Harrisonburg, VA (USA)

The end of Daylight Savings helped me a lot this morning - I was on the road, wide awake by 0615. Gas fillup and breakfast at McDonalds in Marion (0625).  I used VA-16 (Back of the Dragon) to reach VA-42 and headed east. It was 27 degrees in the valley north of Marion (yikes!). I located a trailhead on VA-623 (northeast of Ceres) after crossing two ridges on a winding gravel road. Along the way, I saw a raccoon, skunk and several deer. I headed SOBO on AT at 0745. The trail guide seemed to indicate a flat section but it was really another infuriating series of "up and over and downs" that I've seen often in my trekking. I was walking west on a long ridge above a wide valley to the north which was once coveted by the Vanderbilt family (they couldn't purchase the land, so they established Biltmore elsewhere). To the south, there was another valley - I enjoyed tremendous views all day. Highlights of the day included: no other hikers except for an Amish family, out for a Sunday stroll; constantly lowing cattle; spectacular views from Garden Mountain; and warming temperatures (20s became 60s). I turned around at Walker Gap and made it back to my car (after nearly 10 miles) by 12:15 PM. Just in time, too - lots of day hikers spoiled the solitude as I was leaving. Made my way back to Wytheville by crossing three ridges again on VA-621 and US-52 (brakes not happy...). No traffic on the way back! Great weekend - made some nice progress on my AT goals this year. Still have a few more weekends in 2016, too! Was able to reach Eileen for on the phone as I made my way north. Gas fillup in Wytheville (1325).  Made contact with Brenna and Erin and was able to meet them for dinner at Billy Jack's in Harrisonburg (done at 1715).  We also got gelato at Bella Gelato (1725). Drive home was pretty uneventful after hitting some traffic near New Market.  AT Today = 4.70 miles / Grand Total AT = 823.68 miles