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Kurt Rheinheimer
Gail at The Cascades, before the snow got deep enough to reveal . .. cat tracks!
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Kurt Rheinheimer
On the way down from the Mill Mountain Star.
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Kurt Rheinheimer
My Valentine at Apple Orchard Falls.
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Kurt Rheinheimer
The ice had still not melted off the tops of the trees near the crest of Cold Mountain.
February 3: Cascades Trail to the falls, and beyond to Barney’s Wall and back. 8 miles.
We booked a good chunk of the weekend in nearby Blacksburg, going to see the wonderful Todd Snider at the Lyric on Friday evening, and then staying in town to get up and go out into the cold for an old favorite. The first two miles—to the falls—was fairly well populated, if cold. But soon beyond where everyone else turned around and as we climbed, the ground became more and more snow-covered. Soon we were walking in four or so inches, with our footprints being the first up the Conservancy Trail to Barney’s Wall. Well, at least the first human footprints, as The Greatest Day Hiker Of Them All (and ace tracker) perceived what she identified as feline prints (“no nail marks like canines leave,” she said). And soon, given the prints’ size and their occasional splitting apart, she decided we were following a pair of very large bobcats. Which, she continued to surmise, might be very hungry given the snow cover, and might very well attack. My assertions that it had been a really long time (never!) since we’d heard about attacking bobcats in this part of the world didn’t seem to convince her fully, but at least kept her going. By the time we got to the turnoff for Barney’s Wall and saw human footprints, she was still worked up enough to wonder aloud if we were now following some axe murderers. At Barney’s Wall, we shared the beautiful view for a short time with several young ladies—students from Virginia Tech, armed with nothing but smiles n giggles. The lesson, which I’ve learned before but had forgotten: Beware the fertile mind of The Day Hiker in new snow.
February 10: Star, Watchtower, Loop Road and Monument trails loop on Mill Mountain, with foray into South Roanoke to Fork in the Alley in the middle. 8 miles.
You can get your miles in on Mill Mountain on a cold day, and have at the middle of it the warm welcome of Fork in the Alley, and the good good Mediterranean salad they make.
February 11: Chestnut Ridge Loop Trail, slightly shortened for rain. 4.2 miles.
One of the many good things about this local loop is that you can shortcut it pretty easily at several spots, as on this day.
February 14. Apple Orchard/Cornelius Creek trails loop hike. 6 miles.
You get your girl to go hiking with you, you’re a lucky guy. You get her to do it year-round, you’re way lucky. On this day, I got to commemorate 14 years of Gail doing just that, with our annual return to our first walk of the Hiking Oddity, on Feb 14, 2004. It’s a great hike no matter the time of year, and for us has lent a meaning well beyond red candy and dinner to Valentine’s Day.
February 18: Old Hotel, Appalachian trails loop over Cold Mountain. 6 miles.
We hadn’t been up on the bald of Cold Mountain for a long time, and maybe that was the reason we did this great walk in reverse of what we usually do: Up the AT first to the mile-long bald, with lunch toward its end, and then the longer chunk down the other side, past the shelter and down the Old Hotel Trail.
February 25: Flat Top Trail at Peaks of Otter, up and back. 5.2 miles.
Always a great walk, even with the many faux-summits before you finally get there. We ate lunch on the eastern outcropping this visit.
Since Valentine's Day 2004, Blue Ridge Country Editor in Chief Kurt Rheinheimer and his wife Gail have hiked at least once almost every weekend. Of those bazillion weekends, they have missed just 14, virtually all due to occasional balkiness from Kurt's old-man knees or achilles. For the first two years (Valentine's Day 2004 through Valentine's Day 2006) they didn't miss a single week, and they have a longer streak now, which Kurt is too superstitious to talk about. They celebrated their 1oth anniversary of hiking with a February 2014 trip to hike the trails of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. They completed the 550 miles of the Appalachian Trail in Virginia in the summer of 2008, and have walked more than 5,100 miles total, mostly in Virginia but including hikes in West Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Florida, Oregon and ... New Zealand! This blog is an ongoing chronicle of those hikes. We hope you enjoy these tales from the trail, and we encourage you to get out there and experience the beautiful Blue Ridge for yourself - happy hiking!
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