Backpacking around Mount Rogers: Apr 13-14th 2007

"You know there's still snow up there and a front's coming in?"

The ranger obviously didn't think much of us, as we were still dressed in t-shirts and freshly arrived from warmer low lands. We reassured him that we had warm clothes and sleeping bags and knew the forecast.

The day was certainly nice in a disarming sort of way - very sunny, almost looking like a cool fall afternoon. But the cirrus clouds in the sky reinforced what I already knew of the forecast. After a final packing up, we took one last look at the "Extreme Weather" sign and laughed about how a tobogan is a hat and not a sled down here.

We followed the blue-blazed AT Spur trail out of the parking lot for a half mile until finding a small patch of snow and the white-blazed Appalachian Trail. Turning right we dropped out of the bare ridge tops and into more trees. Soon we were passing the Wise shelter - occupied by a few hikers and then moved into the Little Wilson Creek Wilderness. My original thought was to explore this area a bit and camp down in one of the valleys. However, since the weather was great now and we had more high and exposed ridges to traverse we decided to press on.

Leaving the wilderness area we passed through one of the many fence stiles we'd see on this trip. Two herds of semi-wild ponies roam in this area and all the land is fenced to keep them where they're supposed to be.

The wind was blowing steadily as we crossed Stone Mountain's open tops following the well-worn trail and blazed fence posts propped up with rock piles. Soon we arrived at a trailhead and campground known as Scales. Christina had a flashback to camping here last year with her hiking group.

Moving on we found a nice campsite just off the AT less than a half mile north of Scales. We knew other hikers were heading for the next shelter and neither of us really enjoys staying in the shelters. Camp was soon pitched and I went on a long expedition to find the perfect bear-proof food hanging tree limb.

Along the way I also lucked into some dead and dry tree limbs for a fire. Speaking of fire, I was glad I had started packing a flint and steel since the airlines won't let you fly with a lighter or matches and Christina didn't bring either. The stove was easy enough to light, but I had to sacrifice several sheets of paper from my note book and use three of the cotton fire starting tabs I carry for emergencies.

After a pita and black bean dinner (the tortillas were accidentally left in the car) and a dessert of cheesecake we retired to our tents. Just after crawling inside the rain started.

The rain continued on and off all night, but miraculously it stopped at first light. I woke up and tried to remember where our food was tied up (mostly north of us, past 4 small streams and over some old barbed wire). Our food had remained mostly dry and soon hot coffee was waking me from slumber.

There were dark clouds to the north and west as we packed up, so we put on our pack's rain covers before rejoining the AT. I figured we'd end up hiking in a downpour before long. Christina must have thought the same, since she picked up the pace and flew down the trail under the theory of getting in as many miles as possible before the rains came.

We passed out of the woods and into one open section where we ran into our first set of ponies of the trip. They moved off the trail to look for breakfast where they wouldn't be bothered by hikers. Passing back into the woods we soon reached the Old Orchard shelter and saw several tents setup. It must have been a busy night here last night. Neither of us had any qualms about staying were we did.

To our surprise, the sun started to appear between the clouds and as Christina rushed downhill I'd pause for a picture of a violet or other wildflower then race to catch up. This was our big downhill of the trip, toward SR 603, and our departure from the AT.

In the valley we picked up the Fairwood Valley Trail, a multi-use trail (horse and hiker) that I'd been dreading only because I'd heard how muddy and torn-up all the multi-use trails in this area were. I was pleasantly surprised to find a well graveled and dry path taking us all the way to the Mount Rogers trailhead.

After clowning around by the hiking sign, Christina and I began our big ascent up to Mount Rogers. After a half hour of hiking we stopped for lunch and setup a poncho as temporary shelter from the sprinkles coming down.

After a massive lunch of hummus, pitas and cheese, during which I failed to pick up a fresh weather report on the radio, we got back to work. The trail was a constant climb upwards, but thankfully it was well graded. Just like the downhill portion earlier today, I'd stop and take pictures of the scenes along the trail, then motor into gear and catch up with Christina again.

Once we reached Deep Gap we rejoined the AT. With another left turn we continued our climb towards Mount Rogers. Along the way we passed through spruce groves which smelled delightful. Almost before we knew it, we found ourselves at the Mount Rogers spur trail to the summit.

While the spur trail and the summit have no scenic views, they do constitute the highest part of Virginia and so it was little surprise that we saw more people along this half mile of trail than the rest of our trip so far. Everyone warned us that the top was a marker on a big boulder, which we already knew, having both been here before, but most people must go up looking for a prominent sign or marker.

Two hikers coming down stopped to talk to us and mentioned that they were thru-hiking the AT, having started in March in Georgia. Christina's whole attitude toward them changed and I later accused her of being star-struck. She countered that while those were the first actual thru-hikers she'd meet on the AT, she was mostly surprised that they didn't stink.

Some one had built an eight-inch tall snowman near the summit, which was more than had greeted me on my last visit to Virginia's highest point. We only stayed long enough to take a picture, then headed back down the trail. The upper sections were icy and we had to be careful on our descent.

We had already discussed the weather and agreed that with a major front moving in tonight, possibly bringing several inches of snow, we'd rather hike out today. So we found ourselves pushing past the Thomas Knob shelter and continuing on to Rhododendron Gap.

The trail was still beautiful through this area, with lots of views and bald ridge tops. However, we could see dark clouds coming and marveled at all the groups planning to camp out tonight.

Along Wilburn Ridge we ran into a few more ponies, ones slightly more tame and used to the large number of day hikers that frequent this section. Instead of running away, they would approach us looking for handouts. The sky finally fulfilled the forecaster's promises and a slight rain started. It picked up in intensity as we reached the park boundary for our final mile back to the car.

From the trailhead we drove back to Durham in heavy rain which continued all through the following day. Monday surprised us by bringing clear but windy weather, so we headed up to Hanging Rock State Park for some hiking and rock climbing.