Friday, June 9, 2017 (Day 37)
Today I passed pastures and cows and large streams.
I learned that streams are often classified as being freestone or limestone. Freestone streams have a bottom composed of round stones that move during floods, while limestone streams have bottoms of solid rock ledges. Most of Virginia’s streams are a combination of the two.
I came to the Mount Rogers National Recrational Area headquarters and visitor center. They had closed hours ago. The bathrooms were locked, vending machines were not accessible, there were no electrical outlets. There was a phone mounted to a wall, however, along with a lists of numbers for lodging and pizza delivery. I tried calling out to California. No luck. Must be for local numbers only.
I crossed the road and started to climb the next mountain in line. The sun was setting. I stopped at a campsite and made some coffee. I could still see the road clearly. The moon was clearer, still. I hiked until nearly 3 am before squeezing myself in to the flat spot of a viewpoint free of the dense brush of the surrounding ridgeline.
It will make for a beautiful sunrise.
