McAffe Knob
Starting mile 695.5
Today I’ll start the Virginia Triple Crown. My first stop was the Dragon’s Tooth in about 8 miles. I started by dropping 1,200 feet off the ridge I camped on. After dropping down to the valley below I started right back up almost 2,000 feet over the next 5 miles to Dragon’s Tooth. About halfway up I stop to take a break. I was making good time considering the terrain. I ate some food then took off.
The rest of the climb took some time but wasn’t too bad. The one highlight of this climb was that I passed the 700-mile mark. When I finally got to the top, I took another break at the Dragon’s Tooth while I enjoyed the view. As usual there were a lot of people up here. I saw a lot of people today. Even on a weekday this place is busy.
I didn’t stay to long because I still had 12 miles to McAfee Knob. I was running low on water and needed to get down to the bottom of the mountain to refill. The way down is steep and rocky. At times I had to use my hands to navigate the rocks. I got down to the bottom and sat by the creek, ate some food and rehydrate.
I left the creek and had about 6 miles to get to Route 311 and the McAfee Knob parking lot. The climb wasn’t too bad, and I made the miles by 4 pm. When I got to the parking lot, I took a little break before the 1,500-foot climb to the knob. I stop again at the Catawba to fill my water before the final push up to the knob.
I got up to McAfee Knob by 6:30 where I sat and enjoyed the view for a while. Even at this time on a Tuesday there were half a dozen people at the summit. I got my picture taken at the summit and headed down to Campbell Shelter where I stayed for the night.
I did 20.1 miles with about 5,000 feet of elevation gain. Tomorrow I’ll get up, finish the Triple Crown and make it into Daleville where I decided to take a zero day.
Ending mile 715.6