Day 40 & 41: Start of VA triple crown, cows, and more

Day 40: We got shuttled to the trailhead from the motel in Pearisburg. The start of the hike was hilly and rocky. Lots of climbing and descending today. Felt like a long day. Hit trail magic in the early afternoon from a very kind man whose wife had previously thru hiked the AT. He gave us Gatorade, chips and Oreos. We ended the day with headlamps hiking along a ridge. As we were seeking a stealth camp spot I suddenly saw a set of eyes glowing. I did not love this. I immediately notified my dad. He thought it could be a bobcat but the animal turned its head and realized it was a deer. I was relieved. Fortunately, we landed on a stealth site following the ridge. Total mileage 26.8, 6667 ft ascent. I started my second period on trail today, I am actually thrilled as it is common to lose your cycle on a long hike. A good sign I’m keeping up with my nutrition and staying healthy. 

Day 41: This morning it was tough to wake up after a late night last night. We also had a long day ahead of us, with a goal of 24 miles. Today felt like another long day. We hit trail magic 4.5 miles in from Base Camp Wuss and Base Camp Lupine. We had danishes, pasta salad, hotdogs, taco salads, and Dr Pepper. We were spoiled. It felt invigorating to eat a lot of protein and some veggies. It was the perfect recovery meal after yesterday. About 16 miles in we hit the 700 mile marker, we didn’t even realize it until we came upon a 700 made out of sticks on the side of the trail. We of course took a picture with it and immediately reflected on how we were already 700 miles in. Time is flying and we are having a blast. About 18 miles in we hit Dragon’s Tooth. After Dragon’s Tooth we were starting to plan where we would camp for the night. There was a campsite on FarOut around mile 708. Once again, my dad and I were hiking with headlamps. We stopped at a stream to get our water for the rest of the night around mile 21. We trekked on and came upon a cow pasture. As soon as we entered, I saw eyes glowing in every direction with my headlamp. There literally were cows in the trail, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way in that moment. It was a really neat experience, and the cows were so chill. They just looked at us chewing on hay as we walked by. At one point we were just following the trail, but soon realized we were a bit off of the AT. We were admiring the cow so much. We got a little sidetracked. I swear the cows gave us a look like, “y’all are lost.” We quickly got back on trail and sadly had to leave the cows. A few miles later we landed on a beautiful campsite all to ourselves. We set up camp and ate a late dinner once again. My dad hung our bags and we headed to bed. As soon as we both settled into bed, we were out cold in an instance. Another beautiful and blessed day on the trail.