May 23: Cold Mountain   Miles Today : 26.7 Total Miles : 250.0

Let me start off today's entry with a comment about last night's dinner. There are two restaurants in town, and we decided to go to the Crossing for dinner, which had a slightly better menu. For the entire time we were there, which was over an hour, we were the only people in the place. The five of us ordered various items, three of which were burgers of some sort with bacon. Well, the bacon was frozen, we were told, so no bacon. Fine, no problem.

After no short time, our food started to roll on out, one meal at a time. First the burgers, one by one with no bacon, we placed in front of us. Then next came the grilled cheese, though not with the lettuce and tomato that was requested. Finally, the cold turkey sandwich, arguably the easiest dinner to prepare, was delivered.

That is when things just started to get weird, however. After we had finished all the food, the waitress comes over to me with a to-go box. It's a second burger, she explains. Apparently, her husband misunderstood the slip and made SIX burgers instead of three. So all of the burger-eating folk got a second meal. But he felt bad that three of us were getting extra food, so he made another grilled cheese and another turkey sandwich. Now here is the kicker - the grilled cheese had lettuce and tomato and the burgers all had BACON! Total cost: $16.47.

Well, from there we went to the other restaurant in town, the one that serves beer, and celebrated Reader turning 21. Ziti really managed to do a nice job, getting cake, balloons, and even a small gift. This was quite a feat considering the town we are staying in.

This morning, it was back to the trail bright and early thanks to Old Ebb and his wife's car. She is leaving him today, so he decided to help us out while he still had the wheels. It did not look like a good day in town, visibility was 100 feet and it was dark. It turned out to be just heavy fog in the valley, since as soon as we started climbing on the road back to the trailhead, the sky brightened up. Actually, by the time we got to the parking lot, all the fog was gone, and a perfectly blue sky was overhead.

The first climb of the day was a good one, and I was treated to many fine outlooks. I was able to see more mountains of Virginia today than I have been able to since the first days of the trip. Just before noon, I stopped for a snack on the summit of Bluff Mountain. I soaked up the sun and took in a great view of the George Washington National Forest. It was a great feeling considering the past week of rain.

From this spot, it was on to the Punchbowl Shelter for some water. While the shelter itself was rather normal, the location was anything but. It is located in the middle of a field, next to a small spring fed pond, with a couple of hawks circling overhead. What a really nice place to stop for a break.

The day just kept getting more interesting from here. After dropping down off the ridge and crossing a really nice brook, the trail goes past the Peddler Dam. This 100+ foot dam was built to create a reservoir for the area. The sound was almost deafening as I walked within 20 feet of the falling water. I then descended to the Round Room and couldn't even hear myself think! (not sure if anyone besides my dad will get that one). The trail then climbs aside the dam and follows the edge of the reservoir for a few miles before turning away for good.

But wait, there is still more! The AT then meets Brown Mountain Creek and follows the bed of the creek for several miles. Not only is this creek pleasant to walk along as it twists and turns on the valley floor, but it has historical significance as well. In the early 1900's, a group of freed slaves started a new community here. All that remains of that community now is stone walls, old fences and overgrown fields. For several miles, I followed the creek and looked for signs of the people that made this are home. It was a very enjoyable walk.

After 18 miles I arrived at my destination for the night, Brown Mountain Creek Shelter, situated just a few feet away from the creek. This shelter is really in an idea location, and the privy here is brand new, so it is clean and empty. There is nothing worse than having to hover your butt over a dirty privy because the contents are piled up to the seat. (Muskrat Creek Shelter, 1999) However, I got to the shelter early, before 4, and the sky was still clear and blue. I really had the urge to camp up high. But as I sat there, eating some food, I kept thinking about how water is an issue when you camp on top of a mountain, and how the extra miles will do me no good, since it will just mean two really slow days. Still, I felt the need to push on, to camp on Cold Mountain, a bald summit only eight miles away.

I lingered, and stalled, and finally at five decided to hike on, but so I would not have to haul a gallon of water up the mountain, I cooked dinner and drank a ton of water at the shelter. By 5:15, I was fed, packed and hiking up the trail, trying desperately to get to the summit before sunset. I absolutely flew up the trail, bent on a mission that I refused to fail. The first four miles were all uphill, as the trail gained more than 2000 feet in elevation. Each time I turned a corner on a switchback, I yelled out the number as motivation. I got to the top of Bald Mountain, which ironically is a wooded summit, having reached 21. I still had three miles to go, but that didn't matter since on the way down Bald Mountain, I could see the cleared, grassy summit of Cold Mountain. At that moment I really kicked it into high gear, the sun was dropping lower in the sky and I was not going to reach the summit after sunset.

I pushed myself to my aerobic threshold, and I got here, to the summit, at 7:45. I hiked nearly 8 miles in two and a half hours, which is better than a three mile an hour pace, uphill. Oh, but was the effort worth it, this mountain is spectacular. I set up my tent right on the summit, where I have a view of everything. Not trees here to obscure my view, just rolling fields filled with short grass, maintained by the Forest Service with controlled burning. I was hoping for a great sunset, but I did not get that since a line of clouds moved in to the west, blocking the sun from my view. Still, it is beautiful up here, and I am very glad that I decided to hike the extra distance.

I am alone here on the summit, no one opted to hike the extra distance to get here. Not that I am disappointed, I enjoy having the entire mountaintop to myself, to sit here in the cold wind, admiring the fading view and slowly appearing stars and town lights in the valley. It is a postcard moment for sure, but no picture or description can capture this feeling, you have to be out here, doing this, to understand it. The feeling is so much more intense too, having been out here for almost two weeks, having plodded through endless days of rain, and having pushed myself over 20 miles just to get here. It is cold and windy up here to be sure, cold enough to send most people fleeing for the comfort of the indoors, but I don't notice that right now. I only notice that happy tired feeling that I get after a long day, and that I am not paying enough attention to the blanket of stars that is appearing overhead.

-Chomp

< Previous Entry | Next Entry >