July 28

Downpour

It was overcast all night but it didn't rain on us at the Graymoor tent site.  There were a lot of hikers there that night.  It was pretty easy going this morning.  The terrain was different now that we were past Bear Mountain.  Not nearly as many tough rocky areas and boulders as before.  We stopped for lunch just before noon, at a stream.  No sooner had we packed up and started hiking again did the cloudy sky open up with a cold, wet rain.  This was no ordinary rain.  It was coming down in sheets with huge drops.  Staying dry was pointless, so I just started splashing whole heartedly down the trail.  The trail was essentially an ankle deep flowing stream.  It was fun.  We stopped for a break on Shenandoah Mountain.  There is a painted 9/11 memorial on the surface of the rock up there.  We stopped in the drizzle for a snack.  Not much of a view.  With the thick clouds blowing by we could just barely make out the green mountains across from us on the next ridge.  In another mile and a half we stopped for the night at the Shenandoah tenting area.  The rain had stopped, but everything was wet.  No good trees to hang from.  I ended up stringing my hammock up in the picnic pavillion between the roof supports.  17.5 miles today.