WIAW- On The Appalachian Trail

I woke up this morning to this view outside our window!

We’re staying at an inn on the Virginia side of the Appalachian, nestled right along the valley of a river. The light out here feels so much brighter and the air so much cleaner! It’s so still and quiet that it’s impossible not to relax and take in the beauty.

I want to tell you all about our day, and since it’s What I Ate Wednesday I can tell you the story through what I ate!

 

Breakfast: pumpkin date bread, mango parfait, croissant and egg scramble, hickory smoked bacon

My favorite part about staying at a bed & breakfast is that you get to have breakfast served to you and it gets to be a wonderful surprise! This entire breakfast was delicious and I ate the whole thing.

Along with a not too shabby view!

After breakfast we lazed around for a bit and let our food digest before heading out on the trail. Our main purpose in coming out here was to hike, and hike we did! The first trek was a 2.7 mile loop along the Appalachian called War Spur.

We didn’t know it then, but it was definitely the easiest hike of the day! It had its challenging patches, but for the most part it was fairly flat. It was a little scary because it was dead quiet and there was not a person or animal anywhere in sight the entire trail, but eventually we made it to the overlook and then it was all worth it!

There was a little spot on the overlook where we could sit on the rocks and take a break, so we took that as a snack opportunity.

Morning Snack: trail mix

After finishing out the loop we got back in the car and drove the mountainous path to our next hike, Cascade Falls. By the time we got there we were starving so we took advantage of the picnic tables placed so conveniently by the base of the falls and had lunch!

Lunch: turkey sandwich, cole slaw, brownie bites, banana, and water

A picnic lunch was included with our stay at the inn which was awesome! They packed us a delicious lunch.

And again, not to shabby of a view to eat by! 🙂

We waited a few minutes for lunch to settle and then we started up again! This hike was VERY challenging. Had we realized how long it would be (almost 5 miles) and how difficult the path was, we probably would have opted to make this the only hike of the day. There was one point in the hike where Jason kept repeating to me, “I’m in cardiac arrest. No really, I think I’m in cardiac arrest.” Haha! It really was that hard. A 600 foot ascent! Very steep, very rocky, QUITE the workout! But, again, it was all worth it when we got to our destination (at least that’s what I’m trying to convince Jason of :P).

It’s hard to tell the scale of the waterfall from my pictures, but it was huge! The falls themselves are 66 feet high!

Even though our legs felt like Jello at that point and our hearts were beating out of our chests, we both felt a real since of accomplishment having made it that far.

I love Virginia and its waterfalls!

All in all, we hiked over 7 miles today. That is HUGE for us. Before this, the longest hike we’d done together wasn’t even 3 miles long. It hurt, but it was good. We got a chance to really challenge ourselves physically in a way that we don’t often do. It also gave us a lot of time to just enjoy each other and enjoy nature!

I drove us back to home base with my Jello legs and promptly inhaled some cookies and tea on the porch, compliments of the inn.

Afternoon Snack: cowboy cookies and white tea

We showered and relaxed for a bit before heading out to Blacksburg to enjoy the evening. It’s the town where Virginia Tech is located, and it’s the closest “city” to where we’re staying. First stop in Blacksburg was dinner!

Dinner: edamame, LOTS of sushi! 

The sushi was excellent and a good price so we loaded up! Hiking really works up an apetite like no other.

And to unwind after our meal, we walked a couple doors down to an awesome little old school movie theater to see a film that’s gotten a lot of buzz.

The movie was great, I would highly recommend it! There’s so much about Marilyn Monroe that I didn’t know. Jason ordered popcorn and a soda but I was still stuffed from dinner so I only had a few handfuls of popcorn.

Did you make it through all that?? Do your legs feel like Jello?? I understand how you feel. This is definitely a record for the longest WIAW post I have ever done, and the latest I’ve ever posted (it’s past 1am! :O). It was a very long, very full, and very wonderful day.

I need to get some rest, it’s a long ride back to the ‘Burg! Thanks for reading!

-Lauren