I'm back!

I'm back home from a most excellent adventure! Mike and I got in two spectacular, and strenuous, hikes. The views in the southern section of the Shenandoah National park are phenomenal! Trail conditions were great, and we were gifted with fabulous weather the whole time.
I'm going to post the trip in separated posts, otherwise I'll lose my hair trying to write up the whole trip as one post. Can't wait to hike down there again!

Long anticipated trip

A few months ago, Mike, from Mid Atlantic Hikes, asked me to go on a hiking trip with him to the Southern area of the Shenandoah National Park. I jumped at the opportunity even though I was second guessing my ability to keep up with a guy who is logging 400 to 500 miles of trail per year.
Over the course of time since the plans were discussed; I have logged some decent mileage and feel pretty much ready to tackle some trail with him. What I now look forward to even more , is to learn from the trip. I have yet to upgrade my gear other than the trekking poles and filter. What I want to take away is how to pack better or at least become more comfortable with what I am packing. It seems silly to me sometimes, but I am always out by myself, so never have the opportunity to see what others are carrying or how they go about handling a longer hike.
The trip will be taking us to the Loft Mountain Campground a short distance from the southern entrance to the SNP. The pics I have seen of the campground look great! I believe we will be putting in about 20 or so miles over the trip. The best thing is to be able to return to our sites after a hike and kick back and not worry about a long ride home. Ahhhhh....I smell steaks on the grill!

Tough Trek

Last thursday, the 13th, promised to be another one of those "Top ten days of the year", and it held up to it's billing. Sunny skies and no humidity with temps in the 70's and a nice breeze. I wanted one more good hike in before my trip to the SNP with Mike next week. I decided on finally tackling the Falls Ridge- North Mountain Loop west near Colombia Furnace, Virginia. The hike as described called for nearly 12 miles with a 1600 ft. elevation gain over the first 2.5 miles. The descent was also mentioned as something to reckon with.
After dropping the kids off at the bus, I finished packing up and took off to the starting point. The familiar rolling hills greeted me as I headed west out of Leesburg and eventually I was heading up the Shenandoah Valley with Mountains rising up on both sides of me. As I approached my starting point, I passed Liberty Furnace. This gorgeous building is nestled on private property. I would love to have gotten closer. I made the trail head just at 10:00, a little later than I wanted, but I was psyched to be there none the less. I quickly geared up and was on the trail just after 10.
The trail was a little thick to start as I headed through a meadow, but the trail opened shortly and the orange blazes were easy to follow. The ascent of Falls Ridge started in earnest, and became increasingly steep. I was soon well above the valley floor. As I climbed I began to notice spots of Autumn colors. Beautiful oranges, reds, and yellows shown brilliantly in the bright sun. Surely the cooler weather I have been anxiously awaiting is in the not so distant future.The trail became pretty steep in spots, making the Maryland Heights climbs pale in comparison. There were a few glimpses of views and I could see how fast I was climbing up. At just over a mile up, I came to a trail heading off to the left below the top of Falls Ridge. There is supposed to be a waterfall to be seen, though it has required bushwhacking in the past. I thought maybe this was now a trail. This trail was also blazed yellow, and though overgrown a bit, was quite easy to follow. The blazes were fairly worn but also easy to follow and quite numerous. About 15 minutes into the trail, and no waterfall, I decided to head back so as not to get too far off my planned route.
Shortly after the side trail, the ascent began to ease up, but it became quite overgrown. It was becoming thick enough to get a bit annoying at times. I passed a tree with a tent painted on it. I followed this little trail a bit to see a nice little campsite and then moved on. Just before I reached the junction with the North Mountain Trail, the trail became sandy in spots. I thought it interesting at the time.
The junction with the North Mountain Trail is among some rather large boulders, and marked at the corner with a small cairn. It was noon at that point, having gained the ridge now in a bit under 2 hours. Fairly strenuous climb! I sat on one of the boulders and ate an energy bar and looked over my maps. I decided to wait for lunch until I reached a nice spot with a view.
Nearly a mile later, I came upon a nice rock outcropping. I had views to both the east and west. I was surprised at how much haze there was down in the valley despite the brisk wind and lack of humidity. Still, nice views. The cool thing with this spot was the rock outcropping itself. The rock had been worn by countless winds and rain which left beautifully smooth grooves and "bowl" like appearances. I stayed for a while to check it out. the wind was strong and cool enough to make me decide to move along and find a sheltered area to stop for lunch. About 10 minutes later, a nice little grove with flat boulders appeared, and I stopped for a well deserved lunch break. It was about 1:00 at this point.
Lunch lasted about twenty minutes or so. I ate a chicken salad sandwich and mixed up some Gatorade. Another check of my maps and I was moving on. In another mile, I came upon another open area with views to the east. The sun was high and I was starting to feel some of the heat on my face. I really need to start wearing a hat. I use a bandanna, but it is not enough when i am exposed to the sun's rays for lengthy periods of time. I polished of the last of the Gatorade, and started to think about my water supply. I was doing fairly well, but knew the streams along the way were likely dry. I pressed on, the trail now had become well worn and maintained. I passed by some amazingly large, if if not disturbingly large, ant hills. These things were about 3-4 feet in diameter and 2 feet high. The mound seemed to move on it's own with all the ants crawling over it. I can't imagine the time it took to build such a huge mound! My pace was back to above 2 miles an hour. I passed a nicely established campsite. Someone had spent some time here and apparently on a regular basis. It would have made a nice place to stay for the night on a backpack. Within 20 minutes from the campsite, I arrived at the communication towers atop Great North Mountain. I had brought clues for a letterbox, and they led me further south on the North mountain Trail. I felt pretty good on time, so continued south. A mile later, I was coming up empty on the clues and I was starting to feel the fatigue from my journey. I was drinking more water and now I was concerned with my supply. I knew I still faced a tough descent at the pipeline swath. I turned around and headed back to the towers and to continue my trek back to the car.
The journey down off of Great North Mountain began with a switchback descent down a dirt road from the communication towers. My legs were feeling it soon enough, but I soon faced an even more painful drop when I hit the pipeline swath about a mile later. The pipeline .... it is hard to describe. Upon reaching the turn to head down, I had to stop. The "trail" was simply to head down the swath. It reminded me of a ski slope that was over grown during summer months. The angle of descent dropped so rapidly as to make one lose sight of it until it leveled out almost a mile below. A line of trees split the swath up the middle. I opted for the right side as it seemed clearer. This was true, but loose scree made for poor footing at times. Loosened stones would roll, and then keep rolling in small avalanches due to the steepness. My knees were screaming at me almost immediately! The fatigue of the journey seemed to suddenly reach a high point. I crossed over to the left side of the swath through a break in the trees, looking for better footing. I found it due to thicker ground cover near the tree line to the left. This also hid ruts and other obstacles which challenged my balance with almost very step. I finally made towards the bottom and more even terrain. The ground cover, however, became knee to waist high grass and brush. Satisfaction and awe was felt as I looked behind me to see what I had just climbed down. I finally came upon the blue blazes on the left side tree line showing me the way onto the Laurel Run Connector Trail.
I was pretty happy to be getting off the pipeline. Unfortunately, I was running low on water. As soon as I entered the woods again, I crossed a bone dry Laurel Run. It wasn't a surprise. I was now fairly tired and getting sore. My right shoulder was feeling my pack. I was hoping for water at one of the other stream crossings , but not holding my breath. I was only a few miles out now, so I wasn't doing too badly. The Laurel Run Connector Trail started as a very uneven and washed out fire road. It would have required a fairly large construction vehicle to pass through. The trail curved back towards Great North Mountain, and thus, back up. It was very evident how fatigued my legs were. The ascent was short and I was soon on improved dirt bed and moving along pretty well. I was supposed to turn onto the Fat Mountain Trail at one point, having crossed two more streams (also lacking water for me to filter). There had been recent construction of the road bed and placement of a huge drain pipe under the road. Between this and my fatigue, I must have missed it. I eventually came to a newly placed trail marker which was blazed blue on three sides. A trail veered off into the woods to the right with another new marker, this one blazed white. None of this was showing on my topos. A small National Forest sign was hidden by overgrowth and read "Foot Traffic Invited" along with something about the need for logging roads. The trail disappeared into the woods in the direction that I wanted to be going. Without reference on the map, decided to take this trail. My GPS showed I was less than two miles from the car, so I figured I was good enough to get back if problems started. The trail was well packed, but I did not see any more blazes. I kept an eye on my GPS which had my car marked as a waypoint. I was still heading in the right direction. I suddenly came upon a small stream running along the trail. There was good water flow! I stopped and filtered a liter and a half! I drank the first half right there! I had drank the last of my water just a few minutes earlier.
Relieved to have ample water for the rest of the journey, I moved on. I no sooner got going, when I came upon a purple blaze on a tree. I was on the Fat Mountain Trail after all, something I was suspecting anyway. Within a few more minutes I reached the Falls Ridge Trail where I had started earlier. I was elated! I was also drained. I ached, and I was ready for the hike to be over. I was getting clumsy with some of my steps as I passed over some rocky terrain. I had my GPS in hand, and as I reached the car, the mileage clicked to 14 miles. I had completed my second longest hike this year. I felt it.

Non posted hikes

Well, since my last posting I have logged another 15 miles over the course of two hikes. The first hike served the purpose of giving me a decent workout, though the scenery was somewhat boring other than the lake. The hike was at the G Richard Thompson Wildlife Refuge in Paris, Va. The day was pleasant, but the trails, other than the AT sections were very poorly maintained. I also came upon a n area that is being heavily logged. A huge swath of a hillside was cleared. In doing so, the loggers obliterated the path. I had to sit in the middle of the cleared area an figure out my location on the topo to see where I was and the general area of the trail going back into the woods. I succeeded at this only to find the trail so poorly maintained and overgrown, that it was barely an animal trail. I had to stop frequently and look carefully for what seemed the more likely trail. All in all, I came out where I was supposed to and I got to see an area that I had not before. The area is heavily hunted during season, so I don't really feel I'll be back to this one.
The second hike was on familiar ground as I hiked the Maryland Heights trail once again at Harpers Ferry National Park. This was my fourth time to the Heights, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first time. I plan on going again later in the Fall. The hike was a bit of a milestone for me as I hiked with not only another person, but with a group. My neighbors and good friends, Jay and Michelle, joined me along with our new friends from Wisconsin, Debbie and Jon. It was a most enjoyable day, with full sun and no humidity. The views were wonderful with crystal clear skies. The five and 1/2 miles were done in just over four hours with numerous breaks. The return to Harpers Ferry was capped off by a great luncheon on the deck at the Secret Six Tavern. The deck looks up at the Heights. Gorgeous! They serve a wonderful local brew, Shenandoah Lager, which was just the ticket for my traditional post hike brew! The hike was wonderful with my friends. I was pleased to see we all seemed to hike at pretty much the same pace. I felt comfortable that I was not slowing anyone down, nor that I wanted to speed things up. The best thing was having a wonderful conversation with good friends along a beautiful trail. I will be less likely to shy away from hiking with others now. In fact, I am looking to hike with my wife and another friend next month.
For the immediate future, I am planning a hike later this week. Again, I want a longer hike to keep my endurance up. I was pleased to find the Maryland Heights hike left me wanting another five or six miles. I want to keep my pace going as I close in a long awaited hiking trip with Mike from Mid-Atlantic Hikes. The trip will take us to the Southern section of Shenandoah National Park, an area that I have yet the pleasure to visit. The topos of the proposed hikes have been at my bedside for over a month now. I am very much looking forward to getting out to the woods for more than a day or two.
So not my usual critique of hikes completed, but this post will serve to get me up to date. Cooler weather is just around the corner, and I am hoping this will usher in a new burst of hikes for me, time permitting. I would like to see 250 miles logged for the year, but who knows.

On second thought...

In thinking on more of my goal to hike all 50 states, I guess the start date is now. The idea is to reach my goal over the long term, so why not start now, no? I still want to leave the mileage at 20 miles per state. I'll click off Virginia for obvious reasons, and will count the mileage for West Virginia from my backpack earlier this year. Ideally, I hope to do the mileage consecutively for each state and not have to return to a state to complete the mileage at a later time. This will be a must when traveling to far away states.
I'm still working on when to travel and what states to get to first. I'll work on the states surrounding Virginia first for ease and logistics. This will give me time to save for travel to a farther state and research it.
It all seems like a toy box just opened and not sure which one to play with first. Steady, boy, steady.

20 In 50 -- A Life Goal

For a while now I have contemplated traveling to be able to hike in a place I would normally not have the opportunity to do. I started this thought after reading an article in the Washington Post last month. The article was the account of the author's hike with his family on a trail in southern France. I very much enjoyed the article and was drooling over the pictures taken along the way. Anyway, the article started me to think about a European hiking trip and I was stuck on the Connemera Loop in Ireland for some time. Now, I have begun to consider the fact that I have seen very little of my own country. I have seen, perhaps, more than most, but there is so much more out there. So now I have decided on my new goal...hike at least 20 miles in all 50 states. Yea, I know...tall order and a big leap from the euro thing. Well, the goal is spread over many years, assuming, of course, I have the time and ability to stay the course. Living in Virginia gives me the ability to drive to a number of states rather easily. The other states will, obviously, involve considerably more planning. While doing this, I hope to make the hikes in National Parks or Forests where available.
The planning stages will continue throughout this year and I will make my "official" start in 2008. My home state of Virginia will kick it off for obvious logisitical reasons and ease. I'll continue to hike as much as possible between "official" hikes that mark another state off the list.
I hope someday to be completing a hike with a smile on my face saying "I did it"! That post hike beer will be especially satisfying!

Short Stretch

My sixteen year old daughter has been visiting for a short time from Connecticut. Unfortunately her visit has coincided with the first wet weather we have had for over a month. I was bound and determined not to sit around the house and let my 4 and 6 year old boys drive us nuts all day. Soooo....I thought a jaunt in the Shenandoah might be a nice diversion. I also really wanted to feel a little bit of trail under my feet. It has been a while since my last good hike. I thought that at least my daughter could see the SNP for the first time.
Well, weather being as it was, we ascended into fairly thick fog heading up Skyline Drive. There was some slight glimpses of the valley floor, but that was about it. We parked at the Dickey ridge Visitor Center, also encased in fog. The mist caused a slight chill in the air and noises were pretty muffled from the fog. I was surprised at the amount of tourists at the center on a weekday.
We walked along Skyline Drive to reach the trail head...I know, not the smartest move I've made, but I thought we were in the right spot. Well we weren't, and it was a good quarter mile before we reached it. The kids were less than enthusiastic at this point. We finally got off the side of Skyline and headed down Snead farm Trail. The boys were a bit spooked by the trail visibility being limited from the fog, but it was also exciting to them. I think even my daughter thought it was pretty cool. I noticed no one was complaining about being cold anymore, so I assume blood was pumping well enough to keep them warm. We stopped at various plants and to watch spiders in their beautiful webs, made more visible with the mist from fog. A nice little ascent heading toward Snead Farm was cause for the first "I'm tired" to be uttered from the 4 year old. A low hanging web mid trail distracted him from his fatigue.
We came upon the farm site, and stopped to explore and have a snack. The barn is nicely preserved/restored, and the top floor is accessible to the public. The cool air was enough to keep the hoards of wasps in their nests up in the rafters. Their activity level, I'm sure, is higher in the warmer climate. The Spring House next to the barn is an eerie structure to look into. I can only imagine the hardness of life the mountain families had here. The house foundation is also there to explore, and it appeared to have been a pretty large structure. A stone staircase is still standing. Presently more hikers came in and hung out to explore. We packed out things and headed back. The kids seemed rejuvenated from snacks and the hike back was without protest. Not wanting to tempt fate, we took the path back through the picnic ground and returned to the car. The picnic ground is well maintained with nice grills for use. I'd like to come back for a little picnic and a nice Autumn hike with the family again.
The visitor center is well done, and we poked around there for a while. There is a nice interactive display that the boys enjoyed studying. All seemed happy with the experience. As we drove out of Skyline Drive, a doe and her fawn stood by the side of the road. I stopped the car for the kids to see, and the deer just stood watching, offering a nice time for the kids to see them up close. A fun outing. I was happy with the trip, and satisfied with the experience offered to the children. It doesn't have to be a 14 miler to reap the benefits of a hike in the woods. The fox Hollow and Snead Farm Trails can be combined for a lovely 5 miler. Nice things really do come in small packages.

Back to Shenandoah National Park

I returned to the Shenanadoah national Park last Saturday on another picture perfect hiking day. Temps were in the 70's to start, rising to the mid eighties later in the day. The humidity was mercifully absent and the skies were almost cloudless. I stopped at the Dickey ridge visitor center to get some pics. I had two fawns playing in the field come running up to me every time I started walking. This did not seem to be thrilling their mothers too much, who were nervously eying them and the distance to me.
I had decided to take on the Knob Mountain Jeremys Run loop which I had considered a couple of weeks ago before heading to Mexico for a nice mini vacation with my wife. I postponed the hike then to spend more time with the boys. The loop is just over 12 miles long, and I was looking forward to a good long hike. The start and finish is at the Elkwallow picnic grounds near milepost 24 on the Skyline Drive.
The hike started out with a steady, and sometimes, fairly steep decent into a hollow below the picnic area. there was a cool enough breeze to almost warrant longer pants, but I warmed up quickly. The first thing I noticed was that the foliage was lush and that the woods seemed to have wonderful moist smell. I had seen that rains had been through the night before. We sure could have used them closer to home. Anyway, there was some nice switchbacks heading down, but I knew i would pay the price later that day when I had to come back up the hollowafter 12 miles of hiking.
At the bottom of the hollow, I veered off onto the Knob Mountain Cutoff Trail. I crossed Jeremys Run for the first of what would be about 15 crossings that day. The trail immediately started to climb sharply out of the hollow and up Knob Mountain. The trail was well maintained and blazed. Footing was generally good, with just a few loose areas. The breeze was a welcome friend now as I was breaking a pretty good sweat. After the steady climbing, I made my way to the actual Knob Mountain Trail. This trail is just over two miles to the summit of Knob Mountain. It is a steady climb but nice enough not to cause undo stress. The trail is well packed and with good footing. Views are evident along the way, but obscured due to foliage. It is probably quite beautiful during the colder months. I was just starting to wonder when I would reach the summit when I came across a marker notifying me of just that measurement..a welcome sign at that point. As I ascended the last bit to the summit I was greeted by shouts of "Hiker up"!! Three hikers were taking a breather at the summit, as was my plans. We talked for about fifteen minutes, discussing the trail and other trails hiked. I felt very connected to them as I spoke of my hiking adventures. My knowledge of the trails seemed respected and common to them, and I had a wonderful sense of camaraderie with them. we egged each other on to future challenges and parted our ways. Great rest stop! I had made the summit by 10:30 am.
From the summit of Knob Mountain, the trail begins a gradual and steady decent. Some areas were loose footing , but over all the going was pretty good. I stopped about midway down as I was amid a wonderful patch of rip blueberries. The stop offered a very nice view of Luray to the south with the Massanutten mountains close by. Off to the left rose Neighbor Mountain , and I began to consider doing an extended hike along the Neighbor Mountain Trail. I decided to postpone my decision until I made Jeremys run at the bottom of the mountain. I was making good time.
The decent continued, with numerous well placed switchbacks dotting the way. It became steep in some spots. Finally, I came to Jeremys Run right at noon. I had made it to roughly the half way point. I found a fabulous little stopping point along Jeremys run. Flat rocks and a nice swimming area was just the ticket. I had a brought a change of clothing and towel and was soon cooling of in some wonderfully cool water. I lingered at the spot for just over thirty minutes and was again on my way.
Almost immediately I was at the junction for the Neighbor Mountain Trail. I felt pretty good, but decided to continue with the planned route and stay to the Jeremys Run Trail. I was not really up for another 1000+ ft. ascent after lounging around the swiming hole for the past half hour. The Jeremys run Trail was a beautiful hike along the run. There were any number of spots for a quick dip or resupply of water. I had filtered water at lunch, so was adequately supplied. I was about two miles up the trail after lunch, when I came upon a gorgeous Black bear. He/she was about 400 pounds, well beyond cub stage. He was busy in the dry bed of the stream , moving rocks aside to look for , I assume, food. This was about the closest I had been to a bear. I made some noise as I got the camera out, which the bear did notice. He seemed essentially disinterested. As I tried to get some decent photos, the batteries ran out on the camera. I crouched behind a log to reload batteries, and while I did so, the bear headed off into the woods up the trail from me. I saw him briefly in the woods, so I headed slowly up the trail, trying to relocate him. As I was walking, I heard a snap over my right shoulder and just behind me. There he was, about 30ft away and sitting and just looking at me! He had doubled around and was staring at me. I checked myself to make sure I hadn't soiled myself and then went to blow on the whistle I carry for emergencies. It's attached to a key ring and a bottle opener....yes, I admit it....I blew on the bottle opener. I think the bear at this point thought I was an idiot. He started making some weird growling/grating noise. I finally blew on the whistle which only slightly startled him and he headed off into the woods, continuing to make the strange noise. I headed off up the trail, figuring our encounter needed to end. The trail continued on up the hollow, crossing Jeremys Run no less than 14 times. Some of the pools were fairly deep and were teeming with small trout about 6 or 7 inches long. Other areas were just dry bed, though I could hear the water flowing underneath. I finally reached the intersection with the Knob Mountain Cutoff Trail, which I had started down earlier in the day. I now trudged back up out of the hollow to the parking area. As I suspected, I was feeling the day's hike going back up to the starting point. The switchbacks helped, and were welcome. A wonderful day with a great hike completed. On my return trip on Skyline Drive, I was able to see yet another bear, though this one was very small and seemed quite scrawny. People were practically wrecking their cars to stop and get a picture. The Park police officer was there, just shaking her head and trying to get people to move along as soon as possible. A group of cyclists practically ran head on into me as they crossed into my lane as they stared at the bear. I leaned on the horn to move the bear along and yelled at the people that they were in the middle of the road. I received some nasty stares except from the Ranger who laughed and moved on in her cruiser. The bear disappeared into the woods to the disappointment of the crowd. If they only knew.

Perfect

Monday's hike was one to put in the top of the memory book. As I mentioned in my last post, I headed out to around Front Royal to hike around the Overall Run Falls section of trails. This hike is described on both of the hiking sites I use (Mid Atlantic Hikes and Hiking Upward). I believe the hike came out to be 8 miles after taking a few side trips and retracing some trail at the end to go swimming in a wonderful swimming hole.
The hike begins along a private gravel road and soon turns onto a side trail leading to the Tuscorora Trail. This trail was quite nicely maintained with some very nice trail work done on it. The intersection with the Tuscorora Trail is easily found. At this point the hike is described as going in a clock wise direction, heading up Matthews Arm toward Overall Run Falls. On my arrival, there were obviously some rowdy people up that way playing in Overall Run. I decided to head in counter clockwise direction in hopes of preserving some solitude as long as possible. I also wanted to save viewing the Falls for the end of the hike, kind of like "the best for last".
The trail meanders alongside Overall Run for quite a while. The woods are pretty dense, and it was a very nice temp. The day was perfect to begin
with. Sunny cloudless skies with temps in the low to mid eighties were had all day. The best part was it was dry! minimal humidity. A godsend! The Tuscorora trail eventually turned and met up with the Beecher Ridge Trail. The beginning of this trail had some slight overgrowth, but nothing serious. The forest here is truly a wonderful sight. Beecher Ridge Trail is a steady climb over two or so miles. The ascent is not to steep, and I found I was able to keep a pretty good pace with a few breaks. The climb is long, however, and it took me an hour and a half to reach the top and the intersection with Matthews Arm Trail and Tuscorora Trail. I met one hiker on her way down Beecher Trail. She passed on news of a large bear in the area along the top of Beecher Ridge. Soon after that, I came by some fresh bear scat on the trail. The bear obviously had no Leave No Trace ethics. Still, no sighting, which I was hoping for. I stopped at the intersection of the Beecher Ridge and Matthews Arm trails to have lunch. It was a nice shaded area, and I took my time. A group of young guys passed by. The were from the Shenandoah National Park YCC (Youth Conservation Corps?) and were out performing trail maintainence.
I continued on the Matthews Arm Trail now heading down Matthews Arm toward Overall Run Falls. The trail reconnected with the Tuscorora Trail as it continued down the mountainside. I ran into a young couple who informed me they had just run into a "cub" farther down the trail. The reports of a large bear and now a cub made me more excited for a bear sighting, but also a bit uneasy if "Momma" bear was out with her cub.
Shortly after getting back on the Tucorora Trail, I came on a nice overlook with a waterfall below. I had hiked to this point over a year ago and thought this was Overall Run Falls. I knew now, with more experience , that there had to be another waterfall. Still, this is a beautiful waterfall, though not too full with the dry weather of the time. The nice thing here is that one is able to get down to the bottom of the falls here and get wet or just see some more beauty. I gladly splashed in the falls a bit to cool off. I followed the stream down a bit and came upon a cliff with a nice vista. Getting out and back on the trail was harder than I thought. I did not realize how far I had gone.
Back on the trail, I was soon to find the waterfall , famous as the tallest in the Shenandoah National Park. The trail broke onto a sweeping overlook and cliff. Beyond the cliff, the Overall Run waterfall tumbled over a cliff to the valley 93 feet below. My vantage point was well above the falls, so the distance was much more incredible to see. Beyond this point I was on, to the west and south , was a gorgeous view of Massanutten Mountain. I could make out Kennedy Peak in the distance, a peak I look forward to climbing soon. Though I could not see the Shenandoah River, I could make out it's snake-like sway in the landscape below the mountain. Beautiful. It was wonderful to have such clear skies. No obstruction because of smog or haze. I stayed here for quite a while, not wanting to give up such a wonderful sight. This will be just gorgeous in the Fall.
The trail was descending fairly sharply after this, but some well place switchbacks helped tremendously. I noticed an unmarked trail that had been worn going straight down the mountainside, slicing through the switchbacks. Erosion was evident because of this trail, I hope trail crews are addressing this. I hope that it was an old trail, but is likely caused by people just disregarding the trail system.
At the bottom of Matthews Arm the trail heads back into dense forest. Again I marveled at how pretty this was. Overall Run ran alongside the trail again, but seemed to be all but dried up at this point. It must stay well below ground, as it was running pretty good when I first started. It was not long after entering the woods here that I finally had my fourth bear sighting of the year. This bear was about 300 lbs. and was lazily foraging in the brush. He had not noticed me. He was about 50yards away, so I had a hard time trying to get a good picture. I kept maneuvering to try and get a better picture. Not to be done. Finally he saw me, as I noticed I had strayed off trail to get closer. Not smart. I have to be more cautious. Still, it was an exilerating experience, and I enjoyed a good 10 minutes or more of just watching this gorgeous animal in it's own habitat. The trail crosses the Overall Run a couple of times, crossings that could be quite wet in wetter times.
Upon returning to my starting point, I continued back on the trail I started on to find the swimming holes that had been mentioned in the hike description. I am so glad I did! These are the most incredible swimming holes! Rocks are worn smooth around them and have wonderful water slides. The three swimming holes are all deep with one over 6 foot deep! After a nice refreshing swim, I was back on the trail, heading back to the car. The swim was invigorating, and I felt I could have tacked on another 5 or 6 miles.
This hike had it all. Perfect weather and temps, wonderful views, and gorgeous forest. The water was wonderful with a spectacular waterfall. Can't wait to re hike this one!!

Time to lace back up

Well, after an ugly hiatus from hiking for the past few weeks, I'm finally going to get back out there again. Tomorrow i have my eyes set on a nice little loop including a section of the Overall Run Trail in the Shenandoah National Park. This hike is featured on the Hiking Upward site which you can link to from this Blog. This hike is 8.5 miles with nearly 2,000 ft elevation gain. I wanted to keep to some lower miles as I have not been on my game lately. I can feel the decrease in strength in my legs after the lengthy break. Weather looks to be pretty nice, and hopefully Overall Run Falls, The highest in the Shenandoah National Park, will be running fairly well.

Next outing

With scheduling looking the way it is right now, it appears the next outing will be another camping trip with the boys. School finishes for both of them on Tuesday, so I'm looking to get them out on Wednesday and Thursday. I want to try a new campground, and am looking at "Gooney Creek Campground" in Front Royal. I have passed this campground a few times in my trips up the valley to hiking destinations. It features numerous creek side sites and has a small camp store and play area. I really want to try and experience different camping areas this year to come up with some favorites to return to. I hope some of my critiques of places will help people consider getting out and try camping as well.
With rising costs of gas and vacation activities, the camping industry appears to be experiencing a resurgence. It is a wonderful way to experience nature and to discover that particular part of the country you live in. Wonderful to see.
I hope to head out to look at expanding our camping gear on Sunday. It is father's Day after all!!

Shawl Gap/ Sherman Gap hike

Well, Saturday still proved to be a bit humid and warm, but better than it had been. I was able to sleep in a bit more than past hikes and still get to the trail head by 0715. I geared up and was off. The trail starts at Elizabeth Furnace in the George Washington National Forest near Front Royal. The ruins of the old furnace are a nice thing to check out This remains my favorite place to go for hiking, camping and picnicking. Passage Creek flows through this area and offers numerous swimming holes to cool off in.
The trail was wet from the previous night thunder storms and was a tad uncomfortable as the trail started very overgrown. Despite rain, Passage Creek was a bit lower than I had seen it before, a testimate to the lack of rain lately. Once I started climbing Massanutten Mountain the trail was better. I forgot how much of a workout this trail is. Still, it allows for a decent pace with normal rest times. I had seen a bear on this trail last year on my return from Buzzard Rocks, and was hoping for a repeat appearance. Not to happen. The trail has a number of nice switchbacks with stones steps and is really nice to hike on. There are some interesting boulder fields and rock formations on the way up as well. I made the summit and intersection of trails in just over an hour.
From here I headed south along the Massanutten trail riding the top of the Mountain for the next two plus miles. The trail swayed back and forth over the summit as it did on Kerns Mountain last week. There were a couple of views to the east and the Shenandoah Mountains and valley below, and to the east of Meneka Peak and Fort valley below. Unfortunately, full leaf coverage and haze obscured a great many views, which was disappointing. This hike would be wonderful for views in early Spring or late Fall and Winter. At a number of spots along rocky patches on the summit, Poison Ivy has completely engulfed the trail...I hate Poison Ivy. I was too far out to turn back, so I carefully stepped my way through it. Hopefully I remain unscathed. There was one last sharp climb to another peak before descending to the next trail intersection. I could see this next prominence from the trail as something to look forward to. The terrain varied a lot up this peak, from Pine forest to scrub, to nice hardwood. Nice mix. A couple of slight views made it a nice climb.
I reached the intersection for the Sherman Gap Trail. From here, I continued on so as to get out to a prominence on the Mountain with apparent overlooks of "The Point", an area of one of the curves of the south fork of the Shenandoah River. The trail to this point was about a half mile further from the intersection I was at. I was disappointed with this part of the trail as it had three different colored blazes on the tree, plus markers from the "Old Dominion 100" long distance race, and still other markers hung by a stable group for their horse walks. It all added up to looking like garbage to me. Anyway, the hike out to the spot mentioned also entailed a sharp little climb. I was soon offered views back along Massanutten Mountain and looking at the peak I had last climbed and the valley of to the east. The trail followed the ridge top, which was exposed to glaring sun. It was pretty hot. The path was choked with wild blueberries but, unfortunately, they still had about another week or so before they would be ripe. There was enough to keep quite a group of hikers happy. I reached the spot for the overlook, but it entailed some bushwhacking through the scrub. Not too bad. The view was very nice, though obscured from leaf cover. I sat for a while and then headed back.
Reaching the intersection for the Sherman Gap trail again, I headed down Massanutten Mountain and my way back to the car. The trail was steep and rocky, making for an uncomfortable journey down. Rocks were frequently loose, causing a few slips here and there. Eventually, the trail's descent became more gradual as it ran north along the lower mountain side. I stopped along the way for lunch and assess the water situation. My hydration pack was empty , but I still had my 2 outboard bottles. I made some Gatorade and pressed on. I eventually came to the intersection with the Botts Trail and my next route. The trail is marked by a small stone memorial to Mr. Botts who was the founder of the OD 100 and maker of the trail. I was not impressed after all the blazes as I noted earlier. Botts Trail follows along Passage Creek and returns to the picnic area at Elizabeth Furnace. I started passing more hikers on the trail and kids playing in the creek. The trail spills out to a parking lot and back to the car where I was parked. It was nice to be finishing up earlier than I had been the past couple of hikes. I considered a dip in the creek, but I wanted to get home. Not a problem, I know I'll be back again soon.