Keys Gap WV to Stream campsite – 12.8 miles
Friday, June 14th 2019
Southbound: This hike was eagerly anticipated for two reasons… I was finally hiking the infamous Roller Coaster section of the trail in Virginia… and I was thrilled to be doing it with my good friend Jeff Myers. This was to be Jeff’s first experience with the AT and I knew he was going to love it! (Little did I know that on the following day I was going to HATE it!) Jeff and I drove to Manassas Gap and parked my car there at our end point and drove back to Keys Gap in his car. We started our hike around 1:30 in Keys Gap, where there were some generous trail angels offering meals to hikers. We made quick work of the first few miles. Saw a girl in a dress hiking barefoot. That was definitely a first. Stopped at the Blackburn AT Center and got my passport stamped 🤪 and took some photos. (The Blackburn Center had been the target endpoint for Rock Turtle and I nineteen months ago but came up 6.2 miles short.)
4.3 miles later we were at the north end of the Roller Coaster fastening our seat belts. I’m not gonna lie…I was a little intimidated but I thought, “How bad could it be?” We made it 2.5 more miles and started thinking about shelter for the night. The Bear’s Den Hostel was our goal for the night, but my Guthook app said to call for reservations, and being a Friday, I thought that would be a good idea. I called and they told me they were full and that they didn’t even have room for us to camp, which I thought was weird but I wasn’t going to argue. Maybe the don’t allow tenting? Unfortunately, that left us to scramble for an adequate stealth site on which to throw our tents for the night. We sized up a few locations and settled on a subpar area that was probably one of the worst places I’ve ever camped but we were out of options and daylight was fading. At least it was near a water source. Now the fun begins…
We dropped our packs, unloaded our gear, filtered some water from the nearby stream, and I went to work setting my tent up. I glanced up as I was finishing and noticed Jeff appeared to be struggling a bit. Actually he was struggling a lot. And then the unthinkable occurred to me but I was in such disbelief that I couldn’t get the words out…I might’ve actually suffered a small stroke, to be honest. “Jeff, please tell me this isn’t your first time setting this tent up.” I knew all his gear was brand new because we’d had a little shakedown session the night before and I’d gotten to swoon over all his shiny brand new stuff but NEVER did it cross my mind that this brilliant young man would embark on a back country hiking expedition having NEVER taken his tent out of the bag! I was unable to hide my disbelief. I didn’t know whether to fall down laughing or to sob hysterically. I settled for mournful weeping. Actually I had time to do neither because it was getting dark and I honestly felt bad for the guy. “ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!” were the only appropriate words I could seem to find. I wasn’t familiar with his particular tent and it was actually a bit confusing but we managed to get it figured out at least somewhat correctly. I went back to my tent to start cooking dinner and then the next round of shenanigans began… “Aw man… there’s a bug!” (“Yes Jeff, that’s correct. You ARE in the woods…”) “There’s another one! They’re in my tent! They’re everywhere!” and I proceeded to rescue Jeff from the throes of his arachnid assault that would have most certainly led to his untimely death. I felt bad for not having prepped him that there might be insects in the woods. Lesson learned! After the extermination we retired to our tents and then it was time for Act 3… “Did you hear that…?” (“Did I hear what?”) “That noise… ” (“Yes Jeff, it’s a bear. Go to sleep!”) “Shut up! That’s not funny man!” …. as I giggled like an evil little kid. I’d forgotten what it was like to sleep on the trail for the first time and I didn’t mind a little ribbing at Jeff’s expense. I knew he could handle it. Honestly Jeff would be the one to have the last laugh, as I would finish my day tomorrow with the trail definitely having gotten the best of me. I love him like a brother and having him hike with me was a total thrill-enhancer. I can’t wait to do it with him again. Hopefully spring of 2020!
Wherever I May Roam 