5/25/06 Thursday: Seeley-Woodworth Shelter to Maupin Field Shelter (20.5mi)

PICTURES:
1. View from Spy Rock
2. The best Trail Majik yet!!! The two gentlemen on the left are sponsoring it and the two hikers on the right with their dog spent the night on Spy Rock...
3. Views from The Priest Mtn.
4. More views from The Priest Mtn.
5. A different shade of rhododendrum... nice
6. That's Jim from Memphis, also having a good day on the trail...
7. Views from Three Ridges
8. Hanging Rock Vista where I also had dinner.

I was out by 0615 today with a big day planned along with some pretty good climbs to boot. Many of the hikers I stayed with last night were headed for a hostel 3 miles away for a free lunch... I decided not to waste the morning waiting for the free lunch and continued on my way... My first stop was Spy Rock. Less than .10 off the main trail this was a pretty cool scramble up some rocks...with a great view once I got there... Also found a couple up there with their dog...they stayed the night up on the rock... He said it was his 7th thru hike and second stay up on Spy Rock... This time he didnt have the 50 mph winds...lol... It was a beautiful night...just right for laying under the stars.. I still dont know how the dog got up there??? Anyway, I left them and headed north again with a 500" climb which has become pretty common for Virginia. Well, greeting me on the other side of this climb was some TRAIL MAJIK!!! And this wasnt your run of the mill trail majic either... They were cooking pork chops, steaks, had all sorts of pies, candies, fruit, beer, soda. You name it, they had it... WOW!!! I ate my fill and stocked up on some energy bars for the trail ahead, I was running low... and after about 90min of eating and chatting I bid the a good day and comtinued on my way up The Priest Mtn... About a 1000" climb for us north bounders.... A 3000" climb for the poor southbound hikers...lol... I used all my water on the climb and stopped at Cripple Creek on the other side for some more and headed for Harpers Creek Shelter for lunch and a break... Just before arriving at the shelter I met Jim from Memphis, a section hiker and retired Navy VP19 Pilot. Im always amazed at the incredible diversity among the hikers... School teachers, doctors, nurses, boat captains, iron workers, oil drill rig workers, ex military, you name it and there out here... Its wonderful... The afternoon was nice and uneventful until I arrived at the Hanging Rock Vista location at about 1700 where I decided to spend another 90min rest/dinner period and make some phone calls, since I had pretty good cell reception... It was sunny with a breeze at first, but by the time I finished eating the breeze had become gusts of up to 40mph...lol...time to move on... The Maupin Field Shelter was only a couple of miles up the trail and I arrived for the night around 1900.