Stopped at Jennings Creek at 7:30 for water. Back on trail at 7:55.
This is a fun way to start the day. Summited at 9:10. Headed to a shelter in 2.5 miles for water and food.
Day 72 nasty climb
Made it to Bryant Ridge Shelter at 9:55. This is one of the largest shelters on the Appalachian Trail. It is a towering, double-decker with space for around 20 people.
Bryant Ridge Shelter
And now for a 4.2-mile 2500-foot ascent. Happy, happy joy, joy. Headed out at 10:45.
Ascent to Cornelius Creek Shelter
Well, that was not fun. Got to the shelter at the top of that lovey climb at 1:55. Nobody else here. Put up a clothesline to dry clothes and settled in for a nap.
My back is not happy with me right now. I just can’t get my pack fitted so as not to give me back pain. Some days are better than others, and today is a bad day.
Cornelius Creek Shelter
Nice siesta. Back on trail at 4:30. Got 5.7 miles to go to get to camp for tonight with a 1.5-mile climb.
Day 72 view
Passed an FAA radar station.
FAA radar station
Crossed under the famous Guillotine at mile 771.9.
The GuillotineChuck at The Guillotine
Crossed the BRP again at 7:10 at mile 772.5. Only .3 miles to camp.
Crossing the BRP again
Made it to Thunder Hill Shelter at 7:20. No cell. Good water. Two older gentlemen in the shelter. Got all set up and ate dinner at 8:15.
Big day today. I think 5864 is my biggest elevation day yet.
Really looking forward to a town day tomorrow afternoon. Should be in Glasgow by 3:00. Need supplies, a shower, laundry, fuel, and a pizza. We hope to get a shuttle into town as opposed to hitching the 6 miles.
Day 72 Map – Cove Mountain Shelter to Thunder Hill Shelter
Up at 5:00. Out of camp by 6:05. Didn’t sleep well last night. Big ants in the shelter crawling on me kept waking me up.
Got to Wilson Creek Shelter at 9:16 and 6.2 miles. Not bad time so far. Took a good break and had a second breakfast.
It’s windy, clear, and in the upper 70s going up into the mid-90s.
Ran into an owl while refilling water.
Owl near Daleville, VA
Stopped by Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) at 11:15 for a snack. 4.8 more miles to the next shelter. We will rest there till early evening. Then 6.4 miles to Cove Mountain shelter for the night.
Crossed the BRP a couple of times.
Blue Ridge Parkway
Made it to Bobblet’s Gap Shelter at 2:20. Will hang here until around 4:30-5:00 then head to Cove Mountain Shelter.
Got a little water from the barely flowing pipe, had a nap, ate a big snack, and headed out at 4:40.
Stopped at a creek 3.5 miles before our final destination and loaded up on 4 liters of water. No water at the shelter tonight.
Got to Cove Mountain shelter at 7:50. Got the shelter to ourselves. Got all settled in and started dinner at 8:30. The plan is to be on the trail at 6:00 a.m. sharp.
Our goal is to be in Glasgow, VA in 2 days or 32 miles. Very doable.
Day 71 Map – Fullhardt Shelter to Cove Mountain Shelter
I just looked at some past mileage and thought I would list them:
Days 63 to 69 – 104.8
Days 56 to 62 – 99.1
Days 49 to 55 – 88.6
Days 40 to 46 – 84.3
Days 39 to 45 – 69.6
Days 32 to 38 – 58.5
Days 25 to 31 – 74.6
Days 18 to 24 – 63.4
Days 11 to 17 – 51.7
Days 4 to 10 – 61.3
Up at 8:00. Ate mini-donuts I bought at the market last night. Worked on blogs till 10:30. Got all videos and photos uploaded and all the blogs written. Just need to upload the text and insert the photo links sometime soon.
Overkill walked to the post office and Kroger. Got her new shoes and supply box. She picked up ramen, pop-tarts, and Propel for me.
I got all my food and gear packed and was ready to check out by 11:10. Met Overkill in the lobby and we planned out our next few days. We left the Super 8 for the trail at 11:50.
It’s 96 degrees, no clouds, and no wind. We are going to go 5 miles to Fullhardt Shelter and then make decisions on what’s next. We want to get the big climb out of Daleville knocked out.
We crossed under I-81 and passed the 1/3 of the way point. Woohoo!
crossed under I-81 and passed the 1/3 of the way pointpassed the 1/3 of the way point
Walked past a random pair of nice sneakers sitting beside the trail at mile 4. WTF?
shoes on trail
Got to Shelter at 3:00. Rose and one other guy are also here. Filtered and chemically treated water from the cistern at the shelter. We have not had rain in a long time, so that water in the cistern has been there quite a while.
Fullhardt Shelter
Met a guy doing 35-mile days. He started at Springer on June 1. His base weight is 9 lbs. This is insane!!!
We decided to stay here tonight. It’s hot, and we did not get much break last night. We will call it a reverse Nero !
We are going to try getting up and moving by 6:00, hiking till 1 or 2, napping/resting, eating dinner early, then hiking again until 8:30 p.m. With this heat, that could be a good plan.
Got 7 days’ worth of blogs uploaded and announced to the world. Made dinner at 6:00. My fuel can is almost dead. Forgot to get a new one in Daleville. Curious to see if it makes it two more meals into Glasgow. If not, I can borrow from Overkill. In bed at 8:45.
Up at 6:30. Big day today. Hitting the last 2 spots on the VA Triple Crown.
We reached Mcafee knob about 9:00. This is one of the most photographed places on the entire AT, and for good reason.
Chuck at McAfee KnobChuck at McAfee KnobChuck at McAfee KnobChuck at McAfee KnobOverkill at McAfee KnobChuck at McAfee KnobOverkill and Chuck at McAfee KnobOverkill and Chuck at McAfee Knob
It’s hard to overstate the awe of being on McAfee. It’s spectacular in its own right, but it’s a huge milestone on an AT thru-hike. People have been talking about McAfee since starting in Georgia. We may have take. A few too many pictures, but as you can see it’s worth it!
We left McAfee at 9:30 and headed to Tinkers Cliffs, the last of the triple crown. Stopped at a slow-flowing spring above Campbell Shelter to top off water at 10:10.
Campbell Shelter
Nice views at Tinkers cliffs. Stopped for about 39 minutes and took a break.
views at Tinkers cliffsChuck at Tinkers cliffsOverkill at Tinkers cliffs
Had a long, nasty hike all afternoon and evening. Hot, rocky, dry, and not fun. We are nursing our water to get to Daleville. We are both tired and hurting. We will be 3 hours late in Daleville.
The dam and reservoir above Roanoke.
dam and reservoir above RoanokePowerlines near Roanoke
Got to Daleville at 8:05. We are too tired to go out to dinner.
Welcome to Daleville, VA
Got checked into the Super 8 and walked across the highway to get frozen burritos, snacks, and breakfast at the mini-mart. Showered, ate, attempted to dry clothes, talked to Dana briefly, and was in bed at 10:30.
Drying clothes in DalevilleDinner in Daleville
Good start to the day, but the second half was a brutal death march. And tomorrow looks to be more of the same. We need to figure out how to make our days less painful.
Overkill and I have bonded well over the past week. Between the trail difficulties and the triple crown milestones and other things, we are really helping each other get through the day and make the miles. We talked about it a bit today. I guess we are a tramily of two.
Up at 6:00. Eric made us bacon and eggs! Got to the trailhead at 7:30. Hot, humid, and clear today. On the trail at 7:50.
Carrying 4 days of food and 3 liters of water. Ouch! All the water sources are dry. We have big climbs and plan to road walk to the Catawba market for water around noon.
Stopped for a second breakfast at 9:05 and mile 2.6. Done with the first big climb today.
Major milestone at 9:30 today…. 700-mile mark.
700 mile marker
Nasty climb and hand and knee rock scrambles. Scrambling boulders with your center of gravity all messed up due to an extra 32 lbs on your back is quite challenging.
Rock scramble near Catawba
View down onto VA 311 Catawba Road from the ledges.
VA 311 Catawba Road from the ledges
Got to Dragon’s Tooth at 11:30. The first of the Virginia triple crown, Dragon’s Tooth, McAfee Knob, and Tinker Cliffs. I’ve been wanting to do the VA triple crown for years.
After exploring Dragon’s Tooth, we had to climb down the front side of it to reach Catawba Road. This was a difficult climb down 80+ degree angle rock faces. Much more difficult with a heavy pack on. This descent took us almost an hour.
Yes, the climb down literally was vertical at times. Holy crap!
Vertical descent down from Dragon’s Tooth
The only way down this part was on your butt. That is Overkill following me down on about an 80-90 degree angle that doesn’t show well in pictures.
Vertical descent down from Dragon’s ToothButt slide down the mountain
There were a lot more ledges and rock ridges on the way down with great views. Could not resist a picture of Overkill surveying all that is hers.
Overkill surveying all that is hers
When we finally finished the descent, we hiked .3 miles on roads to Catawba Market for water at 2:00. This stop is all about water as there is none all day until we reach the shelter at 15.7 miles. Bought two 3-liter bottles of water to fill ourselves up. And had pizza and ice cream and 2 hot dogs and a big Hershey bar as long as we were here. Started walk back to trail at 2:45. We have 8 miles or 4 hours to get to Catawba Shelter.
Long hot dry afternoon hike including several cow pastures. With all the livestock around, any creeks that are not dry (very few) are NOT GOOD water sources due to fecal contamination.
Long, hot, dry walkWe are being watchedOverkill on death march through hot fields
Did some more big rock climbs on our way up to camp.
Rock scramblesRock scrambles
Finally crossed VA 311 at 6:25. 1 hour and 2 miles to go to reach Catawba Shelter.
Nearing Catawba Shelter
Got to Catawba Shelter at 8:00. 3 other people in the shelter with us and there is a tiny water flow in the spring. Had to scoop water from a small pool. It’s so late and we are so exhausted that we both just had a cold dinner and crawled in bed at 9:30.
The afternoon hike took us 2 hours longer than planned. I don’t understand why we are moving as slowly as we are. Combination of rocks, heat, water, and lack of a break in a while I suppose.
Upper 70s, clear, and humid today. Last “cool” day in the forecast for over a week.
Up at 5:45. Eric bought us lovely chocolate chip muffins for breakfast. Yum. Had two. Left Eric’s to drive to the trail at 6:40. On trail at 7:30.
We passed the Keefer Oak. Largest oak on the AT.
Keefer OakOverkill next to the Keefer OakKeefer Oak
Walked through several farm fields.
Walking through hay fields
Stopped for second breakfast at 9:30. Making good time now that we are up on the ridge for many miles.
Up on the ridges
Traversed a lot of rock ledges with awesome views towards Roanoke about 3 mountain ridges over.
Rock ledges over RoanokeHazy humid day near Roanoke
Stopped and talked to a trail maintenance crew weed-wacking and chainsawing. Nice folks.
Crossed the Eastern Continental Divide. Eric Hanson maintains the next 4 miles of trail from here north. Thanks Eric and all of the Roanoke Appalachian Trail Club.
Eastern Continental Divide
Passed a large area of controlled burn. This had to be done this spring based on the smell and the minimal regrowth.
controlled burn controlled burn
Made it to Niday shelter for lunch at 12:30 and 9 miles. It’s getting a bit warm and more humid out here, but there is a decent breeze. Took shoes off to stretch and rest feet. Got a full load of water and back on trail at 1:30.
Niday shelter
Lovely bench in the middle of nowhere. We took a break here from 4:00 to 4:25. Lovely.
bench in the middle of nowhere
We stopped at the Audie Murphy memorial. Audie was killed near here in a plane crash in 1971.
Audie Murphy memorialAudie Murphy memorial
We got to the AT crossing at VA 620 at 6:15. Eric pulled up to get us just a few minutes later. Back to Eric’s for a great dinner. Eric and I introduced Overkill to Alice’s Restaurant (the song in its entirety) over dinner. She actually appreciated it.
Got our gear packed up and ready to go for tomorrow morning. Also made hotel reservations at the Super 8 in Daleville for Friday night.
Big shout out to Eric for hosting, feeding, and driving us for two days! Thanks, brother!
Overkill, Kringle, Orange Man
This was a surprisingly hard day. Both of us were struggling the last 3 miles. Feet mainly. I would have thought these big days would be easier by now. The amount of water we are carrying isn’t helping, and it’s much more rocky than expected. Still, we are getting it done.
Up at 7:30. No hurry this morning as we have a short day with a nasty 3.5-mile climb to start things off. Yey! On trail at 9:00.
Walked through a nasty set of blowdowns. All massive trees uprooted. Tornado?
Tornado?
Summitted this bastard at 11:30. Mountain is very steep and it’s very humid with zero air movement today.
Steep and hot and humid
Stopped for a break at 11:30. Low on water and no more water sources for 4 miles.
Tripped over a rock and hurt a toe on my right foot. Very steep and rocky descent. I don’t think it’s broken but it has quickly turned a lovely purple and it hurts. Still have 2 more miles of descent.
Stopped at Laurel Creek Shelter for a break. Water just north of the shelter in theory. Pinged Eric to let him know we are on track to meet at 3:00.
Stopped for a 10-minute break and snack at 2:10. 2 miles to go.
Hiked through some nice pastures.
Pasture hikingPasture hiking
We reached the VA 630 parking lot st 3:15. Eric met us a few minutes later with ice-cold beverages and iced Snickers. I love my brother! Stopped at a market for resupply on the way to Eric’s house. Eric made us a great dinner. We showered and did laundry and planned out the next 4 days. We will slackpack 18 miles tomorrow and end up about 3 miles down the road from Eric’s house. Then we will impose on Eric for yet another night before heading off to McAfee Knob.
All my packages arrived at Eric’s house:
New Hoka Speed Goats courtesy of Dana
A resupply box courtesy of Dana
A new Sawyer water filter.
A new pump sack for my air mattress.
Insoles for my shoes.
Really looking forward to new shoes and new insoles. Will put them to the test tomorrow with 18 hot, humid miles.
Today might have been short miles, but big climbs and very hot and humid. Just can’t wait for July and August heat and humidity in the mid-Atlantic!
Up at 7:30. Slept great. Ate, packed, did morning chores, and on trail at 8:40. Probably doing a short 13 miles today to War Spur shelter and saving big day for tomorrow. Got a 10-mile water carry again today.
Mid-60s going up to 85 with 35% chance of rain between 3:00 and 5:00. Very, very humid already.
Crossed a substantial footbridge and got more water at 10:00. Making good time.
substantial footbridge
And now it’s time for this thing. Yuck.
They call this hill The Elevator
They call this hill The Elevator because it goes straight up. Ugh. This was rough.
Made it to Bailey’s Gap shelter at 11:45. Going very slow. It’s very humid and steep. Took a long break and ate. 2.5 miles to water….we hope. Headed back on trail at 12:15.
Bailey’s Gap shelter
Stopped for water at 2:00. Slow trickle of water, but it works. Hard day. We have been out here 5 hours and only made 6.7 miles. Rocky, hot, humid, steep. Hoping the next 6.5 miles are a bit faster.
Crossed Mountain Lake Road .2 miles south of Windrock. This is bringing back memories of the later 80’s. How many times have I driven this road…sometimes in the pitch black? Road is in better shape than it used to be.
Mountain Lake Road
Last time I was at Windrock was 1990. Jon Luning and I drove up here one Sunday morning after a Saturday party at 448 East Roanoke. Our goal was to watch sunrise.
WindrockChuck at Windrock
Got to War Spur shelter about 6:00. Rained on us from 5:15 until we got to camp. One older couple is tenting here and I have 2 bars of cell service.
War Spur shelter
Good water near the shelter. We ate dinner, made a plan for tomorrow. And set up a time for Eric Hanson to pick us up tomorrow afternoon. Really looking forward to seeing Eric and swapping trail stories. Looks like we will spend the next 2 nights with him while we hike the days near his house.
Got settled into bed in the shelter, talked to Dana for a bit, and tried to sleep at 9:30.
Day 65 map – Pine Swamp Branch Shelter to War Spur shelter
Up at 7:00. Finished packing and ready to go at 7:30. Waiting on the shuttle. It is 64 degrees going up to 85. Clear and nice so far. Got on the trail just after 8:00.
Pack is heavy with 4 days of food and an extra liter of water! Gonna be very dry today again.
Leaving Pearisburg and crossing the New River at 8:15.
Leaving Pearisburg and crossing the New RiverLeaving Pearisburg and crossing the New River
Reached Landfill Road just outside town. Lots of warnings about the water here. Go figure.
Water warnings at Landfill Road
Going up the mountain next to the landfill, we ran into a bear. He just crested a hill we were heading up, and he was walking on the trail. I stopped. He stopped. We stared at each other for a second. He turned around and scampered off back down the trail.
Stopped for a quick break at 10:30.
Summited Peter’s Mountain. Big meadow with awesome views to Petersburg, West Virginia.
Stopped at Rice Field Shelter at 11:45 at mile 7.1. Rested my feet and back and had a second breakfast. Very nice shelter. There was a family from town having a picnic at the shelter. No water though. Headed out again at 2:15.
Only water for most of the day at mile 8. Nothing else for the next 11 miles.
Snack at 2:15 at 10.1 miles.
Crossed through some pipeline construction.
pipeline construction
We are hiking on a ridge right on the WV border. In and out of WV all afternoon.
Welcome to WV
Leapfrogged with Tortilla several times.
Hit one terminus of the Allegheny Trail. This 300-mile trail is on my to-do list.
Terminus of the Allegheny Trail
Got to Pine Swamp Branch Shelter at 7:30. Tough last 2 miles. Very rocky. Tortilla stopped by to have dinner, then headed on to the next shelter about 3 miles away.
Got settled into the shelter (just me and Overkill), set up bear hang, got water, hung up clothes to dry inside the shelter, and made dinner by 8:30. No cell. Nice shelter inside and out.
Overkill at Pine Swamp Branch Shelter
In bed at 9:30.
Good to do big miles today. Felt good till the last 3 miles. Back and feet hurt. New shoes and insoles in 2 days!
Day 64 map – Pearisburg Cemetery to Pine Swamp Branch Shelter
Up at 6:45. Got coffee and some Little Debbies. Enough Pop-Tarts for a few days.
Mid-70s, clear, and humid. Going up to low 80s this afternoon.
We are slackpacking today to finish up the 11.6-mile section northbound into Pearisburg. This gives us a good 19-miler tomorrow out of Pearisburg to either a shelter or a tent site on Peter’s Mountain.
I got the shuttle to the trail with Overkill at 7:30. Drove to Sugar Run Road where we got off trail 2 days ago. Started hiking at 8:00.
Got some great views from the power lines.
Power lines over PearisburgPower lines over PearisburgPower lines over Pearisburg
This is looking down at Narrows VA and the New River.
Narrows VA and the New River
Took a break at Pearis Ledges for an excellent view of the valley.
Finished at the old Pearisburg Cemetery at 2:00 and shuttled back to the hostel.
Grabbed a shower, updated some blogs, and walked into town with Overkill at 4:00. She had some gear shopping to do, and I’m going to Dairy Queen for a couple of cheeseburgers !
Overkill and I plan to get a shuttle to the trail at 7:30 tomorrow. The first 5.7 miles is a climb and would like to knock that out by 11:00ish.
Schedule Update
After today, we have a 4-day hike to Dragon’s Tooth and the Virginia Triple Crown. We will stay with my friend Eric on the third or fourth night. I also have several packages going to his house. Which night we stay with him is his call. I’ll reach out to him later tonight. He is just getting back from a week-long AT section home in NJ today.
After that, it’s 2 days to Daleville, VA, just above Roanoke. Then we have a 9- or 10-mile hike to Waynesboro, where we will enter Shenandoah National Park. We will spend about 7 days in the Shennies, then 3 or 4 days to Harper’s Ferry! That’s three big milestones: VA Triple Crown, Shenandoah, and Harper’s Ferry.
We are getting close to the halfway point.
Day 63 map – Slackpack Sugar Run Road to Pearisburg Cemetery
