Pearisburg, VA to Buena Vista, VA

Day 2, Friday, May 24

Rice Field Shelter to Bailey Gap Shelter, 16.2 miles

It’s daylight shortly before 6 AM on top of this mountain. We’re up at 6:30 AM eating breakfast and packing up after a fit night’s sleep. We’re hiking at 7:30 AM. Fog fills several of the valleys below.

The first landmark of the day is Symms Gap Meadow, four-and-a-half miles or so up the trail. We reach it by 9:30 AM. It’s another top of the mountain old abandoned orchard. The pear and apple trees are in bloom and scent the air. We take a short break in the orchard under a huge shady oak tree.

We pass by the Groundhog Trail around 11 AM. Six miles so far along the ridge. Most of the trail is very good, but there are a few rock piles that we just can’t miss. We take a lunch break and use my cell phone to call Terry for food and beverage at our rendezvous.

Todd and Brian are setting a heck of a pace this morning. We catch up to them near Dickinson Gap before pushing on across the ridge. I stop at the Allegheny Trail at 1 PM and wait for Donna to catch up. Her pace is slowing and after eight miles this morning, I can tell she’s tiring. Todd and Brian head on. We’ll catch up to them at the Pine Swamp Branch Shelter.

We finally reach Pine Swamp Branch at 2 PM and the shelter a few minutes later. Now we only have three-tenths of a mile to where Terry is meeting us. After a few minutes rest, we move on. I have trouble adjusting my pack and fall a few hundred yards behind. We reach the USFS parking area beside the trail at 2:33 PM, almost right on time. But no Terry…after a few minutes, a van pulls in and asks if we’re waiting for a ride? A blue SUV?

They’ve seen Terry waiting two miles up the road where the AT actually crosses the road. That’s exactly where he’s supposed to be. But we’re at the parking area that is detailed in the guidebook. The map and the guidebook don’t agree on where this section ends. The folks in the van are kind enough to ride up the road and tell Terry where we are. None of us has two more miles in us at the moment.

Terry rolls in a few minutes later with his mother along for the ride. He’s brought us Subway sandwiches and cold Gatorade. What a treat! We scarf down the food and I repack my pack. By 3:30 PM the three of us are ready to push on. We say goodbye to Donna and turn back to the trail. We still have 3.6 miles to reach Bailey Gap Shelter.

The first 2.1 miles are along Stony Creek. Somehow the trail manages to slip in two large up-and-overs before returning to the creek for another three-tenths of a mile. I’m whipped.

Rounding a bend in the trail, Brian gets assaulted by a female grouse that runs across the trail in front of us. She charges him, blustering, flapping her wings, trying to provide protection for her chicks that are scattering behind her. A chick runs between my legs. I count eight chicks before they disappear into the woods.

We take a break at 4:30 PM beside the bridge across Stony Creek. I splash cold water from the creek over my arms and face before dipping my t-shirt in the water. For a 75 degree day, it’s hot! After a break that none of us wants to end, we shoulder our packs and begin the final 1.5 mile climb to the shelter. The first six or seven-tenths of a mile belie what is ahead. The trail is relatively flat, but soon it turns up a steep grade. Brian and Todd pull away from me and leave me behind. I’m struggling…about to hit the wall with a half-mile left to the shelter.

I had drunk a quart of Gatorade with my Subway sandwich at 3 PM. I’m now well into my second quart and fading fast. I finish the last of my Gatorade and struggle the final 500 yards up the hill. It’s almost 6 PM.

Two hikers are leaving the shelter in the distance, and only Todd and Brian are at the shelter when I arrive. The two hikers from the U.K. that we sheltered with last night arrive a few minutes later. The U.K. guys are from the Isle of Guernsey, “Guern” and “Donkey”. I discover that they learned about the AT from Bill Bryson’s book, “A Walk in the Woods”.

I grab my water bag, some clothes, and my toiletries, and head down the hill for water. I’m going to take a bath tonight. I need it! I get water from the creek and clean up. I wash out some clothes, and make it back to the shelter before 7 PM. I hang my clothes up to dry. Brian and Todd both take the chance to clean up some as well. We finish off our sub sandwiches for supper.

We filter more water to make sure we will have enough for tomorrow. We didn’t manage our water supply and intake so well today. I’ve drunk almost a gallon since 3 PM and could have used more earlier.

By 9 PM it’s almost dark in front of the shelter. The Moon is creeping over the ridge to the right of the shelter. It’s going to be another bright evening. Everyone is already in their sleeping bags. I will be too in a few minutes. I finish catching up in my journal and I’m crawling inside my bag by 9:30 PM.