Date: 2016-04-09
From: Buena Vista, Va

To: Tye River
Miles today: 25.0
Weather: broken clouds

It was good for morale to get out of the cold, get some warm food and get a good night sleep in a comfy soft bed. Our stay in Buena Vista was short but sweet.Ken Hawkins provides shuttle service for AT hikers. Ken is getting ready to section hike Maryland and Pennsylvania.   He picked us up promptly at 7 AM and had us on trail by 7:30. The temp read 30 degrees on Ken's new Subaru. The forecast called for a downright nasty day. Falling temps with winds between 40-50 mph and the possibility of snow showers. Maybe we picked the wrong night to stay in Buena Vista. But it was time to hike on and so we did.I have to admit it has been a pain in the butt hauling around 3 or 4 pounds of winter gear when for the most part there have been days that we haven't needed it. But there have been those days when we have been caught in snowstorms or hailstorms when we are thankful that we didn't get stupid in the head and start sending gear home just so our packs would be a little lighter.Today was one of those days when we would be decked out in full winter regalia. It was one of those rare 5 layer days. I can't remember too many 5 layer days. To start the steep climb after Ken dropped us off, I had on a base layer, a merino wool hoodie, a wind shirt, a down jacket and a rain jacket on top. I needed it all.Right from the start I needed every layer, as we climbed the temps dropped and the wind cut us to our core. This would be unlike any other day that we had experienced on the AT. The wind howled overhead with a primal fury that had an element of a threatening dark foreboding feel to it. This wasn't a day to be guessing whether your equipment was good enough. You had to know or it was time to turn around and head back down the mountain.As we climbed the 2000 feet to Bald Knob conditions worsened as the snow started to fly. We were having trouble getting warm, my hands were frozen. The thought entered my mind 'should we turn around, head back, what are we doing out here today'? The wind blew us two steps sideways and then we would recover and take two steps forward. We made it across the large open field.Typically we hike a couple of hours and then sit down for a 15 minute break and then hike on. For the first part of today, there would be no stopping. We stuffed our pockets with some snacks and continued climbing. As we peaked, a gust of wind came at us with a force that threatened to knock us off our feet. I howled back into the wind like a wild man, There was no turning back now, we were all in now. RR was in the lead and she had that half crazed look in her eyes when she decides 'yup we are all in baby, let's rock it'. We passed the turnoff to Cow Camp Gap Shelter. If ever we needed a shelter it was now. But the shelter was a half mile off trail, so we continued northbound. Mercifully as we descended behind a ridgeline, the ridge formed a wind block. We began to warm for the first time. There was a calm and peacefulness amidst the fury. It was freezing cold, arctic cold but the worst was over. The temp had dropped into the teens, I'm not sure how you calculate wind chill but with the 40-50 mph winds that were ripping through us and the forest, it had to be near zero.For the most part, it would remain a 5 layer day as we hiked along the ridges. Someone left us a can of Orange Crush which turned into a nice slushy which we enjoyed with our lunch. The trail undulated along the ridges through the pines and oaks. The winds blew but the ferocity of early morning passed.We had one final climb to the Priest Shelter at 4000 feet. We stopped to get water. We only stopped for a few minutes but we couldn't believe how cold it was.   We had only seen one other thru hike over the past 3-4 days: Christmas Tree, who owns a Christmas Tree farm. Well lo and behold here comes CT as we were leaving the shelter. He had plans to stay at the shelter. Hope he has a good warm bag.We decided to head down the 4 1/2 miles and 3000 feet to the Tye River. It was the right move. After today's chill it seemed almost downright balmy at lower elevation. A little more than halfway down we stopped at Cripple Creek (don't know if it is the one that the Band sang about) and there was this small patch of newly bloomed Trilliums. The delicate and fragile flower provided a nice counterpoint to the ferocity and fury to the morning storm. Beauty and wildness abounds. Will