Eye of the Storm: Southern Virginia Weather

Thursday May 21, 2026

A questionable weather forecast looms as I run back to my truck. An afternoon walk leads to unexpected challenges.

No breakfast, no problem

W.With my tent pitched precariously and thunderstorms forecast overnight, I figured I was in for another rough night. Instead, I slept until 5:30am and felt like I could start the day. I fell asleep for another hour before a single bird started singing 3 sequential notes that could have woken up people in the next state. Bedtime was over and I wanted to pack as soon as possible since it could still rain at any moment. I was more than relieved to see that the storms had not materialized. With no breakfast to prepare, I was able to go from waking up to on the go in 30 minutes.

grass explosion

Just across the road from Possum Creek the agricultural pasture section begins. The cows were still grazing and ran away from the trail as I approached. They found shelter at the top of a small hill and watched me closely as I passed. A black cow had stayed near the trail and was brave enough to step onto the trail behind me. I saw him sniff the air several times before continuing walking. I felt like I found the “happy-go-lucky guy” cow who thinks everyone else overreacts to everything.

A few miles into the hike I saw hikers coming up the trail. «That’s until tomorrow!» a male voice shouted. Once I had a clear line of sight, I recognized One Gallon and Lacy. Evidently they were just thinking about when they would catch up with me. We spent a few minutes catching up, I mentioned that it didn’t rain in Possum Creek. They spent some time at night and reported hearing thunder in the distance. It appears that the storm had passed a little further south of the road.

This image makes me want to start Windows XP.

See you tomorrow, Lacie and a gal.

More storm reports

As I approached the van I saw two hikers, Hawkeye and Breezy, who I had made friends with during my trip to Damascus. They had both spent the night at the Colonist Museum. They had chosen to camp under the pavilion to avoid having to deal with wet tents. They reported that during the night they were in the middle of a thunderstorm with heavy rain.

As I approached the ¼ marker I could see that the ground here was indeed wet. Somehow, those of us at Possum Creek were lucky to stay dry the night. Even more fortunately, I had returned to my truck by 11:30 am without a single drop of rain falling. My revised plan had worked better than I expected.

An impressive feat to walk from the 1/4 marker to the 3/4 marker in just over a day! FKT incoming!

The next base camp

He had been stationed on Davis Valley Road since Sunday afternoon, but it was time to move on. I drove to a gas station to use the bathroom and made an impulse purchase: a small container of ice cream. I had been spoiled during Trail Days and was going through severe ice cream withdrawal. According to Google, symptoms include irritability and sleep disturbances. Check and check. Considering all the hiking I had done in very hot conditions, I felt it was necessary to pick up my prescription.

After checking the driving times, I made the quick decision to drive to Route 615, further up the trail, instead of Route 623, the gravel road I had come across. This was to save time: Route 623 was remote, a 1 hour trip, while Route 615 was only 35 minutes.

This meant changing my hiking plans. I needed to walk about 9 more miles to maintain my planned mileage for the day. Since Route 623 would now be 9 miles southI would save that 18 mile round trip hike for tomorrow. Therefore I would walk north 4.5 miles to I-77, which would have been part of tomorrow’s hike. Tomorrow, after the initial 9 mile hike to Route 623, I will drive to the next trailhead near I-77 and complete the few miles to connect with my turnaround point for today. This would keep me exactly on schedule and save me approximately an hour of unnecessary driving. Overall, the accessibility of trails in Virginia has been a pleasant surprise. I am glad that I can easily adapt my plans to my needs.

Here comes the rain

Now that I was packing comfortably, I turned to my old waterproof jacket to stay dry during my 9 mile round trip hike. He had a tendency to collect water in his pockets, but I carried everything in my backpack so that wasn’t a problem. I figured the consistent forecast of a 40% chance of rain meant the rain wouldn’t be as heavy if I finally got hit. My umbrella works well in the rain but I can’t hold it and use my trekking poles at the same time. My poncho is also good in the rain, but the big sleeves let in a little rain. Therefore, the waterproof jacket seemed like the best option. Plus it looks good, what could go wrong?

During the first two kilometers it barely rained. Then it started raining steadily and I took the jacket out of my backpack and zipped it up. The rain quickly intensified. Then it was literally like thunder. My attention was drawn to my shoes, which were now soaked for the first time since the Smokies. I didn’t miss that feeling. I kept knowing it would all be over soon if I kept walking. Soon he would be back in the truck, warm and dry.

See what I mean, it’s a stylish jacket.

goes wrong

I noticed something strange on the sleeves of my jacket and instantly knew the problem: rain was collecting between the reversible layers! I pushed the water to the end of the sleeve and squeezed it out. Yes, the waterproof jacket collected both rain and repelled it. The heavy rain was also soaking my exposed pants. I regretted not having brought the poncho, I would have been much drier and more comfortable.

I walked for almost two hours in the pouring rain. After turning around, it slowed down just before reaching a viewpoint. I took off my jacket and discovered that complete The jacket was collecting water. There was the sound of water sloshing around the waist of the jacket as he shook it out. I wrung out the jacket and watched as the water poured through the material. I will not wear this jacket in heavy rain again.

The viewpoint just after the rain broke out.

The viewpoint just after the rain broke out.

dry up

Back at the truck, I took off my wet clothes and collected some water to filter from one of the streams that feed Laurel Creek. I noticed the water was cloudy, which I think was a result of the rain stirring up the streams.

Thanks to my early start and decision to drive to the less remote trailhead, I had some free time. That meant catching up on blog writing that I couldn’t do while walking in the rain.

The rain continues to pour at the trailhead.

-See you tomorrow

Total: 21.4 miles, 44,984 steps

• Hike Type: Backpacking 11.8 miles, Day Hike 15.6 miles
• Campground: Minivan, Bastian, VA

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