rootofnewt | AT, Blue Ridge Parkway 10vi2006

explodingcat has been feeling fairly fatigued lately. Overworked, overstressed, underslept . . . so our hikes may have to be scaled down. To that end, I'm looking for more destination hikes and fewer "tramp through the woods" hikes. For a while, this will involve just picking viewpoints on the AT which aren't too far from a parking area, nor with much elevation change.

On Saturday, we went for what I consider a leg-stretcher. We parked at the northern picnic area on the Blue Ridge Parkway and hiked the spur trail to the AT. It was about a quarter mile to the AT and then another half to three-quarters of a mile to our viewpoint--cliffs on the trail.

The picnic grounds are full of old hog walls. The spur trail runs near an excellent specimen for a little bit.

Once we were on the AT, we had minimal uphill climbing, mostly just a nice walk in the woods. At one point, though, Jericho decided to leave his calling card *right in the middle* of the trail. I wasn't carrying a shovel or bags, so I stepped off the trail to grab a bunch of chestnut leaves. And then I screamed, because this is what I saw immediately under my foot, which was in the air mid-step. I'm sure I woke it up. I backed away and turned on the camera, which then got to zoooooom in: sleeping babe. I told Tom to keep an eye out for momma while I snapped a few shots, then we backed off, picked up Jerry's waste, and moved on.

When we got to our destination point, we sat for a bit, enjoying the wind. We admired the rocks, not so much for their quartzite banding as for their bird droppings.

We eventually got chilled and headed back, peeking at the fawn briefly before moving on. It was still there, cozy in the weeds.

Tom got stuck in a tree and I had to leave him in the woods. Jericho went back for him, though, and we all came home together.