Back on the grid in Waynesboro, Virginia

Hi all - its Tom - good to catch up with you personally for the first time since Easter. This time I went a long stretch without a cellphone signal so that I couldn't even get Anne an "I'm OK" call for three or four days. But she knows there are so many hikers now that she would have word in no time if something was amiss.



Pedlar River footbridge near Spy Rock

Yesterday I put in my longest day on the trail so far - 27 miles.  I found that knowing that a heavy downpour with possible flash flooding is coming is a good motivator.  About five hours of my hike yesterday were in a steady rain, but never real heavy. I don't mind that at all.  




A view of Spy Rock near Montebello

Waynesboro marks the end of the Blue Ridge Parkway portion of my hike and the start of the Shenandoah National Park portion.  Waynesboro is a great trail town.  The AT actually crosses US 250 about five miles East of town.  A group of volunteer shuttlers has posted a list with their phone numbers so that when you arrive at the highway you can call for a ride into town.  I was not sure that was going to work for me, since I didn't get to the highway until 7:30 PM, but the first person that I called on that list - Roy - said "I'll be up there in 10 minutes".  He was a great guy, and accepted my invitation to let me buy him breakfast this morning.

I like companies that make good on their product warranties, so I want to mention Solomon boots.  I had a problem in that my boots were loosing the grommets that the lace goes through (three of them).  I called their customer support number, and they quickly said that should not happen to boots purchased early this year and agreed to replace them.  They also agreed to ship a pair a half size larger, since it appears my feet have grown (as I was told would happen during this hike) and my right foot was beginning to develop blisters on the small toes from rubbing.  They agreed to send them to the next location I was going into for a mail drop - Montebello, Virginia.  The new boots were there when I arrived, and the slightly larger size feels just right.

I continue to enjoy watching Spring unfold in the Appalachians.  We are now to the point where the maple trees have leafed out, following the budding of the flowering trees earlier.  Now, when you get up to the tops of mountains, the hardwoods such as oak have still not leafed out but looking down into the lower levels and valleys you see a verdant green.  Critters are more abundant, including the reptiles.  I saw my first snake.  He was pretty good sized, but darted back into a hole as I approached and I could not identify the type.  I'm 99% sure he was not one of the "baddies" - copperhead or rattlesnake.  I have also seen an orange newt with red spots on it and a toad that was as big as I have seen.  (The toad was headed straight up a steep ascent.  I tried to explain the concept of a switchback to him.)




A newt

 I also saw a song bird that was a very bright green - almost neon - with black around his beak.  It is common to find deer now as I ascend to the higher elevations.  There were three of them a few days ago that started to run as I approached.  I stopped and whistled, and the last of them stopped and we stared at each other for a moment of Zen.




trillium are everywhere in bloom
























Section hikers and others that I run into continue to be very kind to us thru hikers.  Among the gifts that I have received:

• Some home dehydrated foods (black beans, corn and peas) from a section hiker who was finishing his hike... delicious!
• A whole chocolate Easter rabbit and a coke - at 8:15 AM - from a trail angel.  What would you do?  It was a warm day so I knew I couldn't keep that chocolate till afternoon.  I ate it for brunch.
• A complete lunch - four chili dogs, home made fries, chips, drink, pickles, etc - from "Fresh Grounds" and his Leapfrog Café.  He set up at four different locations along the trail this year.

The Leapfrog Café with hiker Panzer

I also has a simple invitation to join three section hikers from central Illinois at a campfire they had set up at one of my camping locations.  I enjoyed chatting with them.
I finally had to try hitch hiking to get into a town to resupply.  It took me 35 minutes to get the ride in... I was starting to get a bit discouraged.  But finally a gentleman about my age stopped and took me right to the hostel in Glasgow where I was headed.  On the way back out it only took about 10 minutes... so in the end I was glad to see that it worked.  I thought that if I was clean shaven and a little neater looking it might be easier... what do you think?

Between Daleville, where I resupplied on Easter, and here I went into two locations to do smaller resupplies.  In both cases I was fairly time inefficient.  Glasgow was inefficient because I ate so much while there that I really couldn't hike much when I got back to the trail.  I went about a mile and pitched the tent.  Montebello was the other resupply.  It was inefficient because it was 2.5 walking miles off the AT and down about 2,000 feet, and the store did not have some of the things they said they stocked - like my fuel canisters.  The next morning I was dreading the climb back up to the trailhead, but as my "luck" would have it, I met a person affiliated with the AT Blackburn Center (near Harper's Ferry) and he agreed to drive me up as far as he could, which cut the distance to the trailhead at least in half.

I have decided that as far as shelters go, I like the ones that are off the ridges to be protected from the wind and with a gurgling creek in front of them. Two of my favorites so far have been the Bryant Ridge shelter and the Brown Mountain Creek shelter.  I sleep real well with the sound of a creek... and it makes water resupply a snap.

I am very much looking forward to hiking through the Shenandoahs.  The hills are gentle... no more ascents of 2,000 to 3,000 feet for a good while now.  Plus, the park has "waysides" located throughout, where you can buy a burger or a shake.  Unfortunately, it is too early in the season for many of them to be open, but I do plan to figure out which ones are before starting tomorrow.  I am told that the blackberry shakes are to die for.

Today after breakfast with Roy, he dropped me off at the Laundromat so I could wash my clothes.  After that it was a leisurely stroll through Kroger to resupply.  Then it was AYCE lunch at the Ming Garden restaurant.  I'm going to stop by the Outfitter's this afternoon to pick up a fuel canister and a couple of other items.  Such is the life of a thru hiker!

Jack at Rockfish Outfitters was very helpful.