28 April catch-up.

28 April catch-up.

Hiked from Peters Mountain shelter to Rausch Gap shelter for 18 miles, longest hike, yet. I thought I would have to stop short and camp at Yellow Springs, an 1850-era coal village site, but pushed through the last eight miles and a thunderstorm because the trail was much easier by that time.

In the morning I refilled my water from a piped spring (pictured) after a moderately steep drop off the mountain. At the bottom was a beautiful stream with a number of trout fisherman looking for the best spot. It was a long climb up the next slope, but got easier on an old road, which was crossed by a spring tainted orange with iron (pictured), typical of acidic runoff from old coal mines. The trail overlooked a pretty reservoir.

At the crest was a nice stand of pines with a fire ring and seats made of arranged rocks (pictured), so I sat down to massage my sore feet, a wonderful respite.

It was pretty much a gentle downhill from there, with lots of mountain laurel and occasional muddy spots. No photos as my phone battery went dead and I didn't want to recharge from my backup battery pack. When a light rain started, I put on my poncho/tarp. Good thing, because a thunderstorm rolled through with heavier rain. Several hikers on the trail were putting on rain gear or trying to find dry spots under hemlocks.

I finally rolled into Rausch Gap shelter rather late, and being the weekend, found the shelter full, including Rockdawg. I found a campsite near a Boy Scout group practicing for Philmont camp this summer, and setup my tarp (rather clumsily) and bivy sack under some pine trees, looking for soft needle padding. Tip: don't do this! Pine sap is a pain to clean off. Had a nice chat with the neighbouring scoutmaster before crawling into bed, just as the rain picked up tapping on my tarp. It didn't rain very long, but I stayed dry.

Rockdawg later told me that people came in late to the shelter, bringing their dogs in with them and being very disruptive. I was probably better off away from all of that.