AT-VA Backpack – Day 1 – 5/3/13 - Spy Rock Road to Maupin
Field Shelter – 19 Miles
“Because of the way the shelters are spaced we need to do 19
miles the first day, about 16 miles the second day, but only 5 miles the third
day. Sound okay?” Sharon, if you’re going to hike the Virginia
section of the AT, better find some like-minded partners. Cathy, a Berg buddy who was also working on
this section, presented this ambitious plan for a long weekend.
Note: This is the
weekend where Sharon learns that 19 miles with a loaded backpack and not much conditioning
hurts. A lot.
But here we go. Cathy
and I drove to Waynesboro, VA on a Thursday evening, excited to see yellow- green
trees marching up the mountainsides.
After a chilly, wet, dreary, dragged-out winter, spring is finally
here!
We met our shuttle driver bright and early Friday morning at
our ending point at Rockfish Gap, the entrance to Shenandoah National Park and beginning
of Skyline Drive. The driver was very
friendly and talkative but had never been to our dropoff point before, so we
all learned it together. From the fish
hatchery near Montebello, VA, gravelly Spy Rock Road allows hikers (not cars)
access to the AT near Spy Rock. The very
steep .75-mile approach trail got my heart seriously pumping and my head
seriously thinking about what the heck I had signed up for. At the AT intersection we turned left and
climbed a little more to a side trail to Spy Rock. But with such a long day ahead of us, we
skipped the view and continued on.
Lots of tree burls in this section. There are several theories on what causes them, but seeing so many concentrated in one area makes me subscribe to the idea of a common fungus.
Lots of tree burls in this section. There are several theories on what causes them, but seeing so many concentrated in one area makes me subscribe to the idea of a common fungus.
It didn’t take long for Cathy to get ahead of me; she is a
much faster hiker than I am and carries less weight with ultralight gear. We are kind of like the tortoise and the hare
(guess which one I am) only in this story the hare always finishes first. Cathy was carrying the water filter that we
shared so we needed to stay in touch, and she was very patient to wait for my
check-in at pre-arranged points.
Our hope for spring was premature. The new leaves we had enthused about on our
drive had not yet emerged on top of the ridges and we walked along beneath
mostly winter bare branches.
However, many spring flowers were emerging
Purple violet – so common that I often don’t take pictures
but that’s really not fair, is it?
Large-flowered bellwort
Bloodroot getting ready to bloom – the leaves are very
distinctive
Trillium
Great chickweed
Also saw toothwort, wild geranium, rue anemone and spiderwort
Make sure the sign doesn't get stolen
Our second significant climb of the day (but not yet the
biggest) was ascending The Priest. Together
we crossed the summit - a little bit of fog coming through. Cathy and I
met up 4 miles from Spy Rock at the turnoff to The Priest Shelter.
Northbounders on the AT enjoy a reasonably gentle ascent of
The Priest but then must negotiate a challenging 3,100-foot descent in 4.3
miles. The good news is that trail
builders built 37 switchbacks to minimize erosion and help out hikers’
knees.
At the bottom Cathy and I met again at the bridge crossing over the Tye River. While we were having a snack, two very handsome young section hiking hunks stopped to say hello. Sadly, they were southbound and we soon parted ways. We were old enough to be their moms but who cares? What happens on the AT stays on the AT?
At the bottom Cathy and I met again at the bridge crossing over the Tye River. While we were having a snack, two very handsome young section hiking hunks stopped to say hello. Sadly, they were southbound and we soon parted ways. We were old enough to be their moms but who cares? What happens on the AT stays on the AT?
Ready for Three Ridges Wilderness? Lots more wildflowers
Showy orchis
Pink phlox
So 3,100 feet down to the low point of 970 feet elevation at
Tye River, then immediately the trail ascends up Three Ridges Mountain,
summiting at 3,984 feet, with a slight dip along the way for Harpers Creek and
another shelter. This is one tough
day. My feet, knees and quads were
feeling the strain.
This is the trail? Seriously?
But look at the view
I was drinking lots of water and a little concerned about
running out. At my next meet-up with
Cathy she gave me the extra water she had been carrying (why doesn’t that woman
drink more?) since she could filter more along the way. Then I cut her loose to go on to our ending
point for the night. I felt comfortable
with the frequency of trail signs and now it was just a matter of one painful
footstep after the other.
13.4 miles in, 5.6 miles to go – yeah, still smiling
I hiked through the area called Chimney Rock but barely
looked up to notice the rock formations, just kept climbing up and over Three
Ridges Mountain. No more photo-taking
for today. From there it was a
1,200-foot descent to Maupin Creek Shelter, our overnight stop. I realized I was going slower and slower and
it became difficult to judge distance by timing. As I walked through a rare flat area, I
became concerned that I had missed the side trail to the shelter. As I contemplated turning back, I walked up
one short but steep bump, thinking “this isn’t even big enough to show on the
elevation profile but it feels gigantic”, and on the other side I saw the
shelter turnoff sign.
I rolled into camp at 7:30 p.m., 10+ hours of hiking, still
not too bad for 19 miles and over 5,000 feet elevation gain. Several other section hikers were spread out
in the shelter or in tents nearby. One
was a young German guy, trail name Waldo, and two were middle-aged women called
Cowgirl and Cover Girl.
Maupin Field Shelter does not look inviting to me
Cathy had been there a while, had made herself comfortable
in the shelter and treated water for us.
I was carrying the back- packing stove and fuel so she was waiting on me
to cook supper. As soon as I could, I
prepared for the next day, set up my tent, crawled inside so I could collapse
and whimper in privacy, and crashed.
Backpacking: An extended form of
hiking in which people carry double the amount of gear they need for half the
distance they planned to go in twice the time it should take. ~Author
Unknown
2 comments:
Wow - 19 miles in one day with a fully loaded pack? You are an ironwoman! Loved your flower photos.
Ditto on the wildflower photos. And the bridge shot is super-cool!
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