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| Greatest View of the Virginia Blue Ridge |
So this was about my 10th maybe 11th time climbing this trail. I know I've written about this hike before, and I know...sigh...that I've only written about a handful of these articles. So then why should I write about the same hike twice? Well, because this was one hell of a hike. The brutal snowfall we got these last couple weeks, made hiking the Priest more of a mountaineering experience. So on with the adventure!
Starting off the hike at 8 am sharp, I came to the lower falls. The waterfalls were completely frozen over and covered with snow. So I didn't take many pictures of the falls, but I did see some ice climbers on the falls. Looked like an exciting time.
So continuing on the snow was getting deeper, but there was still foot prints. It wasn't until I made it past the falls, that all footprints disappeared. That's when the real fun began.
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| At the top of the falls |
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| Tough trekking |
Well from the over look at the upperfalls to the Crabtree Meadows parking lot its about a 1 mile hike. It's pretty level, and a fairly easy enjoyable hike...without snow. It was beautiful hiking on untouched snow, for about 5 mins. It took more than hour to make it to the parking lot. This was pretty much my speed for the rest of the hike. After a long and tough hike I finally made it to the summit of the Priest at 3 PM. The views were totally worth it!
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| I never get tired of this view |
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Now it was time to head back. Needless to say the trekking was slow. And, of course, I didn't bother to bring my head lamp. So, the sun finally set, but I wasn't without light. The moon my friend lit my way. And at 7:30 PM, 11 and half hours after I started, I made it back to my truck. This was a tough hike. Everytime I come here, I always have a completely different experience. I love this place. It was one of my first hikes, and will always be a hike I'll be looking forward to in the future to come!
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| The Priest dancing with the moonlit knight |
