September 4. Apple Orchard Trail to the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Appalachian Trail and the Cornelius Creek Trail. 7.7 miles. One of our favorite loop hikes, on this instance undertaken on a rainy day, which sent us up to the parkway to spread out our lunch under the cover for the sign describing the trails below. At that spot were several hunters calling and whistling for a lost dog, which was apparently electronically linked to the antenna-looking device one of the men carried and waved around as he called. Toward the end of lunch, we witnessed the reunion of men and dog, a happy occasion for both parties. The walk back down along Cornelius Creek was marked by what seemed to us to be an unusually strong summer flow for the creek.
September 10. Balcony Falls Trail in Rockbridge County. 8.2 miles. The trail, new to us, has three distinct sections--easy and leisurely at first, then a series of hard-climbing switchbacks up into the James River Face Wilderness, and then a Virginia ridge walk. The day was damp, and the wet brush on a little-used trail set up the Greatest Day Hiker Of Them All for her worst hiking nightmare: sitting down at lunch, looking down at her legs and seeing . . . live, crawling-upward chiggers! This after we'd already tried one lunch spot and been chased away by yellow jackets. Gail was determined to pick every nearly invisible chigger off herself, with my assistance on the spots she couldn't see or reach. We worked hard, but alas, the little orange buggers won out again, as for the ensuing day or two Gail said she'd never go in the woods again, and for the ensuing three or four weeks, she itched and scratched and complained, and sprayed he legs every time she went into the woods.
September 17. Dragon's Tooth Trail to Scout Trail to the AT back to Dragon's Tooth Trail. 3.4 miles. An easy, enjoyable hike, with that great view down into the Catawba Valley from Rawie's Rest, a pleasant lunch stop and, best of all for The Day Hiker--no sign at all of chiggers!
September 24. Appalachian Trail from Va. 621 to the crest of Sinking Creek Mountain and back. 8.0 miles. From its nifty little parking area through the slow, steady climb to the top, this section of the AT is rewarding every timr. And especially so on this day, when Gail was rewarded with a great bounty of her newest forest-floor obsession--mushrooms. We'd also hoped to see another living thing the area is famous for--wild goats--but none showed itself on this day.
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