Weather Forecasts + The Mountains

A lesson learned: When the weather forecast says "Overcast" don't take it as "Less heat, more bearable to walk in" when you're in the mountains. Take it as "Fog will cover everything and render travelling on a path through dense woodland marked only by a white painted mark every 100 metres or so rather foolish."

Day 1: Having wandered around D.C. from about midnight to 2am, admiring the lit-up buildings and monuments, took bus at 2.30 to Charlottesville. Taxi to Shenandoah N.P., walked into Shenandoah about 10 miles (uphill most of the way. Very fun).

Day 2: Woke up feeling knackered from previous day's wanderings (at least an extra 3 miles in Washington plus hiking). Decided to have a lie in til 12. By 12 the mist/fog had descended. Stayed put.

Day 3: Some rain overnight. Lots more fog/mist.

Day 4: Smattering of mist, mostly down in the valley on either side of the mountain range. Got out while the going was good. Walked most of the way on the road because A there are look-outs without trees in the way and B it was much easier walking. Got a "Trail Angel" lift to Charlottesville where you pay a local keen-bean fuel money to take you to/from the Appalachian Trail.

It's the first day of 'college' almost everywhere in the States, including at the University of Virginia here in Charlottesville, so the place is suddenly full of students, which is pretty cool. Remembering Mr Hoult's inclusion of using Bill Gates' donated library computers in Arizona, have been sitting in the town library for about an hour and a half because if there's no demand your time limit gets extended by 10 minutes every ten minutes. How handy!