Buena Vista, VA to Waynesboro, VA

Day 1, Thursday, September 19

Blue Ridge Parkway near Buena Vista, VA to Cow Camp Gap Shelter, 14.0 miles

It’s six o’clock in the morning before I know it. Plenty dark, so I roll over until 7 AM. A few minutes after 7 AM I get up and shower. It doesn’t take me long to clear out of the room. Up the street, I stop at Hardee’s for a gravy biscuit. One last relatively normal meal for a few days.

I drive over to the Long Mountain Wayside and hide my pack in the woods. I’ve decided to slack pack today’s first miles since I haven’t done anything to get in shape for this trip. After finding a good spot in the woods, I head back to the Blue Ridge Parkway and the AT crossing 6.8 miles south.

The drive back to the BRP includes a flock of 8-10 turkeys and another dozen or so deer. It’s very foggy this morning with the temperature about 70 degrees and 95 percent relative humidity. It’s oppressive. I reach the spot Alice picked me up at in June a few minutes later. I’m hiking by 8:02 AM. Even without a pack I’m out of breath and sweating this morning. The high humidity makes it worse.

I catch the first hiker of the morning headed north at 9 AM. His name is “Rock” and he’s from Raleigh. Sounds like I’ll see him the next few days, at least until Waynesboro.

I reach the Pedlar Reservoir Dam for the City of Lynchburg, VA by 9:30 AM. Their lake is way down as well. There is no water coming out into the Pedlar River under the bridge. Walking around the reservoir, there doesn’t seem to be any stream flow coming into the lake either. Every stream that I cross is dry. The drought is in full force here too.

It’s 11 AM by the time I reach Brown Mountain Creek Shelter. I stop for a few minutes to catch my breath and sign the register, then it’s on to Long Mountain Wayside. By 11:45 AM, I’ve reached the road crossing, retrieved my pack, and downed a quart of Gatorade. Not much traffic passes as I rest and snack until 12:30 PM. I’ve made 10.2 miles this morning without my pack. Now only four uphill miles to the Cow Camp Gap Shelter side trail.

What a 3.8 miles! It’s up, up, up. I can’t find the top. It’s somewhere up there in the clouds. Good thing there’s no view. I’m completely socked in.

I have to stop and catch my breath every hundred yards or so up this hill. At this pace, I’ll never get to the shelter. I can’t be making much time, but just before 3 PM I see the shelter trail junction ahead. I’ve done better than I thought. Now just .6 miles to the shelter.

I reach Cow Camp Gap Shelter at 3 PM. The spring is dry and the small stream before the shelter is just a trickle. I dig out a spot for water to collect and let it clear. It turns out to be enough, but just enough. I get enough water to clean up with and to cook supper.

"Rock" shows up at 3:45 PM. We are the only two for the night. I cook soup and chicken and rice, although I’m not all that hungry. I never eat that much the first night out.

By 6:30 PM, I’ve cooked and cleaned up. It’s dark by 7:30 PM.