- Thursday, 17 August
Pete and I headed out from my house around 1100. We stopped for lunch at the Frost Cafe in Culpeper. We got to Cliff’s House around 1600. Bruce had arrived about 30 minutes earlier. After opening up the cabin, we discovered that the water pressure was virtually nonexistent (very low most of the time, absent at other times). Mike arrived around 1700. We visited for a while, then had the chili and cornbread that Cecile had sent with Bruce. After dinner we played cards for a few hours, then hit the hay for an early hike on Friday. - Friday, 18 August
Up around 0600 on Friday. We grabbed a quick breakfast at the McDonald’s in Elkton and ate en route to Skyline Drive. We got to the trailhead at the Brown Mountain Overlook around 0730. It was a spectacularly beautiful day with temps in the low 70s when we started, rising to the mid 80s during the hike, and a mostly clear sky. We hiked the Brown Mt Trail to the Big Run Portal Trail where we had lunch. After lunch, we used the Portal Trail to connect with Rocky Mountain Trail, then took the Brown Mountain Trail back to the trailhead. The route back up to Skyline Drive was a mostly gentle grade until the last mile or so. The hike was about 10.2 miles, with a total ascent of about 2410′ [see map using the photos link below]. We got back to the car around 1530 and headed to the Loft Mountain Wayside to get blackberry milkshakes. After that, we decided to head to Ciro’s for dinner, rather than going back to the cabin, first. We had a congenial wiseguy as our waiter, and an enjoyable dinner, then headed back to Cliff’s for more poker and a few beers. - Saturday, 19 August
Up around 0600 again, and then another McDonald’s breakfast that we ate while driving to the AT trailhead at Simmon’s Gap. The weather was similar to Friday’s, sunny and relatively cool for August. We dropped a car at the first AT road crossing south of Swift Run Gap, drove to Simmon’s Gap, and then hiked back to the car near Swift Run Gap [see map in Photos]. The hike was about 8.3 miles with a total ascent of about 2255′. We had lunch at the Hightop summit, where we chatted with other hikers on the rocky outcrop overlooking the Shenandoah Valley. After the hike we headed back to the Loft Mt Wayside for another milkshake, then back to Cliff’s to clean up and rest before dinner. Dinner was at the El Paso Mexican Grille in Elkton. We played cards for an hour or two after getting back to Cliff’s House, then hit the hay. - Sunday, 20 August
Got up around 0600 again, and cleaned up Cliff’s House. We departed around 0730. Pete and I stopped by the Frost Cafe for breakfast. We got back to College Park a little after 1100, and Pete headed home to NJ.
Kerry Snow's Travel Blog (and other stuff)
