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The Cruise--Details

I didn't include more details in the prior "The Cruise" post for two reasons. 1)  I didn't think anyone would be interested; and 2)  This trip didn't include much of the normal topics:  good beer, good coffee or John-style travel. But there are details, which may be useful to some people contemplating how such a trip is put together. On the first day of the trip, we drove three hours to pick up my mother in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  At 85, she isn't comfortable driving for long distances and hadn't flown for many years. We then drove 3 1/2 more hours to Chicago, where we checked into the Wyndham, where you can get a room that includes the cost of parking for up to 12 days.   We were up early on the hotel shuttle to O'Hare, where we then boarded the a non-stop American Airlines flight to New Orleans. Here, we checked into a Hampton Inn near the port.  My mother was pretty tired, so Julia and I went out for a Cajun dinner and live music.   Rememberi...
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Grayson Highlands State Park


I hiked through Grayson Highlands during my Appalachian thru-hike in 1996, but I didn’t camp here for a very good reason.  The Appalachian Trail back then was 2159 miles.  The blue blaze trail to the state park was 0.66 miles.  


My hiking partners and I had some rules during the thru-hike.  We would walk 0.2 or 0.3 if we needed water or a shelter, but I tried to keep extra miles at a minimum.  If there was a cold six pack of beer or a hamburger and fries at the other end of the 0.66, there would be no question.  But the blue blaze trail leads only to a gravel overnight parking lot.

With the Brew Hut and Nissan truck, I am no longer constrained by those rules.  I parked in the ugly little gravel overnight parking lot and started hiking up the mountain where it  joins the Appalachian Trail. Within a quarter of a mile, I saw something that I never saw on my thru-hike: one of the the famous Grayson Highlands wild ponies right on the trail walking towards us.


For once, Callie was quiet and still.  Eventually, the pony got too close (they bite and kick), so we wandered to the left.  It wandered to the right.
Soon, we climbed to the intersection of the spur trail and the A.T.  Just like on Roan Mountain, the ridges are grass and shrubs.  The views are stunning.




Callie and I continued southbound into the Mount Rodgers Wilderness.  We peaked out at around 5200′ in elevation.  The climb was in direct sun and without wind;  Callie was hot.  I shared some of my water bottle with her, but it was time to head back.  A breeze picked up for the mostly downhill hike. We met some other hikers who were southbound and stopped to chat with one guy who wanted a photo of Callie for his daughter.

On the way down the spur trail, there were more ponies.


Hickory Ridge Campground

The campsites at Hickory Ridge are wooded.  I haven’t seen any hickory nuts, but the leaves are falling, and so are the acorns.  When one hits the top of the Scamp, it is startling.  Something that sounded like a larger hickory nut falling several hundred yards just hit the roof, but I couldn’t find the evidence.


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