We are back to hot, muggy and buggy weather - temps are in the 80's and lower 90's, which is too hot for hiking. With the hot weather comes the bugs: blackflies, mosquitoes, deerflies, gnats and ticks. The blackflies are the most annoying; they buzz around our heads as we hike and fly into our ears and eyes.
Past Roanoke, the AT paralleled the Blue Ridge Parkway for about a day, then veered away. We would still occasionally cross the road. Still a lot of climbing up and down mountains; the terrain hasn't flattened out yet.
Box Turtle
Copperhead. The hiker in front of us almost stepped on it. They blend in with the leaves on the trail. Many hikers have reported seeing rattlesnakes around the shelters, attracted by the mice.
Mountain Laurel in full bloom along the trail. We pass through whole hillsides covered with them.
Red Eft salamander. We see lots of these in wetter areas along the trail, especially after a rainfall.
The AT crosses the Blue Ridge Pky at an overlook. We remembered stopping at this sign on our bike trip last summer. We said we would be hiking the trail soon, and here we are.
The trail crosses the Parkway again
Our campsite on Apple Orchard ridge. That's an FAA tower in the background. Camping was prohibited here, but we'd done 23 miles that day, 4 longer than planned, and this was the first semi-level spot we could find to pitch our tent.
Jennings River swimming hole. The water was icy, so we just waded, but it felt great on our blisters and bug bites.
The Guillotine
A railroad trestle across the James River
The AT crossing the James River - this is the longest footbridge on the trail
Climbing Rocky Row and Bluff Mts, on the other side of the James River valley. The blackflies were swarming in our ears and eyes, so I had to break out the bug net. Looks silly but works well!
Campsite by the Lynchburg Reservoir. This lake reminded me of Lake George, with its clear water, white pines, and undeveloped shoreline.
Trail magic! This woman was waiting for her daughter to come through, and had brought apples, drinks and snacks for other hikers as well. When we said it was Mike's birthday, they sang 'Happy Birthday' to him.
May 28th - Y-Knot's birthday on the trail. We celebrated with this chocolate bar.
360 degree view from Spy Rock. We camped just below here, and came up to watch the sunset.
Lunch break at the Tye River. We now stop and swim, or at least put our feet in the water, every chance we get. It's great to cool the heat rashes and blisters on our tired feet.
Rhododendrons and Mountain Laurel
Cafe in Staunton, VA. This was the best food we ate in a long time!
No one but a thru-hiker would find this photo-worthy. Compared to our usual fare, this is a masterpiece.
