Adventures of an AT Section hiker "Mapless"

Tag: McAfee Knob

  • Virginia Section Hike Day 1

    April 22 – The plan is a 3 day AT Section hike, 20 miles or so, from McAffee Knob Trailhead, Rt 311 in Catawba VA to Daleville VA. Today is Day 1.

    Spent the night in the van in the parking lot of the closed Valley Cleaners in Daleviille VA. This is where my hike will end. The trail comes out to Rt 220 right next door to the cleaners. I was picked up at 7 am by my shuttle driver Homer and he drove me to the trailhead for McAfee Knob. They built a new bridge to cross the busy 311 highway. It was dedicated about 3 weeks before my hike.

    Had some breakfast after being dropped off and hit the trail. The first day was planned for “only” 4 miles or so but include the climb to McAfee. The climb was long steady along a well maintained trail that is well used by day hikers and AT hikers.

    The payoff is the view at the top and getting the iconic Appalachian Trail photo standing on the McAfee Knob cantilevered rock. The previous day I had run into a hiking club that had come to VA to do the triple crown, they had passed me just before the top and while at the views assisted with my photos.

    The Campbell shelter was not far down the back side of McAfee Knob where I setup up camp for the night near the water source. I normally drink a ton of water when hiking and camping near a water source is much needed. This water came from a spring that move pretty quickly those a hose someone had set up. There was a great light show at night as the mountain location of my camp looked down on what I assume was Roanoke (no photos)

    The stats for the day: 5.36 miles, 1591 ft elevation, 4 hours 51 min, 1.1 mile per hours pace includes time enjoying the view at the top.

  • Time to finish what I started

    It is time to finish what I started 8 years ago…

    The original Appalachian Trail section hike that started it all for me was planned for the fall of 2017. This was the year I turned 60 and when my many years of being a “soccer dad” came to end. (I am sure you are all saying “you don’t look that old”- smiles).

    The original plan was to hike NOBO (North bound) from Pearisburg VA (mile 637.5) to Daleville VA (mile 730.6) for a total planned hike of 93.1 miles. I think I had planned to do this in 8 to 10 days. This section includes some famous and popular spots on the trail dubbed the “triple crown”. Dragons Tooth. McAfee Knows and Tinkers Cliffs. There are many iconic photos of the AT with a hikers standing on a cantilevered rock I am sure you have seen… this is McAfee Knob.

    I had some backpacking experience from weekends in the Allegany Forest in PA so I was not a complete newb. I borrowed some equipment from my son, bought some new equipment and did some exercise and walking to prepare.

    As the time approached I decided 93 miles was bit too much to handle on my first hike and decided to change and start at Mountain Lake road access (mile 664.5) . This by the way is near the resort where the movie Dirty Dancing was filmed. This would take 27 miles off the original plan…

    I parked my car in Daleville and hired a shuttle to take me to the start of my hike. The first day was a bit of a challenge but is was all down hill so real problems. The second day I learned how poorly I was prepared and what a physical challenge the AT can be, especially in Virginia. I hiked uphill for more than 8 hours during which time I hit a wall and was only able to take 5 steps without stopping. The final uphill was a 500 ft climb in 1/2 mile up to Kelly’s Knob. I got some moral support on the final push from some experienced section hikers and hobbled into Laurel Creek Shelter.

    That night I had no desired to eat, but the other hikers convinced me I needed to eat. The next day I took a “zero” and slept in the shelter all day. The third day I started back on trail but knew I would never make it all the way to Daleville. A few miles in there was a road, I hitched a ride and my first section hike was over after only 14 miles.

    Some lessons learned

    • need lighter weight equipment and boots
    • must have trekking poles
    • you will eat much less food than you plan
    • must eat breakfast in the morning before starting a hike

    Over the last 7 years I have completed a number of hikes in this section. My longest was 35 miles over 4 days that included Dragon’s Tooth. After moving to North Carolina in 2022 I have become a much better hiker and am able to handle the mountain climbs – for the most part. I am down to the last 20 miles to finish my original plan. This will be completed next week in first hike of this adventure including my first trip to McAfee Knob and maybe a sunrise photo like below. It’s about time.