I have now completed the “VA Triple Crown.” Tinker Cliffs, McAfees Knob and The Dragons Tooth are all behind me.

I slackpacked 15+ miles today; hiked back to Jake and Kristi’s from Catawba. The rain started after the momentous climb to the Dragons Tooth and continued all day. When I finally finished I was a drowned rat.

I really enjoyed the Brush Mtn Wilderness, the second half of the hike. The trail was well groomed. I even found some trail magic and got a Starbucks Vanilla Late just before descending off the ridge.

I’ll be doing laundry tomorrow and laying low until all the thunderstorms pass through. Tomorrow will at most be a nero.

AT Thru-Hike Stats
Section Day #3 (5/11/19)
Start – VA Rte 624 (703.9)
End – VA Rte 621 (688.7)
Today’s mileage: 15.2
Total section miles: 41.0
Total miles on AT: 757.5
Section avg daily miles: 13.7

The difference in winning & losing is most often, not quitting. – Walt Disney

Campbell shelter was wonderful last night, even though we had some rain. I woke up in the morning and hiked onto McAfee’s Knob. The hike down got to be pretty tough because the weather got very hot and humid.

I’ll be staying with friends (thanks Robert) tonight and eating dinner at the Home Place. I’m hoping to slackpack tomorrow. It’s supposed to rain all day. A cold front is coming through!

AT Thru-Hike Stats
Section Day #2 (5/10/19)
Start – Campbell Shelter (714.3)
End – 4 Pines Hostel (703.9)
Today’s mileage: 10.4
Total section miles: 25.8
Total miles on AT: 741.5
Section avg daily miles: 12.5

Kites rise highest against the wind, not with it. – Winston Churchill

Today was a big day and it isn’t even over yet. I’m currently sitting at Tinker Cliffs looking west over the mountains in Virginia and West Virginia. I still have 4 1/2 miles to go to the next shelter so I probably will be getting there just around sunset.

There was a lot of climbing today. It seems like every time I climbed a mountain there was another just beyond it even higher. I think my total elevation gain was somewhere around 3,000 feet today, but I wasn’t really counting.

Yes, I did make it! Night hiked for last 1 1/2 miles. And Holy Crap, there was a bear right next up the trail. I scared it off… 😱

AT Thru-Hike Stats
Section Day #1 (5/9/19)
Start – Daleville, VA Rte 220 (729.7)
End – Campbell Shelter (714.3)
Today’s mileage: 15.4
Total section miles: 15.4
Total miles on AT: 731.1
Section avg daily miles: 15.4

It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves. – William Shakespeare

I’ll add more to this post later today (done), but I’m off! It’s travel day.

• Plane to DCA (Reagan Airport)
• DC Metro 🚇 to Alexandria
• Amtrak 🚊 to Roanoke
• Uber 🚕 to Daleville

I’m in the air now, looking down as we fly over the Appalachians. I remember last summer; we flew over the reservoir that flooded after that crazy storm ⛈

I won’t arrive until late tonight and it’s always a convoluted journey to get to the AT. It always seems to involve a train or a bus for some reason.

Be a bird perched on a frail branch that she feels bending beneath her, still she sings sway all the same, knowing she has wings. – Victor Hugo

Tomorrow is travel day and today is my last day at work for a month. I’ll try to post a picture later today with my hair cut; clean and trimmed; ready to hit the trail. It might be interesting to compare with what I look like after a month on the trail!

Here’s the first 25+ miles of the trail I’ll be doing this week. Three big landmarks are here: Tinker Cliffs, McAfee’s Knob and the Dragon’s Tooth. I start in Daleville, after spending the night at the Super 8. Lambert’s Meadow Shelter is 9 miles; Campbell Shelter is another 6 miles. There are camping restrictions on the trail here, so I’ll have to decide whether to make day #1 an easy day or a hard one. If the weather cooperates, I’ll have an early dinner at Lambert’s Meadow and then do a “second” hike in the evening on to Campbell Shelter. That will likely end in a night hike!

The “Imaginary Trail” is a short-cut that evidently is very hard to find. Besides, if I were to take that route, I would miss Tinker Cliffs as the sun goes down in the west.

Day two will be on to 4 Pines Hostel (either 16 or 10 miles). I have a supply box waiting for me there. The Home Place, which is an all you can eat family style restaurant will be where I go for dinner. [Eat more chikn…]

 “Carry as little as possible, but choose that little with care.” – Earl Shaffer

 “Fall down seven times and stand up eight.” – Japanese Proverb