Day 73 on the AT – Obligatory McAfee Knob Photoshoot

Day 73

Start: Trout Creek

End: Campbell Shelter

Miles Hiked: 18.2

Miles on AT: 715.1

Follow my journey on Instagram (@jenbrownhikes) for more updates!

I woke up and started hiking around 7:45 am today. The past few days have been pretty hot, so I wanted to try starting in the cool morning air. Unfortunately, the air was still pretty warm despite the earlier hour, but it felt good to get an earlier start.

It seemed like I was the first person to leave this morning because all of the spider webs were waiting for me as I climbed up to Dragon’s Tooth. I constantly plucked the invisible silken webs off of my face while trying to look out for the monster webs so I could break them before I ran into them.

The climb up to Dragon’s Tooth was along a ridge with many views along the way. The trail was smooth and easy to traverse, so I made good time. I didn’t really know what to expect at Dragon’s Tooth, but when I got there, I was a little disappointed. The “tooth” was a cool pointed rock formation, but I found that I enjoyed the climb there much more than the attraction itself. While up there, I met a family who was hiking part of the Virginia’s Triple Crown with their teenage son. He was doing most of it himself, but they joined for just a portion.

After chatting with them for a while, I made my way back to the trail and started climbing down. And, wow, what a descent! I had to use my hands and pay close attention to where I placed my feet. There wasn’t a trail, really, just a bunch of rocks. It was around 10:30 or so and the day hikers were beginning to make their way up to Dragon’s Tooth. I must’ve passed around 10 to 15 on my way down.

Around lunch, I stopped at a stream by a road crossing to take a break and assess where I was. A few minutes after I sat down, Indy, the young hiker I had seen during the few days, walked up. He had just had pizza at a shop just 0.3 miles down the road and was continuing on. Hmmm, that sounded like a good lunch idea.

I looked at the map and saw that, while convenience store pizza was just around the corner, I could also go to the next road and get a hitch to Solstice Farm Brewery, where there would be a food truck. Perfect!

Approaching the road, cows and calves greeted me as well as the sunshine. I love walking through open fields, so I was in heaven. The brewery was only 1.5 miles from the trail, so I got a quick ride there, and, wow, was the place beautiful. The owners brew all of the beers and ciders on their own and many of the ingredients come directly from their farm. I arrived a few minutes after they opened, so I chatted with them while they waited for more customers.

If you’re ever visiting McAfee Knob or the area around it, I highly recommend Solstice Farm Brewery. Not only do they provide a great atmosphere, they also provide a great place for people in their community to gather. I had a great chat with a couple of locals and everyone was so nice and welcoming. Unfortunately, the food truck didn’t show up so I just ate out of my food bag, but I did enjoy the tasty glass of beer I had. They also had a hiker log book and a hiker box, so they are hiker friendly.

After about 2 hours of enjoying the company at the brewery, I got back on trail. It was about 3pm and I had about 9 miles left to go. Luckily, the hiking wasn’t bad at all. It was still hot, but the trees provided good cover once I left the open fields.

Soon I was on the trail to McAfee Knob. My plan was to get up there, eat dinner, and watch the sunset before heading down to the shelter. Despite the trail being relatively gradual, it was still a climb. Water was scarce, so I stopped at a shelter to get more, but it was dry. Luckily, the kid I had met at Dragon’s Tooth earlier in the morning was there. His mom was going to pick him up that evening and he had extra water, which he let me have. I was so grateful.

I continued to climb and found more water at the next shelter. Once I got to McAfee Knob, I was hungry and ready for dinner. I had the place all to myself! After taking the obligatory pictures, I set up my dinner, sat back, and enjoyed my meal. I still had a while until sunset, but it soon came. I had a great time setting up my shots and capturing the color show.

But, I couldn’t properly capture the best part of sunset. The sun was a huge red ball in the sky. Wow! My phone pictures don’t do it justice at all. I watched as the ball slid from behind the cloud layer, hovered briefly in the small space between the clouds and the mountains, and then disappeared behind the dark blue mountains. It was a great show!

After packing up, I put my headlamp on and continued the half mile to the shelter. Once under the trees, it was dark. I don’t like night hiking because I’m a bit of a scaredy cat, but I survived and made it to the shelter before full darkness set in.