Day 42, miles today- 19.1, total- 575.2

I started hiking today at 7:20 am. I hiked the first part of today with Phys Ed and Airborne. Sequoia had left 30 minutes before us. The second half I was with Airborne. 

We stopped for lunch at the Chestnut Knob Shelter. There were nice views several times today as we neared Chestnut Knob. The last nine miles of trail were very challenging. There were many steep ups and downs and it was very rocky. The ups and downs weren't real long, but it made for very slow going. Sequoia twisted his ankle when he slipped on a rock. It had swelled quite a bit by bed time. Hopefully he'll be okay tomorrow.

Two people came in late, 10:30 pm. The shelter was full so one person slept on the picnic table. The other person used a hammock.

We're staying at the Jenkins Shelter. It has an open air privy, (no walls).

Day 41, miles today- 25.5, total- 556.1

The day started off with a light rain. It continued until around 1:00 pm. I started hiking at 8:20 am. My feet felt very good today, although they were wet from several hours of rain.

Most of today I was hiking near or through farm land. It was a nice change. It was very pretty. The farm animals looked at me like they weren't sure what I was. Having a backpack and using trekking poles must look a little strange to them. From past experience I know that horses are very uncomfortable when they see backpackers. There were many stiles to go over today. I fell today. It's only the second time since I started. Way less than most people I've talked to. I glanced back because I thought I heard hikers behind me and I tripped over a branch on the edge of the trail. I did a face plant. Luckily there was a good bed of duff to soften the impact. I took a picture of the area. My trekking pole is pointing where my face hit. No injuries.

I was able to visit the Lindamood School. It's a one room school house built in 1874. It's near a Settlers Museum, which I didn't visit. The school house was very interesting. There was a list of punishments for the students and the rules for the teachers. I hope you're able to read them. They are pretty amusing. I'm 90% sure that the flag hanging in the school is displayed wrong. The stars should be on the left side. I left them a note in the register that was there for visitors to sign.

I took a picture of Alex, she just started hiking in Damascus, she's a pretty strong hiker. She's from the Boston area. She goes to the University of Vermont. She was eating lunch at the same restaurant as me. She goth the 16 oz Hikers' Burger, and she ate all of it. I got the 8 oz burger, fries and hot fudge cake. I also saw Dude, Seventeen and Fidget there.

After hiking 23 miles I came upon trail magic. It was right before my last big up for the day. It was 7 pm, I was tired and hungry. The timing was perfect. There were two coolers left by a past thru hiker. One had cans of pop and the other packages of HoHos. Dude, Seventeen and Fidget showed up a few minutes after me.

Before I reached the shelter the sun had set. The shelter area was crowded. There must be 16+ people here. Phys Ed and Sequoia are both here along with several familiar faces. By the time I got my tent set up and ate a couple snacks, everyone was ready to go to sleep, and that includes me. Good night.

Day 40, miles today- 30.6, total- 530.6

There were ponies hanging around the shelter most of the night.

Before leaving this morning I talked to the four past thru hikers for several minutes. They had a lot of great advice.

I started hiking at 7:30 am. After 7 miles at VA 603 there was perhaps the best trail magic setup ever. There were five guys that had three pop up dinning flies setup with an amazing selection of food and drinks. They have been doing it the last weekend of April for the past five years.

When I reached Dickey Gap at VA 16, after hiking 15 miles, a pickup truck pulled up to me. It was one of the past thru hiker guys from the shelter I stayed at. He asked if I needed a ride anywhere. I said I didn't. He then asked if I wanted some Gatorade. So he gave me 1-1/2 liter of Gatorade.

Later in the day I came to a spot where a Baptist Church had left several containers with food, drinks, and various other supplies. Three trail magic opportunities in one day. Life is good!!

I took a picture of a stile. It's a set of steps used to climb over a fence. In this case the trail went through a pasture.

When I got to Partnership Shelter, at 6:30 pm,  I was able to order a pizza. The nearby town delivers to the Mt Rogers Visitor Center which is 0.1 miles from the shelter.

I met Goose today. Two people that live in Madeira know him. They had told me he was starting his hike about the same time as mine. I had been keeping an eye out for him. I had seen his name in a few shelter registers. So I knew he was close by.

Each shelter has a notebook that people can sign in on. It's optional of course. You put the date, your trail name, and any comment you wish to make. Sometimes people will say they're spending the night, stopping for lunch, or say something about their day. It's a great way for people behind to stay informed on where others are.

I think I have my trail legs now. Today I just put my legs on cruise control, leaned back and enjoyed the sights.
 
At the shelter tonight there are eleven people. The five young guys that I sheltered with a week ago are here. Three from Michigan and two from England. We're in a two story shelter. The five of them are upstairs. The six people down are going to sleep, but the boys upstairs have been giggling off and on for thirty minutes. Grim is here too.

It's after 9 pm, so I better get to sleep.

Day 39, miles today- 17.3, total- 500.0

Today was a beautiful day! A little cool, but clear and sunny.

I had a big up this morning over Buzzard Rock. It was a 1900 ft climb. The view from the top was very nice. Smiles, Gypsy, and Hancock were there. I took a picture of the three of them. Smiles is sitting on the ground. Gypsy and Hancock are a friendly young couple from New Hampshire. I've seen them a few times over the past week.

I passed through Grayson Highlands State Park. I saw dozens of wild ponies roaming around. They are called wild but they are actually very friendly. While I was looking at the ponies with a few dayhikers, one lady started talking to me about my hike. Before she left she offered me an apple. It was delicious. After I had finished it, I gave the apple core to one of the ponies. I received trail magic and gave trail magic to a pony. It was a win win. I passed through a rock tunnel that's called Fatman Squeeze. It's a good thing I lost those four pounds. :-) The views in Grayson Highlands are really nice. It's one of the prettiest sections of the AT.

When I got to Wise Shelter I had completed 500.0 miles of the AT. WOW!!!! 500 miles...that's a long way. But, still a lot of miles to go. At the shelter there were four past thru hikers doing trail magic. They were giving away hot dogs, chips, and Pop Tarts. Pretty sweet! Tug Boat and Smiles are the only current thru hikers here with me. I've seen Tug Boat a few times over the last couple days.

My feet felt good again today. Hopefully that continues. Word has it that there's going to be trail magic at a road crossing 7 miles from the shelter tomorrow. It's almost 9:00, I need to get to sleep.

Day 38, miles today- 15.6, total- 482.7

I had a good nights sleep at Hikers Inn. There was a bath scale there so I was able to weigh myself. I have only lost 4 lbs. I ate breakfast with Handstand at the Dairy King. Handstand is 29 yrs old. She just recently got out of the Army where she served as a nurse. She's meeting her boyfriend Friday morning and then taking a few days off trail.

I am wearing trail running shoes today. I received a box from home with these shoes, a lighter weight sleeping bag. I also sent my balaclava home. I now have a buff to wear, which I got as a gift. It has sections of the AT map on it. It's pretty cool. I've already received complements on it.

I started hiking at 9:00 am. The trail followed the Virginia Creeper bike trail for a few miles. There was also a pretty stream along the trail. I passed K Fox, Smiles, Hancock, and Gypsy within the first few hours. I stopped at Subway on the way out this morning to get a six inch sub to eat for lunch. It made for a nice lunch. There were several sections of the trail today that were lined with mountain laurel. If it had been in bloom it would have been pretty.

I got to Lost Mountain Shelter at 4:00 pm. I thought about doing a few more miles but decided to call it a day. My feet felt much better today. There are five of us at the shelter. There's Smiles, Techie, Pool Side, Handstand, and me. We had a nice campfire for a few hours. Smiles is the guy from England. He's 24 yrs old. A nice guy.