so, these days, community college operates on 8-week mini-semesters. i sort of got an explanation about why things are trending that way from derek’s sister who teaches at forsyth tech, but i’m not sure i agree with the reasoning. it’s pretty intense to cram an entire class into 8 weeks, and i definitely felt like retention of the material was suspect. but i digress.
in my first 8 week session, i took psych and anatomy and physiology 1. the psych was pretty easy. but. the a&p was brutal. so, when the little four day or so fall break rolled around, i took some time to relax and recharge, before getting right back at it for a&p 2.
my original plans were to stay at a hipcamp spot in western nc, but hurricane helene literally obliterated those plans, so i started looking for some places in viriginia. then a bit of good fortune struck. a campground (peaks of otter) that had been closed down because of the hurricane reopened on a first come first serve on the day before i was planning to go. i rushed home, packed up, and got on the road. a few hours later, i rolled into a very empty campground, set up shop, and took myself for a little stroll around a nearby lake, where i got a good view of the hike i would embark on the next morning.
i was camping pretty close to some very old friends of ours, the dowds, who live in bedford, virginia. chris was out of town, but i was able to meet up with jessie and have a lovely dinner and evening chatting at a local restaurant. (if you’re wondering, this was also my last day on 75 hard and i stuck with it to the bitter end, even at that dinner).
i got cozy in my little tent for a good (ish) nights sleep and in the morning, freshened up a bit, had the worlds best cup(s) of coffee, fueled up with some long denied carbs, and savored my morning.
my first hike of the day was up sharptop mountain. it’s pretty steep. and i didn’t see many people. on the hike, that is. there’s a shuttle that takes folks to the top, and as you can imagine, most people opt for the less strenuous option.
while it’s somewhat annoying to work that hard for an epic view, only to arrive and find it swarmed with people who just hopped off a bus, it was nice that other people are around to offer to take cool pics. a very nice lady actually asked if she could take my pic as i sat on a rock, because she thought it looked cool. it was a little awkward and staged but shhhhhh. no one has to know.
on the hike back down, i took a little detour to get another view of the peak i from whence i had come. if you’re counting, that hike was about 3 miles and 1300′ elevation gain. when i got back to my campsite, i hopped in the car to drive to another trailhead. while i charged my watch, i had a very boring lunch. avocado, cheese, and turkey.
the second hike, to flat top mountain, was completely desolate. i am not sure i saw a single person. i was a little worried i wasn’t even on the right trail for a lot of it. and with no buses to the top, i had to make use of my tripod to get some very staged photos. this hike ended up being about 4.5 miles with 1650′ elevation gain, so i was ready to get back to camp and re. lax.
i hooked myself up with a strip steak simple fajita type meal. and then lit up a little campfire for ambience and vibes.
originally, i had just planned to have a leisurely morning, possibly even finding some cool towns to stop in on my way back home. but, i started researching a little, and then next thing i knew, i had another hike planned. so, i woke up early, caffeinated, packed up and departed for a very cool adventure.
mcafee’s knob has been on my bucket list for awhile. it’s on the appalachian trail and ends at a picturesque little rock overhang outcrop sort of spot. it was only about a 45 minute detour i think, so really a no brainer. i was a little worried about the parking situation, because the nearest parking area was closed, but i was able to park on a little switchback road nearby that only added a half mile-ish to the hike.
i didn’t take many pics. i mostly just cruised along. eagerly anticipating the payoff. and did it ever pay off. there were tons of people at the top, so i exchanged photo duties with some nice folks and got all the awkward, staged pics from various angles. (it’s not as dangerous as it looks, but there was definitely a ranger posted nearby keeping a close watch for any shenanigans).
sorry. lots of pics. i love them all.
this hike ended up being about 8 miles and 2100′ elevation change. so, my two days added up to about 15.5 miles and 5000′-ish elevation. not too shabby. and a perfect way to relax and unwind between these dumb mini-semesters.