VA hike #2, day 10

Monday, April 4th, 2016
Start: Sarver Hollow Shelter
End: Bailey Gap Shelter
Miles: 21.0 (+0.4 for shelter side trail)

I got up at 7am, which was a bit later than I intended but I'd had a poor night's sleep the night before. I was on trail by 7:45am. 

I passed by Bruises Knob (3417'), saw the Keffer Oak [largest oak tree on AT in the south at over 18' around and 300+ years old] (2322'), and then passed over Sinking Creek/VA 42 (2097'). I went past Laurel Creek Shelter (2798'), climbed Kelly Knob (3730'), went down to VA 632 (2080'), passed by War Spur Shelter (2361'), then climbed up to Lone Pine Peak (4026'). I passed by VA 613 (3950') and arrived at Bailey Gap Shelter at 6pm.

Originally, I'd intended to go to the next shelter which is 3.9 miles away but today was much slower going than I anticipated. My left knee is still giving me trouble, making downhill portions very painful. My right heel hasn't gotten much better from the chaffing and it bled during this morning's climb up from the shelter back to the trail.

I'm looking forward to arriving in Pearisburg tomorrow evening and meeting up with Towanda. I'm currently planning to spend tomorrow evening and Wednesday morning in town; then when Towanda heads out at lunch time, I'll hike to Woods Hole hostel, which is around 10 miles out of town.

For whatever reason, today was hard to stay focused and happy. There were thunderstorms towards the end of the day, which made a rocky section much more difficult, since they were all slippery. I'm trying to focus on the fact that I'll be done with this hike by Sunday and the terrain only gets easier from here.