| June 18, 2005 |
| Harpers
Shelter to Dripping Rock, Waynesboro, VA - Quality Inn |
| The night
before when we came upon Harpers Creek Shelter sign, it read
Maupin Field Shelter and Mau-Har Trail both pointing the same way in
the same direction. The Harpers Creek Shelter was still .8 on
the AT; however, it was nearly dark, we were tired so I thought the
shelter was .8 off the trail and not on the AT. Spirit, Simon
and I were the only ones in the shelter that night, except we were
entertained by an :at risk" group and a scout group. A good
nights rest without mice, gnats or mosquitoes! |
|
We had 6 miles to go on the AT passed
Chimney Rocks, Three Ridges, all very rocky and steep. I
remembered the 3 mile sign at the top of the hill .8 up
south_____Guess What? We walked back to the Maupin-Mau-Har
sign and cut the mileage in half! Wow, what a great decision. |
|
The trail was very smooth easy, downhill
and through the hardwoods. We saw waterfalls one after
another, had a wonderful spot by the creek to eat a snack sitting on
top of a huge boulder. After we started moving again, the
trail was nothing but rocks, rocks, and more rocks. Large
boulders lined the Maupin Creek bed and the falls made deep pools of
crystal clear water. The large boulders beside us on the trail
were covered with mosses, vines, ferns, and flowers. The
3 miles were strenuous, but certainly a beautiful scenic area and a
change from hardwoods. We arrived at Maupin Shelter cooked our
lunch and decided to move on towards Waynesboro as far as we could
get before dark. |
|
What happened to the sun? Well, I'll
tell you! The day became overcast and looked like rain.
The views from Hanging Rock and Cedar Cliff were hazy, but still we
were able to see the Mountains in the distance_______then rain
started__a drop at a time. We didn't put on our rain covers
because the rain blew over our heads and it was gone. OK,
great hiking weather, cool with a breeze. The trail was good,
we could make some time; then 20 - 30 minutes later, the rain came
again over the mountain, a drop at a time then harder. We put
on our rain covers to keep our packs dry. The rain poured and
we were soaking wet. It was a hard cold rain. By the
time we got to BRP Crossing our bodies were cooled, fingers numb,
head and clothes soaked. |
|
Our luck had changed. When we met a
cyclist who had stopped biking because of the heavy down pour.
His wife had hitched a ride back to Waynesboro to pick up their
jeep. She was returning to get him and pick up the bikes.
We invited to hitch a ride into Waynesboro to get a motel room. |
|
Thankful to get out of the cold rain, and
not have to tent, we accepted. We spent the night at Quality
Inn, and the next day caught a shuttle back to Dripping Rock. |
|
Swing'n Jane and
Simon |
|
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