July 7: Jim and Molly Denton Shelter
 
Miles Today : 31.7
Total Miles : 142.2

Not bad, my last full day on the trail is my longest day ever on the trail. Actually, I was hiking for so long today, it actually felt like two days. I said my good-byes to everyone this morning, they will all be heading into Front Royal, and I was on the trail by 7:00 this morning. Yet again, it was a perfect morning with a clear sky and mild temps. The views were a little bit hazy today, but not too bad at all. I was treated to some nice views along the ridge again until I dropped down into Elkwallow Gap.

There was yet another wayside down at Elkwallow, and this particular camp store's specialty was reputed to be a blackberry milkshake. Despite the fact that I do not really like fruity ice cream, I had to find out if their reputation was deserved, so I walked into the small store and ordered one. Despite my low expectations, I was blown away by the creamy beverage. It was possibly the finest milkshake that I had ever tasted. Wow, it was $3.66 and worth every bit as I enjoyed the shake at a picnic table in the shade.

From the wayside north, it was just more enjoyable ridgewalking in the park. There were some ups and downs, of course and a few views to the west once again, but nothing really exciting. The miles, as are typical in the park, were comfortable and passed quickly.

The deer were again out in full force as I saw numerous does and several spotted fawns throughout the day. Of course I saw no bears, as once again I was the only person not to see one of these creatures in a supposed "hot spot" for bears. No bears in the Smokies, no bears in New Jersey and now no bears in the Shenandoahs. It is really comical at this point, as several times people mere minutes in front of me saw bears, only to scare them off by the time I arrived.

I pulled into the Tom Floyd shelter around 3:00 this afternoon having covered 23 miles in eight hours. I was going to stay here for the night but it was still really early in the day and I was really feeling strong (sound familiar?). So, instead of unpacking my bag I filled my water, ate some snacks and headed off up the trail. The only real obstacle in my way was this 800+ foot climb five miles before this shelter. I knocked that climb out pretty well, but my legs turned to Jell-O with about three miles left to hike. I ended up talking myself in, telling myself to stay in control, to keep it together, to watch my footing. The last half of a mile was rough but I concentrated and I made it here by 6:30. 31 miles in less than 12 hours, not too bad at all.

There is a really nice family of three here, a dad with his son and daughter, who are hiking south through the park and into Waynesboro. There is also a southbound hiker here named Crow Flies. It is nice to be able to share my last night on the trail, my last few white blazes, with some great people. There is a file going right now, so I think I am going to enjoy that instead of writing this.

-Chomp

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