Week 10: My Friends, The Big 3, and Trail Days

Day 64: Allen’s Trail Magic

Saturday, May 11th

22.7 miles today

698.2 miles total

It was cold this morning, first time in a while it must’ve been near 30. I forgot how it felt to be this cold it’s been so warm recently and the other guys in the shelter were freezing because they changed their sleeping bags.

The views ontop of the ridge were so gorgeous and i walked along the rocky ridgeline down to the next shelter where i had lunch. On the way there i saw lizards and snakes and a female deer 10ft away.

The rest of the guys caught up to me during lunch and heard there was trail magic happening at the road gap a mile down tomorrow so we were thinking about staying there for the night. Then a south bounder came up the trail and said there was trail magic happening now so we all packed up and headed down there.

Allen was there with his truck and cooked us all hotdogs on a wood fire grill and had potatoes and green beans and brownies. He even had Mother’s Day cards for us that he’d send out. We stayed there for a few hours just hanging out before we left around 4:45 to do 8 more miles and another 2,000 foot climb. We hauled ass and got a coke from a guy named Jason at the next road crossing before we got to the shelter and it was only Joe there laying down right in the middle.

It was an hour till sun down and we made food and setup camp and told Joe about our new plans for meeting my friends and getting into daleville.

Day 65: Dragon’s Tooth

Sunday, May 12th (happy Mother’s Day)

12.6 miles today

710.8 miles total

We took our time getting up this morning. We only had 12 miles to cover so we knew we could take our time but I was not looking forward to the .3 mile walk from the shelter just to get back to the trail. After the climb out of camp and up the mountain we reached the 700 mile marker!

Walking along the ridge line today was actually quite challenging. There was a lot of steep climbs and big boulders to cross and hop over. After a couple good view points we  reached the sign pointing to dragons tooth! The first of the Virginia triple crown. Dragons tooth is a rock monolith on top of cove mountain made of Tuscarora quartzite. I had service up there with a beautiful view so I called my mom and friends. We sat up there for a couple hours soaking up the sun.

Coming down from dragons was very steep and jagged. Some rocks had makeshift ladder rungs built into them to make the climb easier. Down at the road crossing we saw tag along again waiting for her husband and she had an assortment of snacks that DK’s dad left for other hikers. Chips, fruit and muffins were the assortment and I had one of each. A father and son came through just doing the triple crown and gave us their extra dehydrated meals!

We still had 6 more miles to cover and Dylan was meeting us at the next road crossing. One last stop of water to fill up and then we walked through some cow pastures and over more big hills. I came through the clearing and saw Dylan and Joe talking by his car. I was so happy to see Dylan again and gave him a big hug. I told him the new plans and we piled our stuff in the car and sped down the windy roads to try and get to the Mother’s Day trail magic.

We got there right as they were packing up and all the hikers had already left. Luckily there was some food left, veggie curry, lasagna and sodas and Allen started making us hot dogs. Extra and then Phoenix joined us for left over food. Then Maddy showed up and gave me a chick fil a sandwich!! Soo yummy. We saw a few cars pass by and then Siobhan showed up shortly after Maddy. I was so happy to have my friends there hanging out and talking to the other hikers.

We stopped at the Kroger for a brief resupply before heading to the 4 pines hostel. Dylan and the guys went directly there and I went with Maddy and Siobhan to drop the car off at the house.

This hostel was just a garage in the middle of nowhere with a big fire outside and a bunch of bunk beds and couches inside. It was already pasted 8 when we got there and by the time I unpacked and ate leftovers it’s was nearly ten and we had to get up at 3:30 to make the sunrise on McAfee’s knob. I passed out trying to get as much sleep as I could.

Day 66: McAfee and Tinker

Monday, May 13th

19.8 miles today

730.6 miles total

I was already up when Joe climbed up to my bunk to wake me up and I tried to be a quick and quiet as possible packing up and eating breakfast. We got out the door just after 4 and the parking lot for the trailhead was just a few minutes away. The stars covered the sky as we hiked. I saw the sun coming up just between the clouds and when we got to the knob at 5:45 the sun still had 30 minutes before it rose over the mountain tops. I setup my phone for a Timelapse and we all took pictures with our feet hanging off the edge before. We hung out up there well passed the sunrise and watched people come and go but we mostly had the view all to ourselves. Which from everyone else’s account is pretty lucky. This was one of the best views by far and it made it that much better with my friends there. You can see tinkers cliffs from across the valley and the ridgeline that connects the two. Dylan was jealous that Izzy did more miles in a day and they all wanted to go farther than we planned.

The walk over to tinker was longer but went by much faster than this morning. We also hung out up there for a while and took naps in the sun. The view was just as good if not a little cooler at tinkers. We filled up on water at the next shelter and took a little rest before continuing on.

There were some more cool rock outcroppings and monoliths with good views to spend more time. I love not having to worry about having to be in any place at any time and knowing it all just comes together.

We went to the three little pugs bbq for dinner and luckily it was Monday and their special was 2 bbq platters for $20 which included 2 sides each and hush puppies. Dylan and I both got the special to see who could eat more food. The girls shared one each. After two hours of eating I finished my platters and probably ate the most food in one sitting ever.

My mom’s friend heather who lives near the trail was kind enough to host my friends and I for the next few days and picked us up from the restaurant. They’re all very nice and gave us a warm welcome into their home. We washed up and pretty much went straight to bed only after watching a few episodes of the office.

Day 67: Dylan The Uber

Tuesday, May 14th

0 miles today

730.6 miles total

Heather showed us around the college she teaches at after we had bacon, eggs and pumpkin bread for breakfast. We were all surprised how nice the local community college was here and how they have their own gene sequencing machine. We headed into town for smoothies that were so good and avoided getting a parking ticket by just a few moments. We went over to Spencer’s friends house to wait for them to get ready. They were also very nice and had a big White House in the countryside.

We stopped at a local shop to get snacks and sandwiches before going to the outfitter  and grocery store. I was a little disappointed with the selection at the store, they didn’t have any of the things i needed. We saw IMOM, Tinkerbell and goose, and DC there as well. Spencer was able to get a new water filter bag and then we just hung outside the coffee shop to kill time. The other hikers needed a ride back to where they were staying so Dylan offered to drive them. Then we saw mojo and Ziggy walking in the rain from their motel to pickup groceries too and Dylan offered them a ride back too.

At the grocery store we picked up salsa, beer, corn and ice cream and waited for Joe to finish shopping but it was because he ran into duck. We got back to the house and they’d just finished cooking the burgers and hotdogs and we ate dinner in the living room watching shrek, happy gilmore, then last breath. At 11:30 the clock gave the ding and we checked our phones then went to bed.

Day 68: Burgers and Bowling

Wednesday, May 15th

0 miles today

730.6 miles total

It was a lazy day today. If you were to ask me what we did today I couldn’t tell you more than just hanging around and playing cards but we did much more than that walking around and making jokes and doing what friends do. When it doesn’t take much beside yourselves to make the time fly by you know you’re with good people. It didn’t matter that I lost qwirkle, or that Maddy struggled to catch the frisbee, or that Dylan couldn’t hold a handstand, or that Siobhan spilled the pasta. Things were what they were, and there wasn’t a need to worry about what they could’ve been. It’s days like this that remind me there is no destination like this that you can physically get to.

When jack got back from working the pasta with hot honey was being eaten and we were going to save him some when he got done with his run but we ate it all up. As time passed and we moved from one activity to the next we eventually landed on the upper porch playing cards. I tried to remember Punto and eventually figured it out then we played capitalism and kemps. It was already dinner time and jack came along as all 6 of us piled into Dylan’s Subaru. I was on aux and directions for the twenty minutes into town. Dylan said this place, Jack Browns, was supposed to be one of his favorite burgers. It was a good burger but the fries cost extra, boo. Jack showed us the speakeasy at the restaurant around the corner. Then Spencer made us walk to the Roanoke hotel. It lasted through the civil war where the and was apparently quite famous so we used the bathroom and played ninja while Jack played on the piano.

A lot of other people were also going bowling tonight for the late night unlimited special because we waited in line for nearly 25 minutes. Joe and his wife caught us there after their dinner to watch us lose to Spencer. He apparently was on the bowling team in 4th grade and those skills seem to never fade. We got one more game in despite the various malfunctions in the pin machine before we had to call it a night.

Jack said it was the most fun he’s had in a while and gave each one of us a token of gratitude to carry with us.

Day 69: Forgetting Something?

Thursday, May 16th

0 miles today

730.6 miles total

“Don't wait to start writing until you have something to say. Start writing so you can find out what you have to say.”

Today was more of the same, just enjoying each others company before my friends had to leave. Trying to remember what made us laugh and playing one more game and making one more meal before saying goodbye. We took a group picture, had a group hug, gave individual hugs and waved them goodbye as they drove off because it’s tradition.

It’s noticeably quieter now, not so much in a bad way but in a way i’d imagine a house feels empty after kids leave for school. I helped heather setup beanpoles and plant tomato seedlings to make the most of a nice day. I rummaged through my pack to find anything I could part ways with but found little to nothing. I laid down to rest and catch up with the world outside of the trail. The cat, Alice, came up to our room and lounged with us. I came downstairs and heather showed me some local plants to identify that I could eat and showed me how she makes vinaigrette. That’s when my mom arrived and so we helped move her in for the night and then she realized she packed everything but her luggage. After rearranging and putting sheets on beds I came back down to cook my dinner and make salad. That evening Spence and i caught up with Steve on the main porch on the phone while my mom and heather talked on the upstairs porch.

Day 70: Trail Days (1)

Friday, May 17th

0 miles today

730.6 miles total

I was well rested from a good nights sleep and made a couple bagels and an egg for breakfast. We saw heathers note on the table and we each wrote a thank you in response. The car was packed and we left just after ten. Jack stood in the grass and waved as we drove by and gave a beep.

We picked up Joey just outside the hotel which was right across from a Cracker Barrel. He said his last goodbye to his wife before we left for Walmart and picked up a couple more things before the drive to Damascus. The guys picked up Non alcoholic wine, beer, and gin. I didn’t know they even made that stuff besides beer.

We got to the airbnb which was only 8 miles out of Damascus but that put us in Tennessee. It’s a, cozy, small little bungalow, basically a glorified shed with 3 beds in 420sqft. We put all our stuff in the house then made some food and tried the drinks. The gin wasn’t that good and neither was the wine. When we got back into town the events were all wrapping up so we didn’t get to see or do much but we saw a lot of familiar faces some we’d seen recently and some we haven’t seen for a long time and some people I’ve seen online but never met in person.

I did find the jolly gear tent after the guys tried to get their packs fixed. We looked through their bargain bin and I found a nice red button down shirt like the one Joey has and I instantly knew I was going to buy it. I talked to jolly’s parents who help him run the shop.

We heard there was some free hibachi for hikers so we walked down the path of gear vendor tents down toward tent city. We found the long line and waited for awhile before they came down and said they ran out of food. So we kept walking down toward tent city and by the road they had free funnel cakes and inside the church we found nachos and deserts. Then we went with space slippers into tent city after buying wristbands. Back into the woods every spot was taken by a tent or hammock or something you could sleep in. There were tarps and lights and people everywhere. Outside you could tell there were people back there and smoke from fires but I couldn’t have imagined all the people back here.

As the night progressed the party shenanigans grew and we went over to the rift raft party and the drum circle by the big fire, got chicken fajitas, s’mores and make friendship bracelets either our trail names on them. We met leadblower, sparkles and atlas while making bracelets. After this point we were pretty tired and decided to go back to the house.

Next week I’ll compile a list of all the people I saw/met at trail days.