Beagle Gap to Blackrock Gap

We were back on the trial today.  I dropped Gene off at Beagle Gap this morning and drove north along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park to Blackrock Gap.  I hiked south from there until I finally ran into him about 6 miles south of the truck.

Got a couple of good views today.

Mountain laurel in bloom

It was raining when we left the campground this morning and rained pretty hard before we got to Beagle Gap, but stopped before we started hiking.  There were a few drops which fell off the leaves overhead, but no rain.

In 2008, I hiked all the trail south of Lewis Mountain campground.  Gene was working at that time so he didn’t get to hike much with me then.  He did hike from Rockfish Gap to Beagle Gap, however, so we skipped that 5 mile section this time.  I will include a couple of photos from Bear Den Mountain which were taken in 2008.  Bear Den Mountain is pretty much covered up with cell towers--not very picturesque.  Nestled on the mountain top with the cell towers are tractor seats.  There are about 8 seats and they are arranged in a semicircle.  If they ever had a purpose, I don’t have a clue what it may have been.  It’s a great place to take a break before heading down the other side of the mountain.

The hike was nice--lots of gentle ups and downs all day.  The trail pretty much parallels Skyline Drive through the park so we crossed the road several times today.  After having not hiked for a week, I can certainly feel the miles in my feet and legs this evening.

That’s it for today.  We’ll be back out there tomorrow.