The rain had ceased by the time we woke up but had left behind a wet tent to put away. There were clouds above and below as we hiked along the ridges down to the James River. We would have stopped at Matt's Creek shelter for our morning snack but K dunked her foot during the creek crossing and was too embarrassed to stop.
Crossed the longest footbridge on the Appalachian Trail around 10 a.m.--the lowest point in elevation of the day--and made it to Johns Hollow for an early lunch of squeeze cheese, pepperoni, and tortillas. We would be without water from then to the end of the day so we drank as much as we could.
Also we heard the Cicadas for the first time. We have been told they are really bad every 17 years; guess when that will be? That's right, this year. Fortunately, we only hear them at the lower elevations.
The climb back up was a toughy and took us about an hour and a half. The rest of the day was fairly easy with some good ridge miles. We got to the next water source (Punchbowl Shelter) around 5 p.m. where we set up for the night.
As the night wore on a few familiar faces came in that we hadn't seen for awhile; Steady-State, Hangman, Grey Cloud and Loan Wolf. The night also brought a legit thunderstorm to soak the tent for another day!
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