Appalachian Trail - Thornton Gap to Byrd's Nest Shelter Via Mary's Rocks

Time flies!  It seems like it had been weeks since we had last hiked.  Then we got the chance to do two AT-related hikes in three days.  The second of the two hikes was a 7-mile out-and-back hike on Saturday, June 5, 2021.  Thornton Gap, along Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, is the nearest point where we could access the Appalachian Trail from Luray, Virginia.  As you hike south on the A.T. from Thornton Gap, you follow the Mary's Rocks Trail to a junction where Mary's Rocks Summit can be accessed on a side trail from the A.T.  This sounded like just what we would like, and so we set out!

We've always enjoyed hiking sections of the Appalachian Trail, in part because it links us to so many other hikers (many friends included), and to the recent history of hiking in the United States.  So it was a particular, personal enjoyment that attended our first glimpse of a Shenandoah National Park stone A.T. marker:

The Appalachian Trail never makes apologies for its elevation gains and losses as it follows the ridge of the Appalachian Mountains training up from Springer Mountain, in Georgia, to Mount Katahdin, in Baxter State Park of Maine.  That joyous up-and-down continues on the International Appalachian Trail into New Brunswick and the Gaspe Peninsula and on into Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador.  If the Atlantic Ocean weren't a consideration, we could hike that Appalachian Ridge all the way into Scotland and down into England.  

Oh, well.  For now, let's enjoy this particular little climb in Virginia:

The Mid-Atlantic woodland is familiar to us, as are the granite and limestone boulders we encounter along the trail:

Pennsylvania may be known for its rocky A.T., but this stretch boasts its own horde of rock gnomes:

Sometimes the boulders form hollows that might well be a homey spot for a hibernating bear in the winter:

It certainly was not winter on our hike.  The temperatures were high and we stopped frequently for hydration:

But we were amply rewarded with views.  This one was East across open forest:

While this area had obviously been clearcut by loggers early in the 20th Century, nevertheless, some big old trees had survived the logging.  We encountered one that had fallen in recent years and had to be cut to maintain a clear path:

Other old trees chose to accommodate the trail rather than collide with it:

Eventually, after about 2 miles of hiking, we reached Mary's Rocks, which gave a grand view to the West.  Here, Kathy take the first look at that panorama --

-- and the panorama gazed back:

After enjoying the view, we continued along the trail, enjoying the relative cool of the forest shade:

To our pleasant surprise, the A.T. south of Mary's Rocks offered several grand views to the west that rivaled that from Mary's Rocks.  We alerted hikers we met that these alternate viewpoints were available, because the crowds were building at Mary's Rocks itself with the afternoon heat.

Here, Kathy enjoyed yet another look West:

Eventually, after a little over 3 miles of hiking, we reached Byrd's Nest Shelter, where we encountered two young men having lunch as they section hiked with the mother of one of the men, who was herself through-hiking the entire A.T.  

In fact, we probably encountered a dozen through-hikers during our day.  These would have been the slower or later ones to have departed Springer Mountain headed north; the halfway point is not until just across the Pennsylvania border -- another 108 miles or 7 days north -- and the day of our hike would have been about halfway through the hiking season.  It is risky to reach Mount Katahdin too late in the season.

This we do not have to worry about.  In fact, we had no worries at all at the Byrd's Nest Shelter, because all of our needs were attended to:

Feeling so relieved and secure, we turned back down the trail and hiked the 3+ miles back to our trailhead with nary a worry in our little heads.

See you on down the trail!