The terrain on this part of the A.T. is surprisingly varied and somewhat more difficult than what Maple and I have experienced on the A.T. elsewhere in Shenandoah N.P. We generally cover two to two-and-a-half miles per hour, but this eight mile stretch took us a full five hours to complete.

Our trek began by ascending Calf Mountain, and, no doubt, this is where we were slowed down. As we came to the top of the mountain, we saw a bear foraging near the trail. I said, “There’s a bear,” Maple screamed, and the poor bear went running off as fast as its legs could carry him.

The trail took us through patches of wildflowers on Little Calf Mountain. There we saw deer and rabbits.

After having part of our lunch at Beagle Gap, we crossed Skyline Drive and ascended Bear Den Mountain, on which are several power stations. Shortly after passing these, we ran into two other section hikers that we recognized as having met in Pennsylvania. These were O.G. (Old Guy) Bob and O.G. Rick (a.k.a. Grey Cloud).

After crossing the road again at McCormick Gap, we ascended Scott Mountain, and then continued on a ridge parallel to Skyline Drive. On the map, this looks like a smooth three miles, but the terrain is actually quite rocky.

Overall, this was a great hike, one that is probably overlooked by all but a few visitors to Shenandoah N.P.