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  1. #1
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    Default VA Section Recommendation

    I have a family member that wants to join me in a section in mid November. He will be passing thru Virginia on I-81 at the time, so that makes a convenient location to find a section. I'm in East TN, so it's also not too far for me.

    I'm looking for a nice 3 or 4 day stretch to do, with about 12 miles or so per day.

    I just did Damascus to Grayson Highlands with my grandson last Spring. I thought about picking up from there and continuing on.

    would that be my best choice, or are there better options?

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Analog_Kidd View Post
    I have a family member that wants to join me in a section in mid November. He will be passing thru Virginia on I-81 at the time, so that makes a convenient location to find a section. I'm in East TN, so it's also not too far for me.

    I'm looking for a nice 3 or 4 day stretch to do, with about 12 miles or so per day.

    I just did Damascus to Grayson Highlands with my grandson last Spring. I thought about picking up from there and continuing on.

    would that be my best choice, or are there better options?
    start from somewhere a bit north of pearisburg (names of particular road crossings dont pop to mind and there arent many, or even any, major ones) and hike to daleville.

  3. #3

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    Where did you end the highlands hike? 603? Not much of anything of interest between there and Partnership shelter to speak of, but it would make for a mellow 3 day hike.

    Hurricane Mnt shelter is only 3.3 miles south of 603, but you have a 1000 foot high hill to climb over to get there. But this means you could get a late, after lunch start for day 1. If your spotting cars on each end, it's actually a long, round about route to connect 603 with Marion, so you probably would be looking at a late start. Marion is right off the highway and has a couple of cheap motels, so would be a good place to meet.

    Day 2 hike to Trimpi Shelter, an easy 9.1 miles. Day 3 hike out to Marion, 10.7 miles. The mileage is a little shorter then your asking for, but consider it will be mid November and it's getting dark early and a cold morning means a slow start. Got to wait for the sun to get high enough to start to warm you up. Anyway, I suspect this is more about spending time with your family member then it is about doing any serious hiking.
    Follow slogoen on Instagram.

  4. #4

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    If you have "seen the ponies" on your last trip, as in walked the stretch from Elk Garden to Fox Creek, and as well you have no desire to walk all the miles of Virginia then I would scratch all the trail until these 2 following sections:
    If you want a challenging yet scenic stretch then I would do:
    VA42-Sinking Creek Valley, VA to US220-Daleville, VA is 52.5 miles.
    Highlights:
    Keffer Oak
    Audie Murphy monument
    Dragons Tooth
    Mcafee Knob
    Tinker Cliffs

    This stretch is rough, and can have some pretty good bear activity but it also houses some of the most recognizable iconic spots in Virginia. Definitely a tough, but good stretch to complete.

    If you want a bit more relaxed trip, with waysides and smooth trail then I would suggest selecting to do the northern or southern half of Shenandoah National Park
    If you chose SNP, I think I enjoyed the northern half of the park more then the southern even though I had better weather in the southern half.
    Rockfish Gap to Lewis Mnt OR Lewis Mnt to Front Royal

    Disclaimer** You also need to consider your hiking partners ability. 12 miles a day would be a pretty good day for someone new to hiking, and SNP would be more forgiving as well.
    Last edited by Gambit McCrae; 08-16-2018 at 10:00.
    Trail Miles: 4,927.6
    AT Map 1: Complete 2013-2021
    Sheltowee Trace: Complete 2020-2023
    Pinhoti Trail: Complete 2023-2024
    Foothills Trail: 0.0
    AT Map 2: 279.4
    BMT: 52.7
    CDT: 85.4

  5. #5
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    We ended our hike just after Thomas Knob at Massey Gap. Took the short side trail to the backpackers parking lot in GHSP.

    I had suggested the section with McAfee Knob. I didn't realize it was on the difficult side, that's good info. I'm probably the weaker hiker and the 10-12 miles a day is my limit. He's probably ten years younger than me, so he has that going for him. I could probably do more, but I'm about enjoying the hike and the camping.

    Thanks for the suggestions

  6. #6
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    Default

    We ended our hike just after Thomas Knob at Massey Gap. Took the short side trail to the backpackers parking lot in GHSP.

    I had suggested the section with McAfee Knob. I didn't realize it was on the difficult side, that's good info. I'm probably the weaker hiker and the 10-12 miles a day is my limit. He's probably ten years younger than me, so he has that going for him. I could probably do more, but I'm about enjoying the hike and the camping.

    Thanks for the suggestions

  7. #7

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    McAfee Knob and Tinker cliffs aren't very hard. It's Dragons tooth which has the crazy bit of trail and you can skip that. The main problem with that section is it's very popular and therefore very crowded and really trampled. The section just north of the Highlands would be a lot quieter.
    Follow slogoen on Instagram.

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