Braving the Shenandoah Winter Trip Repor t

“I am going to try and get a trip report and pics up tonight. I know Pennsy has some too.

It was in the 70s on Saturday afternoon. We both were hiking in shorts and perfectly warm. The weather was beautiful, but it was playing with my mind. I kept asking myself, "How did we end up in April so quickly?"

Pennsy and I wanted to get our butts kicked since we're training for Mt. Rainier in the summer. So we decided to take full packs up and over Old Rag and then down to White Oak Canyon Trailhead and take the full packs up that climb.

We met up with HOI at the Rock Spring Hut up at the top of the Blue Ridge along the Appalachian Trail, just south of Hawksbill.

He was there with beer and brats. It got a little chilly Saturday night, but still much warmer than a normal January night above 3,000 feet.

It was a lot of fun. We met some new people at the shelter and one guy, Fizz said he might stop by and post. He could be lurking now.

I'll get on the TR soon.”

“70 degrees! maybe we really should give winter back to you East coasters.”

“MrHyker was wondering how Cedar Run Tr. was wrt blowdowns/ice storm damage”

“yeah, he and I exchanged emails on that. There were some large blowdowns of old dead hemlocks, but nothing too difficult to negotiate. I thought the trail was in pretty good shape. 3 blowdowns total I would say on Cedar Run.”

“this is what Shenandoah Should look like in the winter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yBJpfPj_Co”

“this is what it looked like:

my pics:

”

“"There were some large blow downs of old dead hemlocks, but nothing too difficult to negotiate."

Blow me down, Olive!

Are you sure they were dead?”

“This was my first time on Old Rag and wow, what a treat. It was like being on another planet with all the wild rock formations, some of which I have no idea how they stay on the mountain. That scramble is a blast, although it was extra interesting getting through and up all those tight squeezes with full packs on.

It's a long grind up White Oak Canyon, but it's so damn scenic, you forget how tired you are. Besides the awesome falls and cascades, there was lots of eye candy on the trail Saturday. Yeah baby!

The best part of the trip was arriving in camp whipped to the bone and seeing a smiling HOI hoisting 2 ice cold Yuengling Black and Tans at us. It doesn't get much better than that. Oh yes it does. He also had 3 packages of brats just waiting to get roasted over the fire. Woohoo! You the man HOI. Thanks again for the special treats.

It was a great night (althogh we crashed early) hanging out in camp with a big fire going, muching on brats, drinking B&T's, talking about everybody on TT, and listening to Fizz's many tales. We also met a thru hiker who was finishing a 3 week section that he skipped on his thru last year. His name was Tank but I think it should be Ice Man. It got pretty cold Saturday night and we were all layered up. I had a base layer, fleece vest, down vest, and a winter shell on and Tank was in short sleeves claiming he wasn't cold at all. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Sunday morning we said goodbye to HOI (I was hoping for steak and eggs but I guess I was pushing my luck) and Fizz (Tank was gone before we woke up), headed up Hawksbill for a fabulous view before heading down to Cedar Run. Hawksbill at over 4000' is the highest point in Shenandoah National Park. From Cedar Run it was downhill all the way and we enjoyed the many falls and cascades we saw along the way.

Then it was a nice lunch at Rae's in Sperryville before the long drive home. ENS talked me into stopping at an REI and I naturally bought stuff even though I didn't need anything. I took a bunch of pics but I don't know when I'll get them up. I still have to put up my trips from last weeks Dacks' trip. I'm such a pic slacker.”

“Very nice............

It is almost a rare treat these days to read a concise well-written report.

I'll be seeing you guys!”

“get to crackin.. I want to see your pics!”

“Y'all suck! i've never et in sperryville. Wot's it like?”

“Its Sperry..............................nice!”

“great TR Pennsy!”

“When I was there on Jan 1 all of the valleys were full of fog but the mountain tops were clear. Made for a very erie view. The weather was unbelievable! I passed the Cedar Run info on to the trip leader who is going out there in 2 weeks.”

“excellent pics”

“thanks”

“Great pics and TR guys. Looks likes I may have to venture a little south this year to see what the trails are like in Ol' Virginny.”

“Y'all suck! i've never et in sperryville. Wot's it like?”
bearmagnet
7:55:33 PM
1/08/07

What was that Piggy place we ate at after Old Rag? The one w/the deer head that moved and sang "Friends in Low Places"...criminy.

Very nice TR guys, I'll have to check the pics later. :)”

“Shenandoah is a pretty cool place. I'd like to get down there more this year.”

“Sweet pics ENS! Also, that video from your previous trip is really cool.

I'll start on my pics tonight as soon as Webshots lets me upload my Dack pics. Webshots ain't exactly cooperating for me at de moment.”

“Friday:

After a rainy 3 hour drive around Baltimore and the capital, I arrived in Culpepper, VA, a town in the heart of Virginia's Civil War country.

The plan was to camp Friday night, but because of the crummy weather, I didn't feel like scouting out and setting up camp in the rain and dark. I figured the anyother trip attendee wouldn't want to either. So I had a hotel room booked in Culpepper.

Pennsy met me an hour or so later. We talked about Rainier, watched Letterman and Conan and crashed for the night. The alarm was set for 6am..

Saturday:

brrrrrrrrrrinnnng!!!! arlam off...

"It's too early!!"

Got up, ready and went McD's for breakfast and coffee and from there we shuttled my car to the Cedar Run/White Oak Canyon trailhead and then over to Old Rag, registered and geared up, we were hiking by 830.

It was a beautiful morning, far from cold or even cool. I was wearing a soft shell and Old Rag is a climb from the gate. It didn't take long to lose the coat. Wow, hiking in a tshirt in January!

The initial part of the climb up Old Rag is a grind up some switchbacks. At the end of the switchbacks, the trail turns steep and rocky and the scrambling and views begin.

From there it was through squeezers, up and over boulders, down into crevasses, buttsliding, pulling yourself up, droping yourself down, getting you pack stuck and belly crawling through cave and finally arriving on the summit.

The last mile of Old Rag is pretty much like that and very exposed, thus lots of incredible views. Saturday morning the sky was very blue with pretty clouds and the Blue Ridge Mountains looked exceptional. It was neat to see White Oak Canyon falls from the summit of Old Rag.

I reconfirmed how much I love that mountain! I don't know of another that is so much fun in the Mid-Atlantic.

We hung out up on the summit and had a pre-lunch. It was very windy, so we tried to find a place that was somewhat protected, but the way the wind was whirling around, it was not possible. It was a lot cooler on Old Rag than it was at the base.

We could see the Old Rag parking lot filling up down at the base of the mountain. The hords were on their way.

We decided it was time to descend. We made good time descending and walked the Berry Hollow Fire Road to the White Oak Canyon Trail head and met a draft horse named Patrick. He was very cool and so was his rider. They walked with us for a little bit.

Once at the trailhead for White Oak Canyon, we walked past my car. It's also the trailhead for the Cedar Run Trail and the place we would finish on Sunday. Doh!!! We could have slack packed over Old Rag. Oh well... Rainier Training, bonehead tactics!

So we took to climb White Oak Canyon. It was very warm at this point. We both decided to go with shorts and zipped off the leggings.

The waterfalls in White Oak Canyon were gushing and beautiful. Lots of scenery to behold in the canyon and it wasn't just the waterfalls ;)

The climb was tough, 'specially after Old Rag. Towards the top, I could feel my but was kicked.

We finally arrived at Skyline Drive and then hooked up with the Appalachian Trail. From there it was another two miles around Hawksbill and to the Rock Spring Hut where we camped.

We were welcomed into camp by the man himself, Hog On Ice. He handed us both ice cold Yuengling Black and Tans and we kicked em back and started on another. We were going to climb up to Hawksbill to see the sunset, but we were buttkicked and we needed to collect fire would so we could cook the tasty brats that HOI hiked in for us. Da MAN!

Thanks HOI!

That night we also met Fizz (Sunshine/Butterfly) and Tank and two other guys who tented camped near the shelter.

We had a lot of fun telling stories, listening to fizz and talking about adventures on the trail.

Sunday:

Tank left before sunrise, we all slowly got up and were hiking by 9 after saying goodbye to HOI and fizz.

Pennsy and I climbed up Hawksbill, the highest point in Shenandoah at 4,050 feet. The views were awesome and it was nice up there, so we hung around a little longer than usual. We then descended down to Skyline Drive where we picked up the Cedar Run Trail.

From there is was a good steady 4 2500 foot descent along Cedar Run, with it's lovely waterfalls, flumes, cascades and cliffs.

The trail seemed to be in good shape and we were done hiking by noon. We reversed the shuttle and had lunch in Sperryville at some Manhattenesque eatery with delish food.

Pennsy decided to try a different route and followed me up around DC and Baltimore and past York. This meant we would be passing an REI. We had to stop and when you stop at REI, you gotta spend $$$, so we did.

It was a fun weekend and the company was stellar!

Where is Fizz??????”

“You passed 2 REI's did you stop at Both?”

“One was enough!

Hey, my pics are up, and for something a bit different, they are in black and white.

Pennsy's Shenandoah pics”

“actually, we passed by 4 REIs, there are 2 along I-66. lol

Pennsy, those pics are totally awesome!!! the B&W looks great!”

“Dang son ... Ansil Adams ain't got nuttin on you!”

“Hey Pennsy ...
“Dang son ... Ansil Adams ain't got nuttin on you!”

Nor does Pepe LePew!!

You guys stopped at MY REI and didn't say "hi"??

Stinkers!!”

“What was that Piggy place we ate at after Old Rag? The one w/the deer head that moved and sang "Friends in Low Places"...criminy.
lilmountaingirl
3:18:38 PM
1/09/07

Not sure. I think HOI or ENS introduced me (and others) to that place after the OR buttkicker in 05(?). All I remember is taking a right out of sperryville...
last edited: 1/10/07 9:26:32 AM”

“Hot trip reports! :-)”

“piggy place ???

are you referring to the Pig 'N Steak in Madison, VA? I think that is where we went after OR05.

but I don't remember any singing deer head
last edited: 1/10/07 9:58:39 AM”

“You guys stopped at MY REI and didn't say "hi"??

Stinkers!!”
mARKo
9:08:44 AM

we wanted to get home before 1am.”

“That's it, HOI! There was a singing deer head above a mantle, perhaps?”

“just kidding... it was getting late. we weren't at REI for very long.”

“Yeah......yeah”

“Indeed, a fabulous time was had by all at the mighty Rock Spring Hut. HOI, i just wanted to say thanks again for the beer and brats. Only problem was that fella Fizz. He just wouldn't shut up.”

“Ban Sunshine Butterfly!!!!!”

“What, no embarrassing drunken pics of ENS?? :-D”

“no the only embarrassing picture of ENS was him cutting wood - boy was that embarrassing


hey sunshine butterfly - good to see you made it here
last edited: 1/11/07 10:49:43 AM”

“I was ass kicked!!!”

“To hell with embarassing photos of ENS, I want to see embarassing photos of LYRA!!”

“eating granola and yogurt!”

“Whoa, now those would really be INSANE!! hahaha...

Oh well, the pics of you were good! I was just hoping for something to make fun of you about. ;-D When I move back down south after the winter's over, we'll all have to hang out! I don't know about any ass-kicking trips, but maybe like a drinkfest. LOL!”

“Oh well, the pics of you were good! I was just hoping for something to make fun of you about. ;-D When I move back down south after the winter's over, we'll all have to hang out! I don't know about any ass-kicking trips, but maybe like a drinkfest. LOL!”
lyra
1:27:05 PM
1/11/07

when should we get together for a drunkfest buttkicker hike?”

“Oh definitely soon! I hope it involves a funnel and a bottle of whiskey. Yum-O!”

“You clazy girl!”

“It involves backpacking lyra - you remember that right? ;op”

“Ewww, backpacking?? Puke! Hey Y2, long time no insult. :-D How's Maine, have you backpacked there yet??”

“Y2 doesn't backpack!!!”

“Not nearly as much as I should Roam.

Maine is cool, though stormy right now. Very different to Capitol Hill. How's thesda treating ya.”

“Email me and ask me that question!”

“you have mail.”