Surprises of Southern Virginia

A desolate stretch of trail?

«You’re starting out on a pretty desolate stretch of trail,» one Reddit user warned me. He was referring to the resupply options, but it made me wonder if the section itself would be monotonous. Turns out there’s so much going on in Southern Virginia that I started narrating the tour in the voice of SNL character «Stefan.» “This trail has it all: rolling hills, steeply angled rock slabs to traverse, a stream crossing, farm animals in the pasture, a daily steep climb that will make you ask “Why?”, and a rusty sign that says “No Horses Allowed.” There’s no time to sleep.” Add in the excitement of Virginia’s Triple Crown (Dragon Tooth, McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs) and mile 610 to 730 was anything but boring.

Last minute team change

I looked at the nighttime temperatures in the shelters a few days before leaving. The weather was going to be colder than I expected, with temperatures in the 20s and 30s at night. My 30° quilt and my Nemo Tensor Elite pad weren’t going to cut it. I sleep cold and Raynaud’s syndrome aggravates the situation. I opted to carry my 15-degree Magma bag and Tensor 4-season pad, along with long base layers and a beanie. This was a good decision as the nights were extremely cold and I had to wear a fuzzy, puffy robe to sleep. I really missed my booties!

many miles

I was excited to start this section because everyone says you can start putting in big miles. It’s true! The hills offered some level spots where I could do what I call “walking the mall.” My shortest day was 15 miles and my longest was 21. I really like to get to camp about an hour before sunset, so I would wake up and leave camp at 8:00 am and then get to camp in the evening around 7:00 pm. Some people joke that Virginia is flat, but it probably isn’t. Each day there was at least one very long climb and the Triple Crown section will catch your attention.

Mile 700!

You’ll never miss out on water until the well runs dry

The biggest thing I had to adapt to from last year’s hike was the availability of water. There were fewer places to get water and sometimes they were 10 or 11 miles away. I started riding the camel (drinking tons of water) when I reached a fountain, then filled my bottles before leaving. I started each morning by looking at where I could get water that day. It appears to have been a dry spring because most of the streams and springs were running out.

Gravity filtering, to win

The magic of the trail saves the day

It was flat terrain, nothing complicated, but I fell twice before noon on a lazy Wednesday. There was a lot of leaf litter covering the trail and both times I caught my foot on a rock. The second fall was harder and my knees looked like those of a child who had had a rough day at recess. I was briefly discouraged because in one morning I equaled the number of times I fell during 7 weeks of hiking the previous year. Then an approaching hiker said something that changed the trajectory of my day. «Fresh Ground is 5 miles ahead. He’ll get you ready.» Fresh Ground is a renowned trail angel. Serving delicious restaurant food from their truck, it has everything a hiker could want: charging stations, WiFi, an electric fire pit, and 5-star food. He does not accept donations from current hikers, but runs this ministry with donations from past and future hikers. Lunch that day consisted of scallops and shrimp, salad, pieces of salmon with rice, toast, and pecan pie. I sunbathed, met other hikers, ate a huge plate, and then had the best fries I’d had in a long time before I left. What started as a difficult day instantly transformed into a core memory of the trail.

It’s not all roses

By day 7, the bottom of the heel of my left foot developed a callus blister. This is a blister that sits under a callus, so it can’t be popped, it’s incredibly sensitive, and it hurts with every step. I decided to take a zero (a day off) to restock on food, rest my legs, and come up with an action plan for this problem. The same thing happened to me last year with my other foot, so I’m hoping treating it in the early stages will be enough. I stayed at the BeeChHill Hostel with the wonderful host, Beth. Onward and upward!

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