Moonlight Hike on Hawksbill - August 9, 2014

Reported by Iva Gillet

     Fourteen adventurous hikers met at the Swift Run Gap entrance for this unusual Saturday hike. Making it especially unusual was that Iva was EARLY for the meet-up, thanks to kayaking earlier in the day with Bill Holman, CJ Woodburn, and Tricia Neumann on the Shenandoah River. Consequently when Dave Borszich arrived early, then Pete and Bev Fink with Emerald Young, and Brian Muszynski arrived early, and John Sinclair, Lynn Murray, and Lars Wehrmeyer were early, Iva was actually there to meet them. We munched on grapes that Bill had provided while Douglass May, Michael Seth, and Norman Beil drove up to complete the group. 
     We carpooled to the trailhead, with the Park full of activity this evening. Big Meadows was hosting a Full Moon viewing, so many people were there with their lawn chairs, await the moonrise. Meanwhile, we assembled and began our 3 mile hike up Hawksbill along the AT.  We were pleased that the weather was clear allowing us views into the Shenandoah Valley. When we arrived at the Hawksbill summit, there were surprisingly few people for such and significant moonrise and unanticipated clear weather. We enjoyed our picnic items, including wine that Brian carried up, and birthday blondies for Tricia’s upcoming annual age increase. Bill had trouble lighting the candles, as the wind was starting to pick up too. We savored the view of the setting red sun with the moon rising in opposition near Old Rag.
     We learned that Lars was in America to fill in for a friend’s Tae Kwon Do class and is an apprentice electrician in Germany.  Emerald is working hard on her trail maintenance skills and has signed up for a 5 day workshop. Dave took over photography duties this evening, which accounts for the exceptional photos. Norman is nearing the end of his summer in Charlottesville, and will be heading back to NJ for his teaching duties. Pete and Bev will be heading back to the White Mountains in September to hike some rugged mountains. As the darkness and wind increased, our group gradually wound its way down the Lower Hawkbill trail to the cars a mile away. The headlamps were helpful in the dense forest. Everyone had an enjoyable evening without the rain that was forecast and we were glad we had greeted the Super Moon with gusto.

 

Trail Maintenance - AT Section from Turk Gap to Crimora Lake Overlook - August 2, 2014

Eleven eager volunteers came out to help do trail maintenance on a section PATC hike leaders, Marit Gay and Jeff Monroe, oversee between Turk Gap and Crimora Lake Overlook. Fortunately overcast skies made for a cooler day.  The work accomplished included clearing waterbars, building new waterbars, removing a fallen tree over the trail, and weed trimming the middle section of the trail.  The volunteers were made up of  Michael Seth, Emerald Young, Dave Borszich, Pete Fink, Brian Muszynski, Bill Holman, Iva Gillet, Rich Bard, and John Brandt.  Mark Perschel and Marit Gay directed the activities and were very grateful to all for the energetic help for the day.  Lunch, homemade dessert, and a cooler of adult beverages were enjoyed by everyone after nearly three hours of labor on the trail. Following this was a group hike to the summit of Turk Mt. A contingent of hikers went on to the Blue Toad Pub to finish off the day.  Thanks everyone!

Emerald is the queen of line trimming

Iva admires the new waterbar Bill helped build

Michael, Bill, and Rich- experts at clearing waterbars

Iva, Pete, Dave, Mark, Rich, Bill, Michael (in back)  Brian and Emerald (front)

John (far back) and Marit (headband) join the group

Little Devil Stairs - Keyser Run Fire Road, July 26, 2014

Kelly O’Rourke was joined by Michael Seth, Douglas May, Bev and Pete Fink and John Brandt to walk the ~7.5 mile loop. The weather was really nice we really had a great time. Most of the streams were dry and posed no challenge. This is a very pretty hike as the rock formations are amazing and walking along a stream to hear the water gently cascading most of the way is always pleasant. One of my favs for sure!

Vining Tract/Mutton Hollow hike and work trip, June 14, 2014 - reported by Iva Gillet

     In a Spring of weekends with incredible weather, this weekend was no different. A stalwart group of 10 met to tackle the rugged terrain at the Vining and Mutton Hollow Tracts to help District Manager of Trails Bill Holman blaze new trails, and check the condition of others which do not have current overseers.  We convened in Lydia to consolidate cars and save the undercarriage of those with low ground clearance for the road to the parking lot.  Today Marian Styles was free from her house renovation projects and able to return to the trails, as well as Eileen Seaman, Dave Borszich, and GPS aficionado  Douglass May.  Jesse Barnes returned for this arduous day with his family otherwise entertained and he was a huge help with the heavy lifting.  Norman Beil was back in Charlottesville for the summer from his teaching duties at Rowan College.  Andy Willgruber, Briana Taylor, and Michael Seth met the group at the trail head to complete the group. 
     Briana lead quality control on the blazing projects as Andy forged ahead looking for and dispersing blow-downs.  All members of the group took turns with the loppers, saws, and limb removal.  After surviving the stinging nettles on the Cliff Trail, we enjoyed lunch at the Johnson cabin outdoor “Kitchen” and picnic table where Bill had hung Iva’s lunch from the rafters, allegedly to keep from the mice, though it seemed sneaky place to hide (Bill's comment: "It wasn't hidden!") a wrap.  After our respite, we aided Bill removing a large limb from the CCC road which required chainsaws and heavy lifting.
     Our final work of the day was blazing and removing the downed trees Bill had cut into pieces along two new trails created during an Alternative Spring break group from UVa. Instead of heading for the sun and sand during spring break, this group chose to stay in the Mutton Top cabin for a week and clear new trails.  While much of the trail was cleared, it had not been blazed, so it was starting to grow up again.  Our group will tell you that this new trail needs some work, as it results from run-off from the mountain above and as we descended the very steep grade, we thought an accurate name for this new trail should be The Poison Ivy Ankle Breaking Trail.  Bill didn’t approve this name.  It was rugged, with lots of rocks, but it is now blazed!
      As it was now mid-afternoon, the Orion Trail did not get its blazes, as we had intended.  We hiked to Butternut Hut to meet others who were assembling for the evening dinner. Butternut Hut allows trail workers a place to spend the night without renting a cabin.  Bill hosted dinner for his trail overseers, most of whom had never met.  So the day trail workers headed back to Charlottesville after a day of productive trail work. As they departed, Geoff Manning-Smith and Vivi Rogers, and her dog Charley, began work on other trails.  Geoff won the Hawksbill Award last year for his dedicated work on the trails here. Also, driving up in the afternoon to work on their trails were Marit Gay and Mark Trail. Having just completed a cross country bike ride, their next focus was making sure their trails were in good shape!  Once they were finished trail work, Marit, Michael, and Iva returned to start work on blazing the Orion trail, which was becoming so overgrown that it was hard to find.  With some blazes in place, hikers will help keep it in better shape. 
     Later, Mark and Ruth Walkup arrived for dinner.  The Walkups live close by, are trailseers, and check these trails often.  I hope they will hike with us in the future, as they are a fascinating couple, having lived in Africa for many years.  Needless to say, Michael Seth and they had some terrific exchanges about international cultures.  Finally, CJ Woodburn arrived, after pre-hiking with Kelly O’Rourke for a future hike.  Volunteer work in yet another form.
     While we had 12 for dinner, 6 stayed for the night. It was the perfect night for camping with nice temperatures.  If anyone has potential interest in being a trail overseer, the Vining Tract is a great place to get started.  As VP Andy stated it, this is like trail maintenance with training wheels, since many of the trails are short, and tools do not need to be carried as far.  Contact Bill Holman if you might want to try your hand at some easy trail maintenance.
    Thanks to all for your hard work, good food, and camaraderie during this fun filled weekend!

Reed's Gap to Hanging Rock - July 19, 2014

Doug, Pete, Marit, Lindsay, Connor, Leon, Emerald, Bev, Mark (not photoed)

A little overcast, but nonetheless a good day for a hike.  Nine hikers met at Reed's Gap to hike Three Ridges up to Hanging Rock and back.  The group included Douglas May, Pete & Bev Fink, Marit Gay (leader), Lindsay Brown, Connor Anderson (Marit's nephew), Mark Perschel (co-leader), Emerald Young, and Leon Gorman. We made the 7.8 mile entire trek by 2:30 pm hiking up to 3,400 ft where we enjoyed lunch and homemade bars at Hanging Rock. On our return the skies started to spit a bit, but fortunately did not bring too much rain.  We met many backpackers going to Maupin Field Shelter and Harper's Creek Shelter.  Another fairly cool day in July.  Weren't we lucky?

Turk's Cap lily next to the trail

Connor and Mark about to head out to backpack the AT after the hike