The weather was marginal for hiking, this morning. I think it was 68F and overcast; we delayed our hiking day a bit to see if it would improve. Sabrina checked the stats for the weather station up on the ridge, in the park... it was 74F and sunny.
I got a quick shot of the Wolftown Mercantile Country Store, which is where we got gas-and-not-lunch on Sunday, as we drove by. More importantly, it shows the sky near the house/farm, which is why we were confused.
It still seemed questionable, as we entered the park at Swift Run Gap.
But once we drove a few miles on Skyline Drive, and crossed over to the west side of the ridge, it turned out to be a sunny day with blue skies.
Our big hike for today was the South River Falls Loop.
While it was hot and sunny in the parking lot, it was perfect hiking weather once we were under the protective canopy of foliage.
The descent was rocky at times, and steep in a few places, but we were not returning via this same path, so it was less troubling than Sunday's trail.
There was a large, flat rock on the edge of a cliff, near the falls observation point. We walked out onto it, to see what could be seen.
Sabrina didn't understand why I suddenly said "stop, back up", as she didn't think she was that close to the edge. I'm no herpetologist, but it sure looks like a rattlesnake to me. (Five minutes of Googling suggests it might have been a Timber Rattlesnake?) It didn't seem particularly alarmed as I approached for a photo, but it was probably four feet long and I didn't want to get any closer.
The view from the observation point was rather terrible, what with all the trees in the way.
Instead, we decided to add the 1.5 mile optional descent to the base of the falls to our hike. One of the signs, or maybe the details on our printed map, described it as "steep and rocky".
We encountered a few couples, going the other way, who affirmed that it was worth the trouble.
Once we reached the base of the falls, we crossed to the other side of the stream and settled in for some lunch.
I decided to cool my feet in the water. It didn't take long; I'd guess the water was 50 to 55F.
The return trip over the wet rocks was even more treacherous than the inbound route. The hiking poles paid for themselves, the first time they prevented me from getting a faceful of rock stairs.
To make this hike into a loop, we returned via the fire road. It was longer, so more of a gentle, neverending incline. Near the top, we diverted onto the Appalachian Trail for half a mile or so.
We got some sweet AT action shots.
The 1000' or so of elevation gain, coupled with the humidity, was quite... let's say I was glistening, just a tad.
Once we made it back to the car, we unloaded our packs and rolled out the snack cart. Leftover chips/salsa from Mexican dinner, some grapes, and some guac I whipped up this morning (3 avocados made the journey with us, from PA).
After snack time, we got back on the road and head north along Skyline Drive, enjoying the scenery and sporty driving conditions. We had a vague plan to do one more, easier, hike before we reached Thornton Gap, but hadn't narrowed down the options yet.
Along the way, we stopped a few times to examine our printed materials, and to look at estimated travel times in the rare spots we could get Google Maps to work.
The second hike we chose was to Hawksbill Summit, the highest point in the park. We went with the "easier" path, which was slightly longer and therefore not quite as steep.
The trip up to the top was completely uneventful, which was a surprise given how our previous hikes had gone.
It was nearly 6 PM when we got to the top. Everything is far apart here, and the speed limit on Skyline Drive is only 35 mph.
Unlike the earlier hike today, we had brought rain gear with us for this one, because there were thunderstorms in the area. We could see one of them in the distance, to the south.
Even with sketchy weather conditions, the view from up there was impressive.
There was a stone observation platform that made it (relatively) safe to get up to the edge of the cliff.
But it was possible to just walk out onto the rocks, up to the edge. Again, I was emboldened by the stability of the hiking poles.
The return to street level was similarly uneventful. Sabrina's app shows the palindrome of a hike to be another ~500 feet of elevation:
We were still about 30 minutes' drive from Thornton Gap, where we'd be able to exit the park. Just before the entrance (exit) station, we went through the only tunnel in the park, appropriately named Mary's Rock Tunnel.
After exiting, we took the now-familiar route back to the farm, which took another half hour or so.
Today we hiked over 7 miles, with a total elevation gain of about 1/3 of a mile. This morning, I needed an Aleve to ease the leftover pain from Sunday's hike. Tomorrow, I'll probably need two.
But that's okay, because tomorrow we're going kayaking on the Shenandoah river, which doesn't require my legs to do much once they're inside the boat. It's going to be hot again, with forecasted temps in the mid-90s.
Sabrina, of course, has no residual leg pain.
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