Virginia

It's been a long time since I've updated, so I figured I'd condense the last 3 weeks into one post.

After the Highlands


Virginia is the largest state the AT crosses, spending over 550 miles in it's borders.  After parting ways with Lisa and Joe in Grayson Highlands I headed north (duh) feeling a little behind.  While I think I'm permanently behind certain people that I hiked with previously, I've also met some excellent new people have even begun hiking regularly with a small group of folks.  Virginia has been a long, hard slog, and I've seen more people that I know get off the trail than I have.  On the other hand, the views have been some of the most rewarding and I know the states will start to fall much faster when I get out of VA.  I'm still feeling good, although spent the last two days off trail visiting with family/recovering from a stomach bug I caught somewhere along the way.  It was great to see my new niece for the first time since I left for the trail, but I must say I felt pulled back to the trail the entire visit.

Anyhow, here are some photos from my last 3 weeks of the trail, with more info where needed.

McAffee's Knob, the most photographed spot on the trail.

 Sunset on Tinker's Cliffs

A foggy Blue Ridge Parkway

FAA tower (I think)

The Guillotine!

The longest footbridge on the AT crosses the James River

Myself and fellow hikers John and Brooke took a side trip into Lexington to stay at a hiker friendly bed and breakfast.  They treated us far better than we could've asked and gave us some time to explore Lexington, VA and the history there.

Mt. Rogers and Grayson Highlands

Trail Days weekend also saw the arrival of some friends from home to hike with me for a few days. The Wurmdell's (Joe and Lisa) arrived on Saturday, ready to conquer about 50 miles of the trail. They brought with them some of the best trail food I've seen, and fresh coffee every morning. 50 miles over 5-6 days would normally not work for me, but following the doctor's orders I was glad to slow down and enjoy my time through this section

It was a perfect spot to take some time through, as the views and landscape was unlike anything on the trail so far. While we battled some bad weather, Joe and Lisa toughed it out with the best of us. I hope the photos speak for themselves.
































- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Damascus and Trail Days

I walked (hobbled) into Virginia just as one of the friendliest trail towns (Damascus) was gearing up for their annual Trail Days festival. It's a weekend to celebrate the AT and it's hikers with gear vendors, lectures, and the occasional free meal. The weekends highlight is a parade in which thru-hikers are attacked by the parade audience with water balloons and squirt guns. I'll let you figure out the symbolism in that.



I also got to have my knees checked about by a doctor, and while there was quite a bit of fluid on one, he was hopeful some slow days and a lighter pack would help ease the pain. The time was right for friends from home to pay me a visit!