The Dragonfly Inn in Damascus was wonderful. Ralph and his wife were gracious hosts and I really enjoyed the free breakfast this morning at their diner. (I already knew it would be good since I enjoyed it the day before… and had dinner there too.) I ended up having breakfast with Taps and his wife. Taps is a good guy. We share a love of Old Fashioned cocktails so I hope when we complete our hikes, we have a chance to have a cocktail together. We keep crossing paths all the time on trail and in towns. He was at Dragonfly Inn when I arrived. I tease him that I just cannot get away from him but really, he’s been a pleasure to talk with. You meet wonderful people on a trail like this. So leaving Damascus, the AT starts as also the Virginia Creeper Trail until the AT splits off and goes back into the woods. It seems, from the comments on the FarOut app, that a lot of people stay on the Virginia Creeper Trail as it’s very well graded as it’s popular as a cycling trail. You can skip two major mountain climbs and go 9.6 miles until it merges with the AT again versus doing the major climbs with rocks and roots for 12.5 miles. The Creeper Trail also has more river views and you can easily walk 3-ish miles per hour, versus my pace of 2-ish miles per hour on trail. I won’t diss anyone who decides to shortcut on the Virginia Creeper Trail and I don’t mean to sound like a “purist” but I’m here to hike the AT. Not take shortcuts. This is a pilgrimage for me since I am moving from the South to Maine. I pass people all the time that get rides up further north to walk southbound on sections where it allows them to do more downhills, connecting their footsteps but doing it the easier direction. I’m just not doing that. Again, I look at this as a pilgrimage. I will always start my hike where I stopped and I will always go the NOBO route. Even if it means massive climbs. Others can do their own hike however they want, like the lady I heard who thru-hiked the AT but never climbed Mt. Washington. Instead, she took the tram to the top and walked down the south side. Took the tram back to the top again and walked down the north side and continued on. Did she walk all of the AT. Well, yes. She just did it easier by not having to climb up that mountain. I won’t do that. My pilgrimage will take me up and over.

Okay, that was a long rant I didn’t mean to get into. Anyway, back to today. It was simply a decent day of just hiking. No real big views to talk about. Some really big climbs since I stuck to the AT instead of the Creeper Trail. The section where the AT is on the VA Creeper Trail was fantastic! I was able to make good time on that amazing section. One last climb up to Lost Mountain Shelter but happy to be somewhere with a bear box (Yay! Don’t have to hang a bear line!) and a privy (Yay! Don’t have to dig a cat hole!) and there are SO many good spots for tents here. My tent is all comfy on a bed of leaves. Should be a good night and only a low of around 45 so I shouldn’t have frozen, stinging fingers in the morning. Tomorrow has a SERIOUS climb and I need to decide if I’m going to do a short 12.5 mile day before entering Grayson Highlands to see the ponies OR go into Grayson Highlands and either have to stay in the only shelter in that park or push on to camp just outside of that park. (You cannot tent in the park except for approved campsites that are not on the AT.) If I push into the park, that means I’ll only need to do my first 20.2 mile day after that. Otherwise, I’d have to do a 25 mile day. Yikes! I think I need to push because I hear while the grade doesn’t look too bad, it’s really rocky. I’ll play it by ear tomorrow. I want to be set up for a short day when I go stay at the Alpaca Farm. Not happy having to do the bunkhouse but this sounds like something I have to experience.