(Mount Rogers National Recreation Area HQ (mile 534.3) - Reed Creek Campsite (mile 552.5))

After a hardy continental breakfast of bananas and sugary cereal at the Econolodge, Delta, Meatsuit, Highlander and I caught the 9am shuttle downtown. After filling up my water bottles at a gas station, we waited outside the Marion post office for an 11am shuttle back to the trail. I was feeling pretty good this morning. I did almost nothing yesterday, which is exactly what I had needed. Maybe most notably, I HAD consumed a pint of strawberries, a whole bag of grapes, four bananas, a box of Cheez-its, and a box of wine. Nutritious💪😤

As we loaded onto the bus, Detox and Painless hopped on board and we exchanged enthusiastic greetings. This was the first time I had seen them since Fontana, which seemed so long ago. The trail is strange in the way fellow hikers move in and out of your bubble. It’s a wonderful aspect of the trail community that ensures an unpredictable but healthy balance of new and familiar faces. Seeing a hiker again after a long stretch of trail is like seeing an old friend. It’s nice.

This coming Sunday, I’ll be meeting AC in Bland, VA. This gives me about 3 days to hike 60 miles, which should be pretty doable. My goal for today was to find a campsite after 15 miles or so. The bus dropped us off at the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area HQ. As we started hiking, I was immediately surprised by the cold. The last couple days had been gorgeous - really hinting at the impending spring, but it suddenly felt like winter again. I stopped briefly to put on my rain jacket and gloves for warmth.

After about a mile, the sky began lightly dusting snow as we climbed a big hill. The cold and wind persisted as we gained elevation. The snow flurried lazily on and off for a while as we hiked along the ridge towards Glade Mountain. After about 6 miles, Delta, Meatsuit, Highlander and I stopped and ate lunch on a couple fallen trees just off the trail. After lunch, the others continued on while I lagged behind to prep my dinner.

I couldn’t tell you which one is Walker Mountain

I continued solo along the ridge of Glade Mountain, which soon began descending, offering a nice view on the way down. The trail moseyed alongside Vaught Branch, a rocky and scenic creek, for about a mile and a half, crossing six times via rock hops and logs. The air was still cold, but the descent offered some relief from the wind and the sun was beginning to warm me through my rain jacket, which I was wearing for a little extra insulation. I briefly hiked past Chatfield Memorial Shelter, which was right beside the trail and appeared to have a nice privy. 1.7 miles past the shelter, I passed under two sets of extremely large and loud power lines and encountered Painless, who was taking a break next to the trail. We chatted briefly and then I continued on to the Settlers Museum. The museum exhibits buildings, artifacts, and reenactments from way back when. The museum was closed, so I only got to admire the old school building next to the trail. A sign above the door was inscribed “LINDAMOOD SCHOOL 1894,” which I’ll admit sounds old, but is 1894 really SETTLERS old?

The trail briefly passes through the Settlers Museum, a collection of well preserved buildings from the late 19th century

An old school building with “LINDAMOOD SCHOOL 1894” inscribed above the door

After crossing VA Route 615 at the Settlers Museum, the trail routed through a picturesque meadow, across a small stream on a tiny footbridge, and then through a narrow corridor of trees, surrounded on either side by vividly green pastures. The surrounding meadows reminded me of the old Windows XP wallpaper. As the trail neared Interstate 81 and the town of Atkins, houses, farms, and other signs of civilization could be seen in every direction. Nevertheless, I was struck by the area’s beauty. The narrow corridor of trees made for a wonderful tunnel of spring buds and blooms. All around me, trees were in every stage of spring, from dense green buds to brilliant flowers.

About two miles past the Settlers museum, the trail crossed the Middle Fork of the Holston River and over a set of railroad tracks. On the other side of the tracks, the trail descended into a marshy wetland area and continued over a long boardwalk. I kept my eyes open for frogs, but wasn’t able to spot any. The trail emerged back into a meadow which wound its way towards I-81, eventually dumping me out on Lee Highway. Ahead in the distance, I could see Delta, Meatsuit, and Highlander, who were making their way towards El Burrito Loco, a Mexican restaurant in a gas station next to the trail. I stopped briefly outside the gas station and considered stopping for a burrito. I had already prepped my dinner, so I decided against it and continued on. The trail routed me under I-81 and then back into a small stand of trees adjacent many cow pastures.

Brief road walk through the outskirts of Atkins, VA and under I-81

I stopped at Dry Run Creek and collected a little water against the guidance of Guthook. I would be needing the water for post-privy sanitary purposes. I then crossed the creek on a small bridge and continued along a narrow board walk that seemed precariously weathered. The trail followed along the creek for a bit, passing the old Davis Cemetery and crossing a little country road before wandering into a large cow pasture. The pasture was clearly active, judging my the copious cow turds and actual cows moseying in the distance. All in all it was a pretty field.

Hiked through a cow pasture

A hiker ladder led the trail back into more pristine forest and I soon encountered a sign claiming “1/4 GA → ME!” Wow… I had to stop to take in the weight of this moment. I felt proud of how far I had come and in awe of how far I still had to go. I had already seen so many amazing places and met so many cool people. I wondered what the remaining 3/4 of trail had in store for me.

I also did some quick mental math. Today was day 46, so at my previous pace, it will take me 184 days to finish the trail. That was over a month longer than my goal of ~150 days, but I knew the estimation was unfair. I had started slow. My trail legs have developed and I can now bang out 20+ mile days more regularly. I don’t think I have anything to worry about.

A mile later, I stopped at the site of the Davis Path Shelter to use the privy. The shelter is no longer there. All that remains is a few support columns and the shelter steps, which now look like short, lonely bleachers overlooking the trail. I had been thinking about camping at Davis Path, but my privy stop required most of my remaining water. I now didn’t have enough water to cold soak, so my options were: 1.) hike another 4 miles to the next water source/campsite; or 2.) not eat dinner. I definitely wanted to eat dinner and I was feeling pretty good, so I opted to hike on.

A bit beyond the shelter, I encountered a small orange smiley face gummy wedge in a crack of bark on a tree. I smiled to myself, shrugged, plucked it off the tree and plopped it in my mouth. Leave no trace… am I right?😂 The thought briefly crossed my mind that it could be drugged, but fear not, my perception of reality remained unaltered for the rest of the evening.

I hiked another 4 miles to Reed Creek campsite, which was a nice, open creek side site surrounded by thick rhododendron. Two thru-hikers, “Captin” and “Fireball,” were already at the site. Fireball was accompanied by her friend “Good Fortune,” and together they had set up a nice fire. As I set up my tent, the rest of their trail family began trickling in. Their ranks included “Chill,” “Voicemail,” “High Class Frat God” referred to simply as High Class, and “Lennaeous.” This was the trail family that Meatsuit and Highlander hiked with most of the time. I had seen some of them around before. I’m pretty sure I had almost tripped over Chill’s unconscious body at the Broken Fiddle Hostel in Damascus. He had been splayed out, shirtless with sunglasses, in the backyard of the Broken Fiddle. I also briefly met Fireball while hiking with Delta. At the time, I believe she was completing a small section with her mom. Everyone was wearing uniquely colored and patterned shorts, as if they had all gone shopping together together to pick out the most obnoxious, flamboyant outfits possible - which they very well may have done. I learned that Voicemail was right out of high school and that Captin was a blogger for The Trek, a popular thru-hiking website that hosts blogs for current thru-hikers.

Chill gathered an absurd amount of firewood, which he yoked over shoulder back to camp. He then began orchestrating a sophisticated dinner plan. Everyone produced an ingredient from their respective packs. They were making a luxurious breakfast on trail, including precooked sausage, bacon, hardboiled eggs, biscuits, and gravy. The biscuits baked on rocks around the fire ring while Chill cheffed up the gravy. I was offered some biscuits and gravy and I gratefully accepted the warm treat.

I had ended up hiking about 18.2 miles today. Considering that I started at nearly 11:30am, I think this was a pretty cool accomplishment.

Spring is in the air but so is flurrying snow this weather is weird