Solo hike up Old Rag Mountain

I have been wanting some wilderness for a while, I finally got off my butt and made the effort.  I woke up pretty early to get to the Old Rag parking lot by 7 am.  Too bad my cell phone with google maps didn't have coverage, so I missed my turn, but still got there by about 7:30.

It is about 2 miles up, pretty much uphill the whole way, but nothing terribly steep or challenging, until you hit the rock scramble.  The photo below was taken on the doorstep of the rock scramble - or at least the difficult part.  It starts with what I call a slot chimney - about 10-15 feet down for a 20 foot distance.  You have to use arms and legs to make it down, and that is just the start!

There are rock "caves" and keystone rocks (a rock that fell and got wedged between two other rocks, without blocking the trail) to crawl over/through/under.  All in all, it was a very enjoyable hike, but I'm glad I didn't try to bring Catherine or the kids.  No way, we would have had to turn around - it was pretty dicey in places.

The reward for making it to the top is the remarkable view, seen above.  This is actually shot directly at the place where I made the photo immediately preceding this one (the wee little rock outcropping in the lower left).

I continued the loop hike on the way out, which was pretty unremarkable, except for the hordes of people.  I did manage to find this peaceful series of little waterfalls off the fire road, which made a nice break.

It was a short trip, but the sun was out and the wind was blowing.  It was just what the doctor ordered!

Cheers,

Marc