Miles and miles
I have been struggling with how to write this post for two weeks now. I don't want to make it sound as if I'm unhappy (I'm not) or my life is so hard (it's not) but I've hiked many miles of trail which there isn't much to say about. That's not to say it's not pretty but how many trees, rocks and vistas do you all really need to see? Daleville to Waynesboro can be roughly defined as hiking one huge mountain per day. Essentially the day starts at a river climbs for many miles and then drops for many miles to another beautiful river. Sometimes you stay on top of a mountain and get to enjoy an amazing sunset. The other highlight of this stretch was a close proximity to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which had some of the best views.
Day one out of Daleville would be the last cool day for this hike for awhile. I rambled along with many stops at overlooks on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Despite some rowdy campers I found a quiet spot to call it a night. Along the way I had some great views including the James River valley and a storm that chose to pass me.
After that day the highlight of the next was cheeseburgers and a swimming hole. So many of my highlights now center around minor distractions and have little to do with the physical beauty of the trail. I failed to capture the cheeseburger and milkshake.
The next major highlight was Apple Orchard Falls. While this was well off trail it was a worthwhile side trip down a gorgeous stream valley to huge set of falls.
Somewhere along here the trail crosses the James River on a rather literal foot bridge. This crossing felt like a major milestone and was an absolutely beautiful scene.
From there the trail climbed many miles for a even better prospective on the river.
The rest of the day was spent wandering over a long ridge and then a steep drop to the Pedlar River where a thanks to some locals a nice camp was found. This was notable for a crazy big hiking bridge and mile 800 of the trail.
The next day would again float by with another huge climb and a surprisingly open peak near Cole Mountain.
The day would end with an unnamed outcropping and an amazing sunset.
The next few days would include a climb to the Priest and Spy Rock as well as Three Ridges Peak. These were all similar huge climbs with some amazing views along the way.
Somewhere along the way there was a side trip to a brewery, a growler enjoyed with a sunset and some night hiking. But again the small moments escape the camera. Once I arrived in Waynesboro I would be whisked off to the real world for a few days before starting Shenandoah National Park.