So where I last left you all, I had just crossed into Virginia. So far, it has been my most enjoyable state. Maybe I say this because I'm now well accustomed to the trail and the challenges that come with it, but I think that Virginia presents a little bit of everything. I've seen rocky landscapes with views every couple of hundred feet, lush forests with gradually sloping hills, and ascents with layers upon layers of blue tinted ridges. I've felt chilly nights, warm, breezy evenings, and blazing hot mid-days. Alone, these circumstances would leave a hiker exhausted and thoroughly frustrated with the state, but it is because Virginia has a little bit of everything that makes it so spontaneous and unforgettable.
Out of Damascus (where I got sucked into an extra zero day because of some friends), I headed up the flank of Mt Rodgers and into Grayson Highlands State park. This region is known for open grasslands and wild ponies, which came right up to us! I was very tempted to pet one, but park rules state that it is best not to, so I erred on the side of respect for my pony friends. However, I wished that I brought some carrots with me to feed to them. Me and my group were blessed with wonderful weather, but it caught me off guard how rocky the trail was. Miles of jagged and awkwardly-shaped rocks made the bottoms of my feet really hurt for the first time.
Another thing to mention about Damascus is that I had decided to send my winter gear home, anticipating that the weather would stay as warm as it had been. Even though I kept my winter sleeping bag for a while longer, I quickly realized that it was a mistake to send some layers home, especially as it got near freezing in the evenings and mornings at camp. Alas, I trucked on, and eventually made it to Partnership Shelter, which is right by the Mt Rodgers Visitors Center. A special thing about that shelter is that hikers are able to order a pizza and pick it up right next to the shelter. It was a novel, well-deserved treat to eat pizza at a shelter. Because I couldn't even finish my crusts, I zip-locked them and took them the next day to warm back up over a fire. Truly, pizza for days.
From there, I headed through several farm fields, which offered different but nonetheless beautiful vistas down the trail. I even passed by a settlers museum with a school house building where a local church left trail magic of soda, chips, fruit, and other hiker needs (including Ibuprophen, which I promptly took for my aching feet). The Next day, I went to a fully enclosed shelter at the top of Chestnut Knob, which offered incredible views to the north of a formation known as "God's thumbprint", called so because the mountains seem to form a thumb-like indentation. The shelter was beautiful, but that the water source was essentially a frog pond located 0.2 miles down (I definitely needed to backwash my water filter the next day). This particular mountain was significant because it is the highest elevation the trail hits (~4400 ft) until the White Mountains all the way up in New Hampshire. I guess it will now be lower hills for a while (not a bad thing, but just as a matter of perspective).
A couple of days later, we heard that the same church that left trail magic at the school building was hosting a free, all-you-can-eat breakfast for thru-hikers every Monday, so we timed our pace to end up there at the right moment. The breakfast was crowded with hikers in the small church building, but that didn't seem to phase the elders and members from being hospitable and just incredible to us. I was very grateful to be able to experience that. Later that day, I headed to a shelter that seemed to have an inconveniently far water source, and it wasn't until I got back up that another hiker told me that there was an alternate source only 100 yards in the other direction. Oops. I know that in the context of walking in society, a lot of people tell thru-hikers that a mile should be nothing for them and that it makes no difference, but I can assure them that at the end of a full day of hiking, every dang foot of extra walking counts.
A couple of days later, me and my group stayed at Woods Hole Hostel, which is in a renovated cottage from the late 1800's. What makes this place special is that it has its own farm and prepares community meals from locally harvested and grown products (we had mountain gumbo that night, which was incredible). The owners have a strong focus on sustainable and healthy living, and they offered messages and yoga sessions (which I gladly participated in, my body really needed it). Later that night, one of their goats gave birth to a kid, so we were all able to welcome him to the world. It was definitely an amazing moment. The next day, we headed to the town of Pearisburg, where we ate at a Chinese buffet, picked up supplies, and nursed our food babies in a motel watching survivalist shows on History Channel, all the while laughing at how dramatically their tribulations are presented. I guess that when we are in the middle of hard days and circumstances, it doesn't seem as entertaining without a camera crew waiting on us.
The next day, we hiked many miles to a house right near the trail across the river, where a man named The Captain lets thru-hikers camp out in his backyard. The only way to get there is to zipline across the river, and some people almost got their feet and the bottoms of their packs wet. We jammed by the fire, and I fried slices of summer sausage to make trail bacon, which momentarily whetted the hiker appetite in me. The next couple of days, the weather started to get very warm, and we were greeted with open views from rocky ledges. The most famous of those were Dragon's Tooth (a stone monolith which requires a scramble to the top) and Mcafee Knob (the most photographed section of the trail). Though the weather was wonderful, many of us started getting rashes below our shoulders due to the extra sweat and friction from our straps. Gross, I know, but it is a reality of hiker life (at least at the beginning of the warm season).
For Cinco de Mayo, I decided to host my own trail magic at a shelter right after a town. I got the idea a while ago of carrying up a baking sheet as a griddle and quesadilla fixings for hikers to make their own. It went really well, and it was great to be giving back to the trail, especially after how much it has given to me thus far. The next day, I hiked 16 miles in 4 1/2 hours to meet up with my sisters for one of their graduations, and it has been a great time sharing my experiences first hand and recuperating for the next leg of my trip. From here, I'll hike for a bit more, and head back down to Damascus for a hiker festival called Trail Days. I'm excited for the rest of Virginia, and I'll be sure to tell you how it all goes!
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