Day 65, miles today- 25.7, total- 878

Paul C. Wolfe Shelter to Black Rock Hut.

I got up at 6:10 am and started hiking at 7:00.

I passed the site of a cabin ruins. The chimney was still in pretty good shape. It was situated on the side of a steep mountain. There was a good spring 0.3 miles away. It had to have been a difficult life.

I hiked most of the first 5.2 miles with Wanderlust and Iceman. Dutch was still at the shelter when we left. At the 5.2 point we were at US-250. From there Wanderlust and Iceman went into Waynesboro. The two of them, along with Dutch,. are going to nero there. I was continuing on north. We said our goodbyes. We had been together for over two weeks. More than likely I'll see them again.

I crossed over I-64 and then entered the Shenandoah National Park. Soon after that I saw a copperhead snake. It was partially on the trail. I had stepped six inches from it's head before I saw it. A little scary. He must have enjoyed getting his picture taken because he didn't move while I took several pictures.

The grass at times was up to my knees. A prime location to get ticks. I'll need to watch more closely now. I also passed some communication towers on Bears Den Mountain.

I saw Beacon when I was taking a break. We hiked together off and on for 12 miles. At Sawmill Run Overlook, on Skyline Drive, we saw Great Legs and Hoops taking a break. We sat with them for a few minutes. I then hiked near the three of them most of the way to the shelter. It was very hot this afternoon and we were all low on water. We reached the shelter at about 6:00 pm. We were happy to find that it had a great spring 50 feet from the shelter. Hoops carries a hoop. She's very good at using it. She's able to do some pretty fancy spinning. She can do it using her waist, neck, arms, and even her elbows. Beacon got it going a little. I gave it a try too. I was able to do it for a short time.  It started raining pretty hard at 7:30 pm. A perfect time for a storm. It's 8:30 now, time to turn in.

At the shelter tonight is Beacon, Great Legs, Hoops, All the Way, King, Slip, Me,and a couple section hikers.