So far I'd say at sunrise from the rock on Angel's Rest.
Record setting is just fine and seeing victory poses,
But don't forget to stop sometimes, inhale and smell the roses. (Advice from my friend, Ladka)
Woke before six and saw the eastern sky turn red with the dawn. Packed quickly and hustled over to Angel's Rest for breathtaking views over the region, a white sea of fog with green hilltop islands, the ridge opposite a far distant shore. As if what my eyes beheld wasn't enough, someone had placed a windchime in the middle of the rhododendron. Stirred by the gentlest breath of wind, its tinkling notes added to the otherworldliness of the scene. Felt as if I was in heaven or witnessing the dawn of time itself: Earth's first morning. I sat there for some time just stunned by the intense beauty. Eventually, as the sun continued to travel higher, the moment passed and the magic was broken.
Arrived early at the library and got the first slot on the Internet after it opened. My only connection with family and friends apart from the occasional call home, though I'm skeptical that even those closest to me have any real understanding of what it's truly like being out here living for the moments like that this morning. I wish I could paint a beautiful canvas of words to explain so that the experience could somehow be fully transferred, but unfortunately most times words fail or at best fall far short.
A disappointment to find that no all-you-can-eat buffet at the Pearisburg Pizza Hut on Saturday, but thankfully Pizza Plus made up for it just fine. A true gorge-fest: Hawaiian Pizza, fresh green salad with a slew of toppings, creamy chocolate pudding and all the Sierra Mist I could drain from the soda machine, all while Fox News reported how Osama Bin Laden was wearing a gold robe when the Navy Seals whacked him and how he died his beard black and liked watching himself on TV. Wow. Thank goodness for the twenty-four hour news cycle because I'm not sure how I could have survived without those juicy tidbits. BAH!!!! If the news is not going to inform the public about issues of substance, then perhaps it should just return to the nightly recap that lasts a mere 30 minutes and be done with it. Anyway, I stayed in the booth just relaxing for a while, waiting for the food to settle.
Finally made it out of town around three in the afternoon and climbed slowly with my distended belly up the path to Rice Field Shelter, where I enjoyed a nice evening break before logging another mile and a half before calling it a day, which for me definitely qualified as a low mileage nero.
Sunrise---Angel's Rest
Blue Blaze to Shelter
Rice Field Shelter
Open Air Privy
Throne with a View
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