, we cleaned up really well!I checked out and while I was waiting for them to pay, I ran across the street to Kroger to buy a picnic lunch. I am always afraid someone might go hungry and I bought enough food to feed the Union Army. I was pleased with my food choices, though. Meats, cheeses, fruit, hummus, chips, etc. We took a few pictures and then it was time to head out. I told everyone about a few of the do's and don'ts of wine tasting while I drove. I soon learned that Sam asked me that just so she could tease me by doing every one of the don'ts just to get a rise out of me! Our first stop was Veritas winery. My favorite. It was fantastic. We bought a bottle of wine and had our picnic overlooking the valley. It was great. My friends were very pleased with my picnic. From there, we went to Cardinal Point, Pollack and King Family vineyards. At King Family, we met one of the owners, Carigan King. Super guy. Later we found out one of Sam's college friends babysat for his kids as she was from the area. Small world. Unbeknownst to us, they were having a wedding at King Family that day (on a Monday??? Really??). The wine pourers asked us if we were there for the wedding as we looked so nice. We said we weren't and totally missed our chance to crash the party. Oh well. The wine pourers took a real liking to our story of adventure and gave us a free cheese ball and bottle of Meritage wine. I had a sip. It was really, really good. The group was totally amazed by a chandelier made with antlers. I thought it was cool, but not a big deal as I have been to any number of bars and cabins with that decor in Idaho. They also let us continue our picnic on the patio after official closing time. Very nice!! Eventually, it was time to go and I drove us back to Waynesboro. I had a great time. All expectations were exceeded, so I was very pleased. We sang in the car when the Beatles Uncle Albert song came on. It was fun. We ended the evening by playing some cribbage, watching a little TV, and going to bed. One of our most fun days on the trail!