Month: October 2020

I guess this marks the end of 4 weeks and I was hoping to be in Virginia by now but at least I’m close. Some of the hiking was easy today and some of it was difficult but Laurel Falls in the middle of it made up for any of the difficulty.

I overslept this morning and didn’t get up till after 7:10. But since it was already light it was easier to get ready and I was still off by 7:45. I heard the other hiker Izzy pass me on the trail about halfway through getting ready to leave. I would not see him all day long until I stopped by Boots Off Hostel and he was already there cooking a pizza.

The night was pretty cold last night and I was wearing extra layers to sleep in so I was okay but my nose was pretty cold most of the night. I kept shifting onto my side and when I do that my knees and feet slide off the pad and get a little cold so I couldn’t sleep like that for too long.

The hike in the morning was relatively easy. There weren’t any steep grades either up or down. I got to the Laurel Falls Campground sometime around 10:00 and stopped to have a snack. It was one and a half miles to the falls and the trailhead was pretty crowded with lots of families. The first half mile was super wide, super flat, and super nice. The second half mile was pretty much like a typical trail – ups and downs and twisting around switchbacks. The last half mile was a terror of rock steps and really steep inclines and declines. I was really surprised how difficult the trail was. It was about as difficult as some of the really hairy trails in the White Mountains. But there were families and kids at the falls so I guess they like that kind of stuff.

I didn’t remember the falls from 1989 but I must have seen them. They were quite impressive and I would like to come back again someday. The AT continued along down the river for at least a mile. 

The old trail in 1989 kept following the river into the town of Hampton and then there was a 2 mi road walk to the lake. The new trail turned away from the river and went straight up a mountain. And by mountain I mean serious mountain. It was 3 miles to the top and over 1800 ft of climbing. At the top was an area called Pond Flats. So there must be a pond or at least it must be flat, right? Neither is the case, as there is only a mediocre campsite at the top. And then the trail immediately descends 1,800 ft for another 3 miles. 6 miles and 3,600 ft of elevation change doesn’t sound like a good exchange for a 2 mile trail along a river plus a 2 mile road walk.

The plus to the new route is that it ends up near Boots Off Hostel. It was too early for me to stop there and I already knew that they were full and only had space for camping but I went ahead and stopped by to see about getting some more food. I got there just as a Good Samaritan had dropped off a pizza and dipping sticks for the hikers and myself and Izzy were the only hikers around at the time but Izzy had already started cooking two pizzas for himself so the owner and I were the only ones eating the pizza. I got some drinks a few walking snacks, a pint of ice cream, and a fresh pear that was quite delicious.

I was there about an hour relaxing and eating and talking with Izzy. His friend arrived just before I was ready to leave. His friend and he are going to finish hiking to Damascus and that’s the end of their journey. But since I am moving ahead and they are camping there tonight I am not likely to see them again.

I headed back out across the highway to the lake where there is a public beach. The lake is pretty much as I remember it from 1989 but the roadblock approached the lake from a different angle. This new trail has you backtracking quite a bit around the lake to be able to get to the other side.

The trail has filtered views of the lake for several miles before turning towards the dam. The dam is an earthen dam just made of rocks and dirt. I didn’t realize until about a half a mile after the dam that this was a hydroelectric dam. What I thought were just overflow spillways were actually collections spillways for the generation plant below. But the generation plant is over a half a mile away. That seems like a long way to pipe a boatload of water and judging by the transmission lines it doesn’t generate a tremendous amount of electricity.

After the damn the trail follows the service road for the dam which is normally closed to cars and then heads up to the ridgeline on the north side of the lake. The hike up to the ridgeline had way more switchbacks than I was expecting and way more climbing than I was expecting too. I probably made it a few miles along the ridgeline before 7:00 arrived and it was time to look for a campsite. There is a shelter 2 mi away but it will be dark by the time I get there and I don’t care to hike in the dark.

So here I sit 35 miles away from Damascus. I am hoping to get into town before the post office closes on Monday so I am going to try to get an early start tomorrow to make as many miles as I can. Even if I only do 20 that would leave 15 and that should be doable before the post office closes but I’m going to try to do a little more than 20 just to shave a little time off of Monday’s hike.

Hardly a cloud in the sky, plentiful sunshine, and cool breezes all day long. And the weather wasn’t the only thing that was great today. The terrain was milder than it has been so far in the trip.

I slept pretty well last night in the bunkhouse except for the mattress that I was on had wires poking my body in all sorts of weird places. I had arranged to get a ride to the bakery in town at 8:00 when they opened but I was awake long before then. By 7:30 I was fully packed and ready to go. It was a later start than I would have liked but the bakery was well worth it. I got a bagel sandwich with home fries and then two pastries to take out for the hike.

It turns out that the couple that was running the hostel and shuttling me into town are both from Florida. He is from Tallahassee and she is from Gainesville. What a small world. They both just finished thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail less than a week ago and have only been working at the hostel for 2 days.

I got a quick ride to the trailhead and was off at 9:00. There were three other hikers that got there just before I did and started up the trail just a few minutes before me. For the next hour I could hear them talking on switchbacks either above me or on the next ridge. I didn’t actually pass them until about 5 mi into the hike when they stopped to take a food break. They were eating fresh apples. I ran into them again later and found out they also had carrots and all sorts of heavy vegetables with them. They are heading to Damascus which is about a 75 mile trip for them.

Most of the terrain today was pretty mild including the hike up from highway 19E. There were still all sorts of meadows to get good views from and a few rocky areas where you could see the next ridge. Water was abundant as I probably passed 20 water sources today.

For lunch I had a tuna wrap with potato chips and a Dr Pepper I had packed out from the hostel. The tuna was hot buffalo flavor and I could hardly eat it. I think I’m going to have to stick to the plane tuna packed in oil because the flavors are just so intense that they’re not very pleasing to eat.

There were a lot of hikers on the trail again today. I probably saw more than 20 people. When I stopped at the last shelter to get water before moving on to find a campsite I ran across a hiker I had met two days ago and also stayed at the hostel with last night. He is only going 12 miles to meet another person at a hostel so I will probably move ahead of him and never see him again. I haven’t seen the same hiker more than one or two days this whole trip which is a little unusual.

The weather was so cool I never had to stop to get water all day until the very end at 6:15. I filled up with 2 liters at the last shelter so I would have plenty of water to make camp. I think I only carried 1 liter plus the Dr Pepper out from the hostel.

I think I made roughly 20 miles for the day which is pretty good considering I started 2 hours later than normal. The easier terrain lets me hike a little faster. I haven’t checked the maps but I should be about 55 miles from Damascus. I think I should have enough food so I doubt I will try to stop off in Hampton, Tennessee. I think there is a gas station near where the trail crosses the highway at Lake Watauga so if I do need a few more walking snacks I should be able to top off there without going all the way into town.

I am camped pretty high on a mountain which is not ideal for cold weather but it was a great place to stop. I had an incredible red sunset that would have been nice had there been fewer trees to get a better view of it. I set the camera to take a time lapse video while I set up camp and cooked dinner. I am sleeping in one more layer than normal because I’m expecting it to get pretty cold tonight. But at least the wind is not nearly as strong as it was two nights ago. I’m hoping for a good night’s sleep so I can get up early and knock out some miles tomorrow.

Incredible is the only way to describe today.  I remember North Carolina having lots of balds and I think I found them all today.  Superb weather topped it all off.

Last night was cold.  Where I had camped on a saddle was quite windy all night.  It took me a while to get things situated in the hammock to block the wind and the cold spots, but after a few restless hours I was warm and slept well in the breezy conditions.

I woke up at 6:30 and saw some hiker headlamps headed towards me so I waited a few minutes for them to pass, but they never passed.  Then I realized that I was looking at the setting moon through the trees.  I was sleeping in my hiking clothes so I was able to get on trail shortly after 7:00.

It was breezy and cool again, so I was wearing my long sleeve shirt. I had my buff and gloves too, but at times I was still cold.  I was going up to Roan High Knob Shelter, the highest shelter on the AT at over 6200 feet.  At the higher elevations, it was breezier and definitely colder.

The hike up went quickly.  I stopped at the Cloudland Hotel site for a snack and to check email.  The hike down to Carvers Gap went quickly too, and had many more water sources than were documented.

On the other side of the gap begins the hike of balds.  I remembered Round Bald and Jane Bald from our hike ten years ago, but there was a side trail to a third bald that I decided to take.  It was over a half mile each way and steeper and more difficult than I expected.  This was the highest one and the views were definitely better.

The next stop was Clyde Smith Shelter for a quick snack, then past the Overmountain Shelter.  Karen and I camped there with Loretta on our trip.  It’s a neat old barn converted into a shelter, but was condemned last year, so I did not bother to take the side trail to see it.

From there the trail climbed up Little Hump Mountain for spectacular views.  But going up was in the sun and I actually got hot.  I considered switching to the short sleeve but didn’t want to take the time.  I’m glad I didn’t because ten minutes later I was cold again as the elevation rose and the breeze picked up.  The views here were even better than the other balds and I could see the red barn of the Overmountain Shelter.

Next up was Big Hump Mountain, higher yet.  This one took a while to climb and had me higher yet.  And the views were better yet, too.  And the cool breeze was chilliest of all.  I didn’t stay long but the next mile plus was still above treeline so the views continued.

As I checked the map for a place to camp, I realized I was close enough to highway 19E to make it before dark.  There are two hostels there so I decided to call one to see if they were open and had room.  They were and did, so game on.  Time to push another 5 miles before dark.

I remember this section well from 1989 and especially the Apple Orchard Shelter.  The shelter is gone now but it is still a camp site.  Back then we camped there, then walked the half mile to the highway to the restaurant which is no longer there.  That is where I ordered two complete dinners and ate them both, then had pie.  Hiker hunger was in full force and is starting to build a little now.

I made it to the road a little earlier than I expected but still had to use the headlamp for the last fifteen minutes.  7:15 is about the latest I can hike without the headlamp.

The hostel shuttled me in from the trail, I got a shower, then dinner and a beer at the pub.  I will get a ride into town in the morning for breakfast then should be able to get on trail by 9. Now to plan the segment into Damascus.

We had everything packed in the truck the night before so we were able to get up early, grab a quick breakfast, and be off for the trail by 7:00. Everything went smoothly and I was able to begin hiking by about 7:45. The morning was very cold and at the elevations everything was in the clouds and damp and dripping. But the forecast today was nothing but sun.

From Indian Grave Gap it’s a slow steady climb up to Beauty Spot. The air was very cold but I was only wearing a short sleeve t-shirt. Within the first hour I had to put my gloves on to keep my hands warm. The vegetation up to beauty spot wasn’t too wet but my feet did get a little bit damp.

By the time I got to the top of Beauty Spot I could tell that the sun was out but the mountain was still in the clouds. After only 5 minutes walking across the meadow my feet were totally wet. I did manage to get a little bit of a view towards Erwin but in most directions it was totally clouded.

The new pack was working out well. It felt very heavy going up the climbs to Beauty Spot and the pack is much stiffer than my other packs but it fit comfortably and has lots of adjustments. Within the first hour I had it pretty much dialed it the way I wanted it. I would loose the shoulder straps a little bit on long up hills to move the pack away from my back to help with ventilation and on the level and down hills I would cinch it a little tighter to bring it a little closer to my body.

I passed three shelters today but I only stopped at the second one to eat lunch. Another thing I passed today was hikers. I saw more hikers today than I think I’ve seen any day on the trail except maybe the very first one at Springer Mountain. I could tell that I hit a pocket of south bounders. I only talked to a few of them and two that I talked to were finishing a flip flop back to Franklin when they got forced off the trail back in March. I imagine this year the south bounders are twice as numerous as normal years just because of COVID shutting the trail down in March.

I also had another run in with a dog that was not leashed. It was a German Shepherd that ran right up towards me barking the entire time and with its hair standing up. The owner was trying to get it under control but most dogs don’t listen to their owners that well. It had a service dog vest on but this was no service dog unless it was a drug dog. The place where this dog was was the exact place I’d identified on the map as a good place to camp for the evening but after the encounter I had no choice but to move on a little further.

Luckily less than half a mile away it was another pretty good spot just off the trail that had good trees for hammocking but it’s on a small saddle that’s a little bit windier than I would like for tonight. Nevertheless here I am camped. I cooked a big pot of Pad Thai and doctored it up with some extra tomato powder and Sriracha sauce. It was pretty good and hit the spot.  I was also glad to get rid of one of the heavier items in my food bag.

I am just under 100 mi from Damascus so I should be able to make it by Monday. Tomorrow I have a big climb and there are a few balds to cross so I’m glad the forecast is for sunshine. Maybe I will finally get some good views tomorrow.