Fish Hatchery Road to Tye River

We had another beautiful day for hiking.  The temperatures were in the mid 60s with the humidity much lower than earlier in the week.  We also had a brisk breeze.  The breeze was strong enough to keep the gnats and flies at bay and to also keep us cool.  I was so cool at lunch that I moved into the sun to keep warm.  Gene put on his jacket at one point in his hike.

We covered the 9.5 miles from Fish Hatchery Road to highway 56 at the Tye River today.  Gene walked north and I walked south again.  This time, I had the pleasure of the uphill climb.  The 4 miles from Tye River south to the summit of Priest Mountain gains about 3,000 feet.  The trail profile looked steep and the guidebook used the word steep several times in its description.  I decided my knees would thank me if I did that portion up instead of down.

Just below the summit of Priest Mountain

After a 3-hour struggle to the top, I met Gene at The Priest Shelter for lunch. Slow-mosey was there.  Gene and I had both seen him on the trail yesterday at different times.  It was fun to have lunch and talk with him.  He is heading north, of course, and Gene accompanied him down the mountain then gave him a ride into Montebello.

Lunch break at Priest Shelter

After lunch, we each headed in our separate directions.  One of the “big view” places on the hike today was Spy Rock.  Rumor has it that Spy Rock, with its 360 degree view, was used as a Confederate lookout during the Civil War.  Gene came to it first since it is located near his starting point at Fish Hatchery Road.  Since Spy Rock is a feature off the trail, it was not blazed with an appropriate route to the top.  The route he chose turned out to be more dangerous than he wanted to subject himself to.  Much later in the day, at the end of my hike, I came to the trail leading to Spy Rock.  By that time of the day, and with another 1.5 miles left to hike, I was far too tired to include any extra distance.  Besides, it was Saturday afternoon and the place was crawling with people.  I wasn’t much in the mood for crowds, so I went on by.

I did have a couple of nice view points today.  Perhaps my favorite was the view of Silver Creek Valley from a rocky outcrop nearly 3000 feet up the mountain.  I had another great view of the surrounding mountains from Cash Hollow Rocks.

It was a beautiful day and a nice hike, but we are both very tired this evening.  I think I’ll sit in the recliner tomorrow.

Salt Log Gap to Fish Hatchery Road

Yesterday was pretty much a day of chores interspersed with periods of rest.  Nothing special to report there.

Today we were back on the trail.  Gene dropped me off at Fish Hatchery Road this morning, then he drove around to Salt Log Gap.  He hiked north while I hiked south.

With today’s hike, Gene is at his northern-most point from his last hike along the AT.  He has spent the past several years “re-hiking” the first 800 miles of this trail with me.  Today, he walked through between Salt Log and Fish Hatchery instead of turning around and hiking back to the car with me.

Salt Log Gap, by the way, gets its name from the practice of cutting a notch in a fallen log and filling it with salt for the cattle--a forerunner of the salt lick.  Fish Hatchery Road, as you might guess, is the road where the state fish hatchery is located.

Fish Hatchery Road, now renamed Spy Rock Road, is a dirt road closed to motorized vehicles except for the homeowners living along the road.  The trail, unfortunately is a mile up the road.  Foot travel is permitted, so I walked around the gate and headed uphill.  Once I reached the trail, I had a pretty easy go of it today.  The trail was mostly level or downhill for my hike.  Of course, Gene felt like he had hiked uphill all day.

Easy hiking was the highlight for today.  There were still some trillium blooming and a few azaleas, but otherwise it was just an ordinary woods walk.  There were no great views and even the forest didn’t seem very exciting.

Even though our hike was relatively short, it was still 5 o’clock when we got home.  Both ends of the section were several miles off the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Salt Log is several miles from the parkway and then 4 miles down a gravel road.  After I picked up Gene at Fish Hatchery, we then drove another 9 miles down route 56 to where the trail crosses the Tye River.  This will be where I park the car tomorrow and I wanted to know where the parking lot was located.  All that driving around made a very long day.

That’s it for today. Time to get the kitchen cleaned up and get my pack ready for tomorrow.

Salt Log Gap to Long Mountain Wayside

Today, I walked south and Gene walked north.  I got the better deal there.  Not only did I   have less total uphill, my climbs were broken up into 500 foot segments. Gene had his 2000 foot climb right at the beginning.  Additionally, I had outstanding views and he had almost none.  We met for lunch before he had hiked far enough to get my splendid views.

Stone Walls on Tar Jacket Ridge

There were great place names today.  I started out from Salt Log Gap with the climb up Tar Jacket Ridge.  Tar Jacket was sparsely wooded--there were more boulders than trees.  Descending down the other side brought me to an open meadow at Hog Camp Gap.  Because there is a spring nearby, this large open area is a popular camping spot.

The hike up Cole Mountain was along an old road

Next came Cole Mountain.  This mountain actually goes by two names--Cole and Cold.  I found the geo-marker on the summit, but it didn’t give a name at all.  Cole Mountain is a bald which apparently got that way from cattle grazing.  The guidebook also indicates that a resort was planned for this expansive open mountain top, but the project was never started.  Much of the climb was along an old road that is now covered in grass.  The views were fantastic.

Down the other side of Cole Mountain brought me to Cow Camp Gap.  Cow Camp Gap Shelter was six-tenths of a mile down a blue-blazed trail.  I didn’t want to add that much distance to my day, so I pressed on up the side of Bald Knob.

About half way up Bald Knob was when I ran into Gene.  He had spent his entire morning trudging up the other side.  We stopped for a lunch break.  Bald Knob is not a bald at all.  Seems like they got the names mixed up.  It had enough trees to prevent much of a view.  We noticed at this elevation (about 4000 feet) the trees were just starting to leaf.

We finished our hike with that looong descent to Long Mountain Wayside.

Tomorrow, we’ll stay home with the Peanut and do a few chores.

Salt Log Gap to Long Mountain Wayside

Today, I walked south and Gene walked north.  I got the better deal there.  Not only did I   have less total uphill, my climbs were broken up into 500 foot segments. Gene had his 2000 foot climb right at the beginning.  Additionally, I had outstanding views and he had almost none.  We met for lunch before he had hiked far enough to get my splendid views.

Stone Walls at Tar Jacket Ridge

There were great place names today.  I started out from Salt Log Gap with the climb up Tar Jacket Ridge.  Tar Jacket was sparsely wooded--there were more boulders than trees.  Descending down the other side brought me to an open meadow at Hog Camp Gap.  Because there is a spring nearby, this large open area is a popular camping spot.

Next came Cole Mountain.  This mountain actually goes by two names--Cole and Cold.  I found the geo-marker on the summit, but it didn’t give a name at all.  Cole Mountain is a bald which apparently got that way from cattle grazing.  The guidebook also indicates that a resort was planned for this expansive open mountain top, but the project was never started.  Much of the climb was along an old road that is now covered in grass.  The views were fantastic.

Hiking up Cole Mountain on an old road

Down the other side of Cole Mountain brought me to Cow Camp Gap.  Cow Camp Gap Shelter was six-tenths of a mile down a blue-blazed trail.  I didn’t want to add that much distance to my day, so I pressed on up the side of Bald Knob.

About half way up Bald Knob was when I ran into Gene.  He had spent his entire morning trudging up the other side.  We stopped for a lunch break.  Bald Knob is not a bald at all.  Seems like they got the names mixed up.  It had enough trees to prevent much of a view.  We noticed at this elevation (about 4000 feet) the trees were just starting to leaf.

Bald Knob

We finished our hike with that looong descent to Long Mountain Wayside.

Tomorrow, we’ll stay home with the Peanut and do a few chores.

Punchbowl Mountain to Long Mountain Wayside

Yesterday turned out to be very slow and easy--a fine day of rest.  We had a few showers in the morning which ended early, but it remained cloudy for the rest of the day.

We went to Rockfish Outfitters after lunch and browsed around.  The only thing I found to buy was a pair of Smartwool hiking socks.  I have never had a pair, but they are the sock of choice for Gene.  My sock of choice has always been Bridgedales.  Once I put a pair on, I’ve never had anything else.  Bridgedales fit my feet snugly and don’t wrinkle inside my boot.  It doesn’t sound like much, but a wrinkle can cause a blister in a hurry.  My feet are small and it’s difficult to find a sock small enough to fit as they say, “Like a glove”.  As much as I like Bridgedale socks, I do have an issue with them.  The cushioning in the sole breaks down after a couple hundred miles and then becomes hard in the laundry.  Gene says the Smartwools don’t do that.  I’m giving them a try.

Bridge over Brown Mountain Creek

We’ve also been experimenting with our lunches on the trail.  When hiking in cold weather we often take a sandwich.  In warm weather, we take cheese and crackers or PB&J.  These days, there are several selections of tuna, chicken, and salmon in the canned meal section at the grocery.  BumbleBee makes a 2-serving can of tuna.  We like the lemon pepper and the sundried tomato flavors.  We’ve also become fans of spreading hummus on flour tortillas.  Yum, Yum.

Suspension bridge over Pedlar River

Our hike today was so easy compared to the previous 11 miles.  I was hiking north and started out downhill for a change.  After descending a thousand feet, I had an easy, nearly flat walk for the next 5 miles before gradually heading up a thousand feet to US 60.  Gene walked south and we met for lunch in the middle.

Brown Mountain Creek

There were a couple highlights of our hike today.  There were three really nice bridges.  It’s always nice to have a footbridge over water.  The suspension bridge over Pedlar River was my morning break spot.  It was an incredible structure.  There were two footbridges over Brown Mountain Creek.  They were both similar.  The one in the photo is at the Brown Mountain Creek Shelter where we had an afternoon break before heading up hill to the road where the truck was parked.

I don’t know for sure about these particular bridges, however, generally the trail clubs build the bridges.  Like trail building, privies, and shelters, it is all done by volunteers.  Thank you again for your hard work.

Another highlight was Pedlar Lake.  This mountain lake serves as the reservoir for the community of Lynchburg.  The AT passes above the lake, but views were limited now that there are so many leaves on the trees.

We followed Brown Mountain Creek upstream for about 2 miles.  This area was once home to freed slaves in the early 1900s.  The remains of stone walls could be seen all along the Creek.  Most were poor share croppers.  They moved out when the land was sold to the forest service in the 1930s.

That’s it for today.

James River to Punchbowl Mountain

We are taking a zero today.  It’s good to have a day off from hiking to let my feet and knees recover.  The only thing I planned to do today was to wash a load of hiking clothes.  That’s done, and now it’s on to resting.

James River far below

My hike from the James River started with a big climb.  That is always the case, whether from a river, a creek, or a gap, it is always uphill to get out.  I was very pleased with my trek uphill--almost 3,000 ft in about 2 miles in 1 hour an 15 minutes.  However, I guess I used up all my energy, because later in the day I didn’t think I was going to get up the next 1000 foot mountain.

Gene was hiking south and he had his own 1000 feet to climb at the beginning of his hike.  We met for lunch somewhere close to the middle.

Punchbowl Shelter

We each saw several other hikers.  My personal favorite was a day hiker who passed me very early in my hike.  He must have run up the mountain, because when I crested the top, he was there with his boots off, swinging in the breeze in his hammock, enjoying the day.  I spent a few minutes talking with him while gasping for big gulps of air.  Apparently, he does this little hike often.

Gene saw several thru-hikers.  We have been putting a cooler of cold drinks in the bed of the truck each day we hike.  When we encounter a thru-hiker, we tell them to help themselves when they get to the truck.  The cokes were all gone when we got back to the truck yesterday.  I’m glad for the hikers to have them, but, boy, was I ever looking forward to an ice cold coke myself.

We enjoy hiking, but there are days when I wonder why I do it.  Yesterday was one of those judgement questioning days.  It was hot and the sweat was just pouring off.  The gnats, I guess, saw me as their life-saving fountain.  It was not uncommon to swipe three of four out of my eyes at once.  I finally put on a head net.  It was hot and I could barely see out, but it gave me relief from those beastly gnats.

The remains of an old fire tower on top of Bluff Mtn

This morning, Gene and I discussed how miserable it would have been to come into the shelter in the afternoon after a long, hard day on the trail with all our clothes soaked from sweat, skin smelling of Deet, too tired to stand up and no good place to sit down.  How wonderful it was to get in the truck and come home to a hot shower and clean clothes and the longed for ice cold coke.

Well, I think that about sums up yesterday.  After lunch today we may drove over to the outfitter in Waynesboro to have a look around.  That should be fun.  Who knows what I’ll find that I didn’t know I needed.

Petites Gap to James River

We had a wonderful hike today.  I started out with a big climb out of Petites Gap where I ended on Thursday.  In the Gap behind a tree was a cooler of cokes, a gallon of water, and a grocery sack of cookies--trail magic. That first mile was steep and rocky going up and even worse coming down the other side.  But once I got down the very steep north side, it was smooth sailing for about 3 miles.  On my way down, I met a trail maintainer.  He was the one who had left the goodies behind the tree.

I passed a large camping area near a spring at about 2 miles.  There were several tents, but only one looked like a backpacking tent.  The others were too large and were probably couples just out for the weekend.  Although there were perhaps 10 tents in this area, I saw no people.  All sleeping in, I suppose.

As I walked along the ridge beyond the camping area, I had some great views back from where I had come.  This section was especially nice.  The trail was almost level and without rocks or roots.  The views were good and the azalea was in full bloom giving off a very pleasant aroma.

I met Gene about a third of the way down the mountain toward the James River.  We had a lunch and a nice break at Big Cove Branch.  There was a campsite here, as well, but it was empty.  As we continued our way down to the James River, we saw rhododendron in bloom.

At about mile 8 we came to Matts Creek Shelter.  A trail crew was busy installing a brand new privy.  Gene had passed by earlier in the morning on his way up to meet me.  He got there just in time to see the old privy pulled down.  By the time we came rolling in about 1 o’clock, the new privy was completely installed and ready for use, the hole where the old privy had been was completely filled in, and the crew was building a new trail to the new privy.  There were about 8 crew members; 4 men and 4 women.  They were all retirement age and all volunteers.  And they were all working very hard.

I just had to make a few pictures of the new privy.  As you can see from the photo, it is handicap accessible.  When I saw the hand rails, I thought that was pretty funny since once a long distance hiker gets in a sitting position, it is very difficult to get up again.  I said something to one of the crew members and she explained that all structures being built on the trails which are on federal land must comply with all federal regulations.  So you see, it is handicap accessible.

I have to offer a few words of praise for the trail crews.  The entire Appalachian Trail is maintained by several Appalachian Trail Clubs.  The club responsible for this section is the Natural Bridge Appalachian Trail Club.  Of the four days we have hiked in this section, we have seen members of this club on three of those days.  They work very hard keeping the trail in good condition for the hikers.  Our hats are off to all the trail clubs.  Thank you for your hard work.

The James River is one of those milestones along the trail.  I felt proud today to reach this milestone.  Only 1400 miles to go to the end atop Mt Katahdin in Maine.

Footbridge over the River

That’s it for today.  We’ll be hiking again tomorrow.