AT Section hike 2026 May 12 The perfect day 😊

Slack packing can be a nice break from carrying a 30+ pound backpack. We had it arranged to slack pack today- taking a small day pack with just the 10 essentials. 💜Purple Haze from Weary Feet hostel dropped us off, along with some others at the Brushy Outpost, where she had picked us up Sunday. Our goal was to hike the 8 miles to VA 611, where she will pick us up later.

We headed out on a cool at first, but sunny, day ☀️ about 8:30 in the morning, up the hill, then a roadwalk which took us down the mountain, for about a mile. Then the trail turned into the woods. We followed the white blazes as we had a pretty steady ascent, up into the 3000 ft range. I’m glad we were slack packing! The ascent was so much easier without that heavy load. After a few minutes, we stopped to shed some layers. It had been 40 degrees when we started but now was warming up nicely. Supposed to get in the 70s later today. We watched as the clouds ⛅️ seem to melt away over the valley. Up on the ridges of Brushy Mountain, the trail was beautiful. With a slight breeze and ☀️ shining through where the trees allowed it, we enjoyed a rather smooth, delightful trail. The foliage 🌳 is now full and less views are seen, even when at the top of these ⛰️ mountains. We were able to keep a good pace. We didn’t rush but enjoyed all the sights and sounds the mountains had to offer.

We stopped about 10:30 for a short break. At 12 noon we saw a nice campsite ⛺️ and enjoyed sitting there up on top of a mountain, having our lunch. Other hikers went by. I like to take my shoes off 🦶 🦶 at noon, check my messages and my Far Out app to see how we are doing. We’d already done 6 miles. Wow! A record for us. But we aren’t in it to set a time record. We are in it to enjoy the journey. 💜💜💜

We talked about going a few more miles if we wanted, since we still had some pep in our step and it was early. We thought we’d make that call later- when we had completed the 8 miles.

The trail continued to be rolling up and down slightly. It was beautiful. Not rocky. 🌲 Pine needles covered the path for a long ways, then more broad leaves as the trees changed. A deer 🦌 came out to see us. Not afraid at all. It let us walk right by and just looked at us non-chalantly while chewing on some vegetation.

The last mile was downhill. I began to tire and get some aches. Time for ibuprofen and a break! I waited until we got to the VA 611 parking lot. 🦋Butterfly and I decided that our hike was complete- was just perfect for today. A perfectly beautiful day. It was the right temperature with sunshine 🌞 and a light breeze. Animals accompanied our journey. Birds chirping and grasshoppers flying out of the grass. An inch worm crawled on my pants as I waited for our ride. Lots of 🦋 butterflies 🦋 . God’s creation is so beautiful. He’s allowing us to enjoy it. Thank you Lord, for this perfect day.

“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.”
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭31‬ ‭NIV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/111/gen.1.31.NIV