Day 66
Start: US 52 – Bland, VA
End: Jenny Knob Shelter
Miles Hiked: 11.9
Miles on AT: 603.9
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New day, new plan!! We’re getting back on trail and we’re gonna make it. Today we got back on at US 52 with the sun blazing. Our short road walk took us under I-77 and then back into the woods. Our climb back onto the ridge was short but steep. We definitely had to work for it.
By the time we reached the top, my shirt was soaked with sweat. The rest of the hike was relatively flat on a smooth path, which made for easy walking. We didn’t see too many people on trail today, maybe 2 hikers total. But, I did spot more than enough creepy critters.
First, I spotted a tick crawling on the back of Janitor’s leg. It wasn’t the first time I’d stopped him so he could brush off a bug, but it was the first tick we’d seen on trail. It hadn’t bitten him or latched on, so we were able to pull it off and take a lighter to it. Close call!
The second critter I saw was a black snake. Janitor had walked right over it, but I spotted it just as I stepped on its tail. You would have laughed at the squeal I let out. I had tried to avoid stepping on him, but my foot was already on the way down as my brain registered that a snake was in its path. Poor guy. He slithered away, not gravely injured. Meanwhile, I spent the next few miles on edge. I hate snakes and now every stick and root I saw looked like a snake.
After all of that drama, we made our final push to the shelter. There had been no water on trail for most of the day, so we were grateful when we reached our destination. Even then, the water source at the shelter was just a trickle. It took me at least 10 minutes to collect our 6 liters for the night.
There were two other hikers at the shelter, one section hiker that had passed us earlier in the day, and another NOBO that we were meeting for the first time. The evening passed quickly. Right after dinner, drops of rain started to fall, pushing us all into our tents. The rain doesn’t sound like it will last, so fingers crossed for a dry night.
And that’s day 66.
A version of this post originally appeared on TheTrek.co.