Visiting the AT

I would say we "hiked" the AT, but a couple of days is more like a visit. Wes & Stacie let us tag along and gave us an inside look at life on the trail. Their packs were setup to be light and fast. We got the details on how they made the camp stove from coke cans, and used "heet" for fuel. They also talked about some of the relationships that were cultivated on trail. Sounds like they have made some life-long friendships.

While waiting for them at the inital meeting place, we asked several thru-hikers if they saw a girl with pink hair, and about everyone knew them. One guy, said "you mean Rainbow" (Most people on the trail have nicknames). We started hiking south until we ran into them. After we made it back to the car, we went into town to eat, and replenish supplies. After finalizing plans, we began our hike.
The first part was about a five mile climb. At the shelter, we settled in, started a fire, and fixed supper. We were settling in for the evening, early to bed, early to rise. We thought we were going to have it to ourselves, but a couple hikers showed up late. Thankfully they were quiet and even sleep outside. The one guy said he only sleeps in a shelter if it's raining.

After breakfast and conversation with the other hikers, we hit the trail and saw a big deer, a covey of grouse, and a couple wild turkeys. The hiking was fun and their were some great vistas. Some of the peaks were Bald Mountains, which Wes said were cleared for cattle grazing, cattles can't go down the steep slopes so fences weren't need. We stopped and took a picture at the spot were Wes & Stacie surpassed 800 miles on the trail. The climbs weren't as drastic this day, and the scenery changed throughout the hike. Stacie kept telling Wes to let us lead, she was afraid that Wes would sprint through the trail if he was in front. Although we had to to tell kelli to slow down a few times, that worked pretty good having her take the lead.

When we hiked out of the woods, and went to a went to our pick-up spot, some "tourists" came up to us and asked where the AT was. So I felt like a real hiker for a short while. There was a unplanned reunion with some of Wes & Stacies trail friends (Memo and Father). It turned out they were staying at a B&B (of sorts) for the fourth, so Wes & Stacie decided to join them. Mr. Williams showed up in his pick up truck and took me and kelli back to our mini-van. We got a good workout, and enjoyed our visit. They will be in Shendoah Valley Park soon, so plan your trip.




Each Shelter has a journal which, when full, is stored and preserved.


Home-made camping stove, made from coke cans.

Food bags. Tin cans keep animals from climbing down rope.

We just refilled our water bottle from a stream using our filtered pump.

You can see some of the bigger mountains we climbed in the background.

800 miles on the trail and counting.

day break stop for us.

Waiting for Mr. Williams to take us back to our car.