Grinding Gears and Finishing with Head Held High in Central Virginia: AT Flip Flop Days 107-114

Day 107

Tired of pancakes and wanting some more protein, Subtitles made sausage and biscuits for breakfast for our last morning at Stanimals in Glasgow. We expected to get back to trail around 9, but we couldn’t get a ride until 10:30. When we got back to trail, we crossed the James River Bridge. The first few miles were flat as we walked along the river and then next to Matts Creek. The gnats were horrible. 

After Matts Creek Shelter, we started climbing. It was steep and rocky, and the gnats continued to attack us. We had some nice views of the river, the valley, and the surrounding mountains today. This area of trail burned in a wildfire last year, and we could see the devastation all around us, but we could also see the beauty of the trees that survived.

Subtitles struggled today. We took a break before the ascent up Highcock Knob (yes, it’s really called that), but the climb wasn’t as bad as we expected. However, the descent was difficult with some loose rocks. 

We arrived at our intended camp at Harrison Spring after an easy climb. There were no shelters in the distance we wanted to cover today, so we set up our tents. There was a strong breeze blowing all night, but my tent kept me warm, and the breeze prevented any condensation.

Day 108

It was cold when I woke up with the wind still howling. I put on all of my layers and began to pack up. I warmed up quickly as I got ready for the day. The exertion from starting the day with a climb knocked out any remaining chill. My back was hurting, and I struggled to get my pack to sit right. 

There was a great view on Thunder Ridge early in the day. We took a break at Thunder Hill Shelter, so that I could do some more stretching. Not long after the stretch break, we came to the famous “guillotine,” a boulder suspended over the trail between two rock walls.

We walked along the side of the hill for quite a ways with no good places to sit, so lunch was a little later than I would have liked. To make up for the delay, I ate more than usual. We had no views after lunch, and we only stopped once when I needed water. It was a long, steep descent down to the Bryant Ridge Shelter, where we were going to camp for the night. The long hike down killed my back, but I started to feel better after getting to camp and sitting there for a while. 

In my last post I hinted that we were expecting some support. Waiting for us at the shelter was Jingle, returning with a vehicle to support Subtitles and me! Or she would have been at the shelter if she hadn’t locked her keys in the Jeep and ran to town to get help. Subtitles went up to where she had parked to help, and I waited at the shelter for them to arrive. 

They arrived with grapes and cookies! It was great to see Jingle again and catch up. We cooked dinner and settled into the shelter for the night. This shelter is one of the biggest on trail, and it was super nice. It started to rain around sundown, and it rained all night long.

Day 109

I didn’t sleep well yet again. Getting used to ground dwelling after months of hammock camping wasn’t going as well as I had hoped. Despite my poor sleep, we all didn’t get up until 7:30. Jingle left to go back to the car, and Subtitles and I started hiking at 8:45.

We hiked 4 miles up and over a hill before meeting Jingle at a road crossing. Although it was still raining, she had set up a canopy and was cooking second breakfast when we got there. It was really nice to sit down, drink coffee, and eat sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits. Subtitles and I shed a bunch of weight from our packs, and set off.

After our glorious second breakfast break, we began the very long climb back up to the ridge. With significantly less weight on our backs, it went a lot faster and easier than it otherwise would have. We next met Jingle at Bearwallow Gap, 10 miles into the day, for lunch. As the rain was intensifying, we crowded into the Jeep to eat and take our break. Our next meetup was going to be our last for the day 5 miles up trail at Harvey’s Knob Overlook. There we would get what we would need for the night and for the next morning’s walk into Daleville.

After leaving, the rain let up, and we had a few nice views of the valley. About 2.5 miles from where we were going to meet Jingle, however, my back started to spasm and hurt intensely. With my past struggles with back pain, this was what I feared most would happen on trail. I slowed way down, as I was reduced to hobbling up the trail. Although he still had a long way to go today, Subtitles stuck with me to make sure I made it to the car. 

I hiked those 2.5 miles in excruciating pain on willpower and adrenaline. When I got to the Jeep, I dropped my pack and broke down, overwhelmed by the fear, effort, and emotion of feeling this pain again. It took me a few minutes to gather myself. Subtitles hiked on. I told Jingle that I needed a real bed for the night, and I booked us a room in Roanoke for 2 nights, since Subtitles would be getting to town the next day. 

We drove to the hotel and checked in. I got showered, and we ordered food from the restaurant next door. Jingle walked down and got it for us. We ate dinner in the room and watched TV for a while. I let my parents know what was going on, and they offered to overnight my hammock gear back to me. I walked Dad through what to pack.

If I didn’t have Jingle driving support, I would probably be getting off trail for good this time. As it is, I don’t know how it’s going to go. Knowing a ride is available at the next road crossing or that I can take time off whenever I need it gives me some peace of mind to stay out here. It is a luxury most hikers don’t have.

Day 110

The alarm clock in our room went off at 6, but neither of us had set it, so I turned it off and fell back asleep. We got up at 7:45 and went down to breakfast. The hotel breakfast was actually really good; they had biscuits and gravy, eggs, and hot cinnamon apples in addition to normal continental breakfast stuff. We continued to watch TV until Jingle left to pick up Subtitles from the trail. I made sure to stretch well today. I was feeling a lot better but still a bit stiff.

Mom called in the afternoon and needed a destination for shipping my gear. I originally intended to use general delivery at the post office, but UPS was less expensive. I had trouble with UPS shipping to a post office early in the hike, so I scrambled to find another address. I settled on the outfitter in Daleville after confirming that they accept packages for hikers. Since my gear would not arrive for 2 days, I added another night to our stay at the hotel. We all walked over to the restaurant next door for a good dinner.

Day 111

Today was going to be McAfee Knob day. This is the “most photographed” spot on the AT and probably the view that most people think of when they think about the AT. All three of us would go up to McAfee Knob, and then Subtitles and I planned to walk north on the AT to Tinker Cliffs and have Jingle pick us up at a trail head after the cliffs down a 3 mile side trail.

The hotel breakfast wasn’t as good today, but we all ate our fill. We got on the road and were a little concerned by the lingering fog, but at least it wasn’t raining anymore. It took about 15 minutes to drive to the trail head. The parking area for McAfee Knob is closed this year, as they are building a bridge over the busy road to make it safer for hikers. There was plenty of parking on a side street nearby though.

It is just under 4 miles to McAfee Knob from the road, and visitors can walk the AT or a nice fire road most of the way up. We chose to walk the AT up to the overlook. It was easy walking on the well maintained tourist trail.

We made it to McAfee Knob only to find it completely socked in with fog. A few other people were there, waiting for the fog to clear. We waited around to see if the fog would lift and give us a view. We were able to see some parts of the valley for a while, but then the fog rolled back in and blocked it all out again. We took our pictures on the iconic spot with a plain white background instead of the stunning valley and mountain view. 

Subtitles and I abandoned our plan to walk to Tinker Cliffs, as we did not expect the fog to lift. Subtitles had hiked this section before and was thinking about skipping it this year. I was disappointed that I didn’t get to see the view, but I also felt like I hadn’t really earned it. I’m frustrated that I’ve missed miles in back to back sections, but whenever I come back to fill in what I’ve missed, I’ll have a fresh experience of this iconic spot. 

We took the fire road back down to the car and had sandwiches for lunch when we got there. We stopped at Walmart, then we went back to the hotel to relax. 

We had a pizza delivered for dinner, and it was really tasty. As we ate, a major thunderstorm rolled in. We were all happy to be indoors and not out camping in the woods. I think we’re all burned out of being on trail to various degrees. With all the town stays recently and now having a support vehicle, I don’t even really feel like I am on trail anymore. 

I left the decision to skip this section or not up to Subtitles, since he’s done the section between Daleville and Pearisburg before, and I’m not sure how much more I’ll be able to do with my back. He decided that we’ll skip ahead to Pearisburg tomorrow after I get my package in Daleville.

Day 112

We tried to sleep in, but we didn’t really accomplish that. I tried harder than the other two, so I got down to breakfast after them. When I got there, Subtitles dropped the bombshell that he didn’t want to hike anymore. He was tired of waking up every day to hike and concerned about his weight loss. He was also beginning to feel the sting of this not being a thru hike, which I had been feeling all along since restarting in Virginia. 

I felt a little betrayed, at first. I had just gotten gear sent to me in anticipation of hiking with support. If he was just going to quit, I wouldn’t have bothered to have that all sent and would have just went home. I asked them to stick with me for a few days so that I could fill in the sections I missed when I wasn’t feeling well. Then I intended to hike on south without them. I would have to figure out what to do with my excess gear, but at least I would have a few days to figure it out.

After breakfast, we went back up to the room. We didn’t have to check out until noon, and my package wouldn’t arrive until sometime in the middle of the day. We watched TV and lazily packed our stuff. I asked if we could go back to Glasgow after we got my package, so that I could pick up the 10 miles I missed between Punchbowl and the James River, and they agreed to take me and camp somewhere around there. Then tomorrow we would drive back towards Daleville so that I could get the miles I missed between Harvey Knob and Daleville. 

We checked out of the hotel around 11 and drove to the Outdoor Trails outfitter in Daleville, where my package was being sent. Subtitles commented that my food bag was really heavy, and I retorted that I was expecting to have a support car when I bought all that food. We didn’t have to wait long at the outfitter for my package to arrive. Subtitles bought some new shoes, replacing his smelly Hokas that he had worn since Killington, VT, nearly 450 trail miles. He finally made the switch to Topos and was very happy with his purchase. After the outfitter, we ate lunch at Bojangles, then went to Kroger to round out my resupply and get lunch supplies for the support car. Then we set off towards Punchbowl, an hour’s drive north. 

While on the interstate, Subtitles mentioned something about cruising in sixth gear. Jingle, who had driven this Jeep from North Carolina to Florida and back up to Virginia, was flabbergasted to learn the Jeep had a sixth gear. She had thought it was a 5 speed for as long as they’ve had the thing. We all had a good laugh.

While on the way up to Punchbowl, Fresh Grounds called and said he wanted to feed us. He had plans to meet some other hikers tomorrow, but he was free tonight. We planned to meet him at Scotto’s in Glasgow for dinner, and he would cook breakfast for us in the morning wherever we camped for the night. 

Jingle and Subtitles dropped me off at Punchbowl at 2 with the goal to meet Fresh Grounds at 6 in Glasgow. I would have to hurry to hike 11 miles in under 4 hours, but with a super minimal pack and fresh legs, it wouldn’t be too hard. The hike began with 2 miles of climbing, but would be mostly down after that. I hiked up to the summit of Bluff Mountain, only stopping at the top to take some pictures of the great view. 

I hiked down the remaining 9 miles as quickly as I could, only pausing at the various views to take more pictures. I did a lot of thinking about what Subtitles’ decision would mean for me. I wasn’t particularly enjoying today’s hike, and I decided that if he was truly done, then I probably would be too.

I made it to the James River at 5:42. On the drive to Glasgow, Subtitles stated that maybe he wasn’t done yet, and that maybe he would want to continue after I fill in my last miles into Daleville. I said that I had been thinking about it during the hike, and I would do whatever they did. So I guess we’ll see what happens after tomorrow. 

When we got to Scotto’s, Fresh Grounds had just arrived and was finishing a video. There were two other section hikers who would be joining us for dinner. I quickly cleaned up and changed out of my sweaty shirt then went in for dinner. Dinner was great. We talked a lot with Fresh Grounds and our fellow hikers, a couple collectively called “Team Ohio” and individually known as Rook and Dessert Queen. The food was good and the conversation was great. 

We had been planning to stay at the town shelter in Glasgow, but we were warned against it due to some problems with some non-hikers living there. Instead we drove back down to Harvey’s Knob where I was to begin my hike into Daleville tomorrow. It was a pleasant drive, and we arrived after dark. Jingle had scouted some campsites right near the overlook parking the other day.

When we got to the campsite, we found it already had an occupant. A pair of flip floppers graciously said they did not mind if we camped next to them. It took some effort to set up my hammock in the strong wind blowing over the ridge, but I managed to put it up. I hope sleeping in it goes well tonight.

Day 113

I slept great in the hammock and felt like I could have slept for several more hours when my alarm woke me up at 6:30. But, I had breakfast from Fresh Grounds waiting for me at 7, so I got up and packed in a hurry. Breakfast was incredible: coffee, banana pancakes, bacon, and cheesy eggs. Between the good food and good conversation, I wasn’t ready to start hiking until 9.

I wouldn’t have to go as fast as yesterday, but I also couldn’t dawdle. I had 16 hard miles to get done today with a late start. I walked the first two miles quickly and met a local trail angel who had started feeding hikers this year after some hikers mistook his personal breakfast for trail magic. I felt bad that I couldn’t accept more food from him, but I was full from Fresh Grounds’ breakfast and had miles to make.

I took a short break at the Wilson Creek Shelter, five miles into the day. I had an apple and spiked one of my water bottles with some caffeine to help me power through the rest of the day. The next several miles sucked between the rocks and steep ups and downs. I met a hiker named Iron Mike who was on the second to last day of his first backpacking trip. He had been in his tent the other night during the strong thunderstorm. I commiserated with his newfound aversion to severe weather. 

I stopped at Fullhardt Shelter, about 11 miles into the day, for a late lunch and to refill my water bottles. Shortly after I finished eating, the sky darkened with clouds, the wind picked up, and the air felt cooler. Not wanting to get caught in the rain, I hurriedly packed up my lunch supplies and took off down the trail. I had five miles left, and it was mostly downhill from here. It sprinkled off and on, but thankfully never started raining hard. There were a few unexpected climbs in the last few miles, but I made it to Daleville around 4:30.

Subtitles was now fully onboard to continue hiking. Since he had already done the Pearisburg to Daleville stretch, we set off for Pearisburg to start hiking south from there in the morning. I was a little disappointed, as I had come to hope that I could be done hiking after today if he were done too.

We drove to Pearisburg, stopped for dinner at Wendy’s, and set up camp at the trailhead parking area on the edge of town. I struggled to fall asleep. The sounds of traffic, trains, and a chipmunk or squirrel running under my hammock kept me up, but so did the nagging feeling that I wanted to be done. I didn’t get much sleep.

Day 114

In the morning, Jingle made coffee, biscuits, bacon, and eggs for breakfast. I told them I didn’t really feel like hiking anymore, so Subtitles waffled over what to do today: keep hiking south or hit the road and just see the highlights. To break the impasse, I said, “let’s just walk to Woods Hole and figure it out from there.” So that’s what we did.

The climb out of Pearisburg was miserable, climbing 2,000 feet in 3 miles. I fell behind Subtitles and didn’t see him until he stopped for a break at Angel’s Rest. I was about 10 minutes behind him. The view from Angel’s Rest was hard earned but nice. I let him know that I was now certain that today was my last day hiking. The morning’s hike had the opposite effect on him; he was now solid in his decision to keep hiking.

We kept going and I fell behind again. I hiked as quickly as I could and caught him at our next break, 5 miles further on, where we stopped to eat a snack for lunch. Jingle was hiking in from Woods Hole, and we met her with about 2.5 miles left in the day. Subtitles was considering hiking a little further, but the rocks of the last few miles and the allure of Woods Hole convinced him to stay with us at the hostel.

I had saved the best for last; Woods Hole Hostel was my favorite stay on the trail. The rustic charm, beautiful mountain setting, and friendly caretakers make this a special place. I got a bunk in the empty bunkhouse, and Jingle and Subtitles stayed in a glamping tent. The hostel wasn’t serving dinner tonight, but they were selling fresh bread and cheese. Jingle made Spaghetti, and I bought some bread and cheese to go with it. We cooked outside with a great view of the mountains. It was a good end to a good day. I felt at peace with my decision to stop hiking, and I slept great until the rain pounded on the roof sometime in the early morning.

After Trail

Woods Hole’s breakfast the next morning was incredible: cheesy eggs, sausage, grits cakes, fresh bread, french toast bake, and hot coffee. After breakfast, Subtitles started hiking, and I relaxed on the front porch, watching the rain and feeling great about not hiking. After settling our tab, Jingle and I packed up and hit the road.

We drove the forest roads down to Dismal Falls. We walked down to the falls from the road and crossed over to the other side of the creek. After the summer drought, the falls were not very impressive, but beautiful nonetheless.

After the falls, we drove to Kimberling Creek to meet Subtitles for lunch. He planned to sleep at the next shelter and meet us tomorrow morning at VA Route 611 for breakfast. It was raining and early in the afternoon when Jingle and I got to 611, so we drove to the town of Bland to pick up some drinks. I booked a rental car to drive home the next day. We set up our camp and cooked dinner while enjoying our drinks.

The last campsite.

The next morning, Subtitles met us for breakfast on schedule. We had pancakes, sausage, and cinnamon apples. I said goodbye to Subtitles before he hiked away and helped Jingle pack the car. She drove me to Enterprise near Blacksburg, we said our goodbyes, and I drove 12 hours to my parents’ house in Illinois, oblivious that in 48 hours Hurricane Helene would devastate the region I just left.

Lack-of-Shower Thoughts

The last week of hiking was a rollercoaster. From being excited to have Jingle back and driving support to us to my back hurting like it did before my surgery and recovery. From getting my hammock back to tackle the rest of the trail with support to Subtitles saying he was ready to be done. From filling in the portions I missed and expecting to carry on alone to being ready to be done. From being happy to be home to 

When I left the trail in Maine with my concussion, I was disappointed and felt a sense of loss by abandoning the thru hike. This time around, I left at peace and with pride that I completed over half of the trail. I also feel extremely lucky that I left on my own terms and got out of the area just 2 days before Hurricane Helene devastated the region, before I even knew it was coming.

What Now?

I will finish hiking the AT some time, probably over the course of several years. Finishing the Whites will probably be my first step as a hut-to-hut slackpack, maybe next summer. After that I will have just a little bit of New Hampshire and most of Maine left to finish, which I will probably try to do all at once or in two chunks. As for the southern portion, I may try to do it all at once in NoBo season to try to get more of the social experience I felt I didn’t get enough of as a flip flopper. Or I may try to break it up, since I live closer to that end of the trail.

In the more immediate term, I plan to enjoy the rest of my leave of absence by road tripping out to the Dakotas and spending time with family. While this is the end of my Appalachian Trail updates (for now), I will probably write one more post reflecting on my time on trail.