TRIP REPORT: Elk Garden & AT Loop
Date: February 10, 2024
Mileage: 16.5
Elevation Gain: 2493′
Trail: Virginia Highlands Horse Trail, Cabin Ridge, AT, Wilburn Ridge, Rhododendron Gap
Weather: Heavy Rain on Saturday, clearing after Sunday morning for some sun but it was mostly foggy, especially towards the end of the hike. Chilly for most of the trip and fairly windy at times.
Notes: Doing this loop with Julie and BillieJo, we ended up cutting it shorter than planned due to the rain, we assumed our planned campsite would not be good for the heavy rain, so we spent a dry night in the Wise shelter by ourselves. In the morning we backtracked a short ways and continued our loop in the rain. I did spot a group of ponies off in the woods, and we stopped to go see them. I’m glad we did because we didn’t see anymore. It stopped raining and we got some great views walking across Wilburn Ridge and beyond even with a lot of fog.
