June 22nd. Day 71: Rockfish Gap to Blackrock Mountain Hut — 20 miles

We eat breakfast at Derek and Emma’s house—cinnamon rolls, fruit, coffee, cereal—and then pack up. Their dog Mia rides with us in the truck back to the trail, alternately resting her head on my lap, leaning against Derek, and turning to survey the three other thru-hikers in the backseat. It isn’t raining when we arrive back at the gap, but it feels like it might, so I keep my phone put away. We say goodbye to Derek and we’re back on the trail.

My feet hurt at first, but once I’m warmed up, I feel strong, a credit to the day of rest. We pause after a few minutes to self-register for entry into Shenandoah National Park, famous for its blackberry milkshakes and its bears. We have 20 miles to do, and it’s already 10am. We’ll be lucky to reach camp before dark. It’s misty, and the forest is vividly green from the torrential rain overnight. It has a haunting, fantastical quality. It feels like the kind of forest that the protagonist gets lost and has magical adventures in. We’re passed by two hikers who say they’ve already spotted a bear cub in a tree. Hearing that, I’m alert, struggling to keep my eyes transfixed on the woods around me without tripping on all the rocks and roots underfoot. I do slip on a wet boulder and fall, jarring my knee and cutting my finger. Eventually, the trail levels out, and I cannot maintain my bear vigilance any longer, so I listen to music, since the rain seems content to hold off. One after another, the miles pass.

At about 6:30, with less than four miles remaining, it drizzles. I tuck my phone away under the rain cover that I’ve had on my pack all day long. Then the rain intensifies. It’s warm, so I keep my rain jacket fixed to my pack, double cover, and let myself get drenched. It’s liberating, staying out in a downpour until you’re soaked through and then some. This is the most soaked-through I’ve been on the whole trail. Rain pools against my skin above my hip belt, ballooning my shirt outward. I give up avoiding the puddles and splash down the middle of the trail, where the water is above my laces. When we emerge on a service road, the rain is pelting down in sheets, with no forest canopy overhead to slow its fall. I spin around in a circle, arms thrown wide.

“This is what we do for fun!” I shout to Etienne above the rain and wind.

When only one mile remains, the rain stops. I’m still damp, but no longer dripping when I arrive at the shelter. We eat, but just as darkness is descending, the rain resumes. First lightly, then the sort of rain that is half-deafening on a rain fly. But I love being in a tent in the rain.

That night, I sleep well.

June 23rd. Day 72: Blackrock Mountain Hut to Pinefield Hut — 13.9 miles

June 24th. Day 73: Pinefield Hut to Bearfence Mountain Hut — 20.6 miles

June 25th. Day 74: Bearfence Mtn. Hut to Byrd’s Nest #3 — 22.4 miles

*Post cover photo was taken this day, during lunch at the Big Meadows Lodge. The blackberry lemonade was delicious!

June 26th. Day 75: Byrd’s Nest #3 to Gravel Springs Hut — 17.5 miles

June 27th. Day 76: Gravel Springs Hut to Front Royal — 13.4 miles

On the morning of the 27th, we leave camp just after 7:30, a little reluctant to get going in our wet clothes and shoes from yesterday’s evening rainstorm, but we’re eager to get to town. Front Royal has a 50 cent trolley shuttle from the trail head to town at 2:20, and it’s just over thirteen miles away. The trail is mostly mild walking through green, green woods. It’s overcast, and it drizzles every once in a while. Every time the wind blows, the canopy rustles and dislodges a cascade of raindrops. The trail is slick with mud in low spots, but we roll right along and arrive at the road about a quarter to 2. The trolley bus arrives on time, and we go to the Quality Inn. Even though it’s nice and early getting to town, the day disappears like it always done in town amid the mix of time-consuming chores and time-sucking internet access. We eat and drink and swim in the pool, and we celebrate Ashley’s birthday with cupcakes, Thai food, and cheap gas station beer. The air conditioner in our room doesn’t work, and I wake up in the middle of the night. By the light of the streetlamp through the window shades, I can see all four of us splayed across the two beds, blankets and sheets on the floor. We’re staring at the ceiling and sweating. But the breakfast buffet makes up for the hot night, and after a load of laundry, we go to the outfitter, get fast food for lunch, and catch the visitor center shuttle back to the trail.