Sometimes when it's gloomy and overcast in the lowlands, the high ridges are above the clouds- a rare and special treat. The hike this past Saturday was not one of those. It was overcast as fellow hikers Steve, Dan, and I set out predawn for a central district hike. The Powell Mountain trailhead is buried deep in central district's west side. Many south district hikes involve less travel time. This hike would eventually lead to 3812' Hazeltop, the third highest peak in Shenandoah. We had to get there first, starting with the 2100' Powell Mountain climb to Hazeltop Ridge Overlook on Skyline Drive. It was chilly but not cold as we started the climb under grey skies, a little light rain to warrant a pack cover but no rain jacket. The trail uses an old road, discernible at lower levels as crunchy leaf filled ditches. Under a mile in, there was a view of a frozen waterfall up Big Creek in the narrow gorge between Powell Mountain and Peters Point.
We hiked on up into the clouds, never getting above them. We were fogged in at Hazeltop Ridge Overlook. It was windy and chilly there, with enough sideways drizzle to bring out the rain jackets. From here, it was a Drive walk of under a mile south to Bootens Gap, where we picked up the AT and headed north over Hazeltop. Being in the clouds, there was no reason to stop at the side trail north of the top to otherwise good views. My favorite thing about Hazeltop is the 400 yard AT "straightaway". I can't recall any other wooded clear line of sight segment of the AT like this. We were below the clouds now, so could see end to end. It's one of my favorite AT spots.
We paused at Milam Gap to regroup. There's a neat tree with five trunks here, which I had never stopped to notice until now. It certainly had a rough history. Next up was a muddy descent to Rapidan Camp (aka Camp Hoover) via the Mill Prong trails, with a stop at Big Rock Falls. There were a few other hikers doing this popular circuit, but we had the Brown House at Camp Hoover to ourselves. Usually a warm sheltered spot for a break, it was chilly here too. The low cloud base loomed a couple hundred feet above, obscuring Fork Mountain.
The trail out Laurel Prong looked battered. There's a fair bit of deadfall along here amidst the dense undergrowth, but the soggy trail was mostly clear of obstacles. I expected to climb back into the clouds, but the low clouds were in the process of dissipating. No sunny skies though, as broken mid level clouds and a high overcast remained. Fortunately no rain, so there was a drying trend as we made the rocky trek from Laurel Gap back to the AT. We followed the AT south to the Bearfence rock scramble.
Having vowed to never again put Bearfence near the end of a long hike, here we were, nearly 14 miles in with 4200 feet of climbing, facing the rock scramble with tired legs on slick rocks. They warn about doing this scramble on wet rocks. Well, the rocks weren't totally wet, but they weren't totally dry either. Dan is a natural rock hopper, so nothing fazes him. I made the mistake of following him, only to find we weren't following the blue blazes. Easy for him, hard for me. There were a couple spots where I had to be extra careful to have solid footing. Having the boot slip and slide on an absolutely necessary platform doesn't inspire confidence. Slick rocks aside, we were all soon atop Bearfence. We had it to ourselves, and with the low clouds gone, we had good views. The sky looked threatening but we cared little. Bearfence, yea!
After a rest break at empty Bearfence Hut, it was down Meadow School Trail and Jollett Road back to the car. Dan found a vine to swing on and some ice patches to slide on along the way, otherwise it was an uneventful downhill at a rapid pace. Along the road walk outside the Park, "The Point" Overlook on Skyline Drive was visible, 1.7 miles distant and 1500' up. The barking dogs from several houses were no match for my own barking dogs. It's too early in the hiking season for my feet to be complaining so much. I don't feel "marathon hike" capable.
Pictures
We hiked on up into the clouds, never getting above them. We were fogged in at Hazeltop Ridge Overlook. It was windy and chilly there, with enough sideways drizzle to bring out the rain jackets. From here, it was a Drive walk of under a mile south to Bootens Gap, where we picked up the AT and headed north over Hazeltop. Being in the clouds, there was no reason to stop at the side trail north of the top to otherwise good views. My favorite thing about Hazeltop is the 400 yard AT "straightaway". I can't recall any other wooded clear line of sight segment of the AT like this. We were below the clouds now, so could see end to end. It's one of my favorite AT spots.
We paused at Milam Gap to regroup. There's a neat tree with five trunks here, which I had never stopped to notice until now. It certainly had a rough history. Next up was a muddy descent to Rapidan Camp (aka Camp Hoover) via the Mill Prong trails, with a stop at Big Rock Falls. There were a few other hikers doing this popular circuit, but we had the Brown House at Camp Hoover to ourselves. Usually a warm sheltered spot for a break, it was chilly here too. The low cloud base loomed a couple hundred feet above, obscuring Fork Mountain.
The trail out Laurel Prong looked battered. There's a fair bit of deadfall along here amidst the dense undergrowth, but the soggy trail was mostly clear of obstacles. I expected to climb back into the clouds, but the low clouds were in the process of dissipating. No sunny skies though, as broken mid level clouds and a high overcast remained. Fortunately no rain, so there was a drying trend as we made the rocky trek from Laurel Gap back to the AT. We followed the AT south to the Bearfence rock scramble.
Having vowed to never again put Bearfence near the end of a long hike, here we were, nearly 14 miles in with 4200 feet of climbing, facing the rock scramble with tired legs on slick rocks. They warn about doing this scramble on wet rocks. Well, the rocks weren't totally wet, but they weren't totally dry either. Dan is a natural rock hopper, so nothing fazes him. I made the mistake of following him, only to find we weren't following the blue blazes. Easy for him, hard for me. There were a couple spots where I had to be extra careful to have solid footing. Having the boot slip and slide on an absolutely necessary platform doesn't inspire confidence. Slick rocks aside, we were all soon atop Bearfence. We had it to ourselves, and with the low clouds gone, we had good views. The sky looked threatening but we cared little. Bearfence, yea!
After a rest break at empty Bearfence Hut, it was down Meadow School Trail and Jollett Road back to the car. Dan found a vine to swing on and some ice patches to slide on along the way, otherwise it was an uneventful downhill at a rapid pace. Along the road walk outside the Park, "The Point" Overlook on Skyline Drive was visible, 1.7 miles distant and 1500' up. The barking dogs from several houses were no match for my own barking dogs. It's too early in the hiking season for my feet to be complaining so much. I don't feel "marathon hike" capable.
No comments:
Post a Comment