“The things you can find, if you don’t stay behind.”
~Dr Seuss.
May 6, 2021
Hike from Loft Mtn Campground to Hightop Hut
AT miles: 15.2 miles
Ascent: 3106’
Descent: 2859’
Weather: Absolutely perfect. Sunny and around 60
High points: Most of the day was spent on a ridge which was beautiful!
Today I woke up at the crack of dawn, left Williamsburg, drove to Front Royal where I dropped off my car, and took a shuttle to Loft Mountain Campground. The shuttle driver was delightful. He is an avid birder. who drives the shuttle to make enough money so he can take birding vacations. He has only been birding for six years, and he just added his 139th bird to his life list!
I hiked over Weaver Mountain and Roundtop Mountain and one or two other bumps. The AT in Shenandoah National Park goes up and down a reasonable amount, but generally is not difficult. The trail is fairly gentle, but you do need to concentrate on your feet and keep your eye out so you don’t trip on roots or rocks or step on the snake.
The morning had lots of great views.
I walked through an area that seemed to have had a recent fire. Most of the trees were blackened, and the only green growth was small shrubs.
AT hikers tend to indicate major mile markers from Springer in some environmentally friendly way. Today I walked past mile 900 from Springer Mountain. I couldn’t miss it!
Another nice view.
In Shenandoah national park the Appalachian trail crosses Skyline Drive multiple times per day. Often there is a helpful sign to indicate where you are.
I am still in wildflower heaven. The path frequently looks like this!
I saw several wildflowers today that I could not identify, but I definitely did see mayapple in bloom. (Despite its lovely appearance and cute name, mayapple is highly poisonous) The flower hides underneath the leaf, but I always love the distinctive shape of the leaf!
I saw a lovely collection of trillium. At first I didn’t know what they were but the blooms were big enough that I could tell from 100 feet away that there were some really special wildflowers up ahead.
And I took this picture of this white blaze for two reasons. First of all I have never seen a blaze on a log! But secondly, every other place I have seen is a nice neat 2“ x 6“ rectangle. This one looks more like a blob!
Tonight I set up my tent at the Hightop Shelter. When I walked in there were about ten guys, all retired, consisting of two separate hiking groups hiking through SNP, plus two thru-hikers. Another older guy and his two adult daughters arrived later, and then another couple. It was quite a crowd! One guy was kind of sketchy, so he had the shelter to himself and the rest of us were in tents or hammocks.
Today is a great day for a long walk in the woods!