Day 49, miles today- 12.8, total- 682.4

When we woke up this morning, in the pole barn, there was a steady rain. Some of the group went ahead and started hiking. Five of us decided to wait for for a little while to see if the rain let up. By 10:00 am there was only a light rain. The five of us hit the trail. There was Wanderlust, Pumpkin Head, Dutch, Iceman and myself.

As the day went on, the rain became harder. It continued to rain until we were off trail. After a few miles we came to Keiffer Oak. It's the largest oak tree on the AT in the south. It's over 18 ft around and over 300 years old. Pretty cool! We hiked along a rocky ridge line for a few miles. With the rain, we missed out on the great views and we had to be very careful. There were large slanted rocks that would have been a challenge even if dry. We stopped at Niday Shelter to eat a late lunch.

We all decided to get off trail at the next road crossing, 1-1/2 miles away. The main reason was because it is supposed to rain for a couple days and we don't want to reach McAfee Knob on a bad weather day. It's an amazing overlook so it's worth taking a zero for.

When we got to Craig Creek Rd we didn't have cell service to call for a shuttle. We waited for a few minutes for a vehicle to come by. Hoping to get a ride. A school bus stopped. The driver told us she couldn't give us a ride. She did tell us which way it was to the closest town. We decided to walk to the first house and ask to use their phone. Just Wanderlust and I went to the door. I knocked and waited for a reply. A lady, behind the closed door, asked what we wanted. I told her our situation and asked to use her phone. No reply. After a few minutes the door opens, an older man is standing there holding a shot gun. As I started to plead our case, a white pickup truck stops on the road where the other three guys are standing. Wanderlust was at the steps and yelled down to the guys, asking if we had a ride. I didn't want to give up on the gun toting guy until I was sure we were good. I told him thanks anyway... we have a ride. The guy in the pickup was the bus drivers son. She had called him after she got home and told him he should pick us up. He drove us about 20 miles to the Holiday Inn Express in Salem VA. The five of us shared one room. It was an interesting day. I didn't take many pictures because it rained most of the day.