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July 9, 1983: The first seven miles of trail were another game of lost-in-the-woods. When it was over, I sat down to rest for ten minutes on a rock beside the trail. Five minutes after resuming my hike, I passed a park bench in the middle of a clearing surrounded by a pleasant forest grove. I wished this spot had been mentioned in my guidebook.
#backpacking #hiking #landscapephotography #nature #Virginia #outdoors #mountains #forest #AppalachianTrail
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It looked more comfortable than my rock. The land on which it sat was part of Sky Meadows State Park, a large tract of land which had been donated to the state by a wealthy Virginia couple.
After the park, the AT emerged onto a gravel road, which had until recently been the trail route for the ensuing three miles to Ashby Gap.
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A recent trail relocation took me along several dirt woods roads through a rather attractive forest. The woods roads must have been established public rights-of-way. Everything around them was private property. The atmosphere was marred slightly by an incredible profusion of No Trespassing signs.
More of My 1983 Appalachian Trail Hike in Photos at https://www.georgesteffanos.com/places-i-ve-been
George Steffanos