I rolled into Pearisburg last evening and am staying at a hostel called Angels Rest Hiker Haven. The hostel’s van picked me up at the trailhead, “just like Enterprise”, as they put it. I decided to take a rest day today (“take a zero”, in hiker slang), to rest up and let my feet heal up from hiking five straight days in wet shoes and socks. Yesterday, I felt a little like a hiking robot walking on rocky trail with sore feet. This will be my first zero since Hot Springs.
Pearisburg is a nice small town with everything a hiker could want – a Mexican restaurant, a Chinese restaurant, a Food Lion, and a hiker shop. The folks in the hiker shop seemed very proud of their state and talked enthusiastically about all the things I can expect to see up the trail. My hostel is the Cadillac of hostels, compared to most others I have stayed at. It features a three-shower bath house with modern plumbing, two kitchens, a common area, a laundry room, and bunks each with their own electrical outlets.
Bath House (My tent drying on the railing)
Randy’s Bunk
In addition to resting my feet, I have been able to do some chores like laundry, backflushing my water filter, drying my gear, and buying food. In order to figure out how much food to carry, I study my trail guide and figure out where my next resupply points will be. Here is my high tech planning sheet.
The weather seems to be improving. The last few days have had morning sun with afternoon showers, a big improvement over all day rain. After the rains, the morning sun gives a rain forest-like feel to the trail.
Morning Mist
View from Sugar Run Mountain (Fog in the Wilburn Valley)
I had an interesting encounter on the trail the other day. It was about 8 AM and lightly drizzling. I had just hiked down about 1000 feet from the ridge where I had camped to a road crossing. At the crossing was an old guy in a pack and rain poncho. He asked if I had cell service, which I didn’t. He explained that he was wet and cold and needed to get off trail to dry out but could not reach his shuttle. He said, “I’m Pappy. I am the oldest guy out here. I’m 87.” I told him I had cell service the previous night up on the ridge, and since I would be heading up the ridge again, should I try calling for him from up on the ridge. He said yes, and told me, “Tell the shuttle driver (Bubba) it’s Pappy. He knows me. Tell him, ‘It’s a desperate situation’.”
I am not sure how desperate it really was. He didn’t seem hypothermic to me. But off I went, busting it up the ridge. About halfway up, I got cell service. I was relieved when Bubba answered his phone “Yeah?” (the typical greeting for shuttle drivers out here) and agreed to go fetch Pappy. If I couldn’t get a shuttle, I would have had to hike back down. I am not sure what my plan would have been, but I couldn’t leave Pappy at the trail head waiting for a ride that would never come. I had heard folks mention Pappy before, but it turns out he is somewhat of a trail celebrity. If you want to find out more about Pappy, check out 87-Year-Old Pappy Attempting to Become the Oldest Appalachian Trail Thru-Hiker.
I am starting to see some of the pink azaleas that I have heard about. So far, I have seen orange, yellow, and pink azaleas. The hiker shop people said that the rhododendrons and mountain laurel have yet to put on their show, so I have something to look foreword to.
Pink Azaleas (also called “pinxters”)
For hundreds of miles now, I have been seeing wild geraniums. These wildflowers seem to be particular about elevation, so they come and go as I go up and down the mountains.
Wild Geranium
Wild Geranium petals
The birding has been slow with all the rainy days, but I did get this pic of a male goldfinch feeding in a meadow.
American Goldfinch
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