Friday, June 16, 2017
Even though the trail has thrown a few tough sections at us lately, I have to admit we’ve had it pretty easy the last few days.
Two days ago: hike only nine miles and spend the rest of the day at a brewery.
Yesterday: spend most of the morning at the same brewery before hiking.
Today: an even shorter day of hiking and a visit to another brewery.
I could get used to this.
| Weather | Overnight rain, but none during the day until a heavy thunderstorm late in the afternoon |
| Trail Conditions | A short day with easy miles |
| Today's Miles | 5.0 miles |
| Trip Miles | 861.9 miles |
It rained off and on most of last night. Thankfully, when we awoke this morning the rain had stopped.
After exiting our tents, we were able to meet the two young women who arrived about the same time we arrived last night.
They were Dory and Splat.
Yes, Dory is named for the forgetful cartoon fish. Splat’s trail name isn’t too difficult to figure out, either. She got it when the ice cream fell out of her cone and hit the pavement.
And of course she ate the ice cream anyway. Would you expect anything less from a thru-hiker?
During a pause in last night’s rain, we got up and hung our food bags on a nearby bear pole. This was the first one we had seen so far, but they are commonly used in this part of the trail.
To hang a bear bag on one of the hooks at the top of the pole, you use another long pole with a hook. With a little agility, you lift the bag and latch it on a hook at the top.
This is a system that seems to require less maintenance than the cables used in the Smokies. Still, I think bear boxes make more sense, and I’d like to see more of those in use.
Stick has said to me a couple times that he sometimes has a problem with directions when returning to the trail. He told a story about wandering for nearly an hour after leaving Overmountain Shelter.
So as he was leaving camp before me and heading down a side trail from the shelter to the AT, I said, half-jokingly, “When you get to the trail, turn left."
I followed him a minute or so later. When I reached the junction of the AT, Stick was still there. He wasn’t so much befuddled as he was just being extra careful. He knows himself.
After going up an easy series of switchbacks, the trail passed a small cemetery. There were only about 10 headstones here, and all of them were crudely carved in stone.
The stones were so weathered, it was impossible to make out names or dates on the markers.
The trail continued to climb, but it was easy going. Lingering, low-lying clouds lent a moody atmosphere to the forest.
After cresting the top of the short climb, the only one of the day, the trail passed the ruins of a cabin. I’m guessing this was a hunting cabin, and not the home of a farmer, because there was no evidence of a road nearby.
As the morning wore on the sun made an attempt to burn off the low clouds. It wasn’t successful.
A couple of day-hikers passed by, and told us to keep a eye out for a mother bear and her cub.
We did, but didn’t see them.
The only wildlife we saw was a turtle, slowly walking across the trail.
We arrived at Rockfish Gap around 10:30 a.m. As expected, Stick’s friend Mike was there to meet us.
He had driven to Front Royal, Va. from his home in Missouri, then got a shuttle ride down here. He will join us on the trail starting tomorrow as we hike through Shenandoah National Park.
Along with Mike, we were greeted by Splat’s mother, who had set up a nice trail magic breakfast, including yogurt, fresh fruit, and cookies.
She plans to stay in the area the next few days to shuttle Splat and Dory.
Much to Stick’s dismay, Splat and Dory told us they saw the bear the day hikers warned us about. He has been talking about wanting to see a bear because he’s never seen one in the forest.
Splat told us that as they came upon the two bears, the cub climbed up a tree and the mother growled at them.
Wisely, they cut across the trail switchback, an act normally frowned upon by hikers, to avoid a confrontation with the protective mother bear.
Just as we were looking for a way to get to Waynesboro, a man in a large, yellow pickup truck pulled up and asked if we needed a ride into town.
We had an initial leeriness to accept his offer. Near some towns locals are known to offer rides to hikers, then demand payment of as much as $50.
This guy was the real deal, though. He drove us for free into Waynesboro, pointing out local landmarks along the way.
We were dropped off in front of the Quality Inn, where I had made reservations for us.
We were told our room wouldn’t be ready for a couple hours, so we walked a few blocks down the street to a laundromat.
Stick didn’t have town clothes to change into as I did, so he wore his rain jacket and pants while our clothes were washed.
Waynesboro appeared to be your basic, working class town.
François-Jean de Chastellux, who served as a liaison between the French government and Gen. George Washington during the Revolutionary War, once complained about the accommodations in this town, saying, “I found the inn that Mr. (Thomas) Jefferson had described to me; it was one of the worst in all America."
As we’d already discovered, Waynesboro today has a reputation for kind hospitality to travelers. We learned that the free ride we got was not unusual.
Also helpful, everything a hiker needs was within walking distance .
After finishing our laundry, we walked to a Walmart Neighborhood store, a smaller version of the big box store. While shopping, we ran into Splat's mom again.
Once we returned to the Quality Inn, our room was ready so we checked in. The next order of business was a much needed shower.
One of the most popular spots in Waynesboro for hikers is the New Ming Garden Buffet and Grill, which features an all-you-can-eat buffet. We elected to go to Jake's Bar and Grill, which was recommended to us earlier today by a day hiker.
After lunch, our next stop was Basic City Brewery, but as soon as we stepped outside to walk there, the sky opened up and a heavy downpour began.
We were immediately soaked. Figuring we couldn’t get any wetter than we already were, we elected to continue our walk to the brewery.
The streets were flooding, and at some point during the mile-long walk we gave up trying to avoid puddles.
For many years leading up to the 1920s, a town named Basic City was located here on the east side of Waynesboro. During most of that time, Waynesboro was a dry town, but Basic City was not.
It’s a good story to go with the brewery.
When we walked in we were dripping wet. The bartender kindly gave us some towels to dry off and stave off flooding the building.
Somewhat surprisingly, we didn’t stay long. I think we must have been worn out, despite the easy day of hiking.
On our walk back to the motel we stopped at Kroger to pick up a couple more items for the trail.
After repackaging our food at the motel, we were ready to begin another section of this big adventure.
I haven’t normally referred to my hike as an adventure, but that’s what it’s becoming, something much bigger than a long walk.
Ran into a rain-storm
Ducked into a bar door
It's all night pouring, pouring rain
Lord but not a drop on me
Test me, test me, test me, test me, test me
Why don't you arrest me
Throw me in the jail house
Lord, until the sun go down
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