End: Manassas
Today's miles: 6.0 (but not AT miles)
This turned out to be a weekend of winging it. Jen and I had planned to go visit the parents in WV this weekend and take a hiatus from our AT hike. A winter storm cancelled our plans. They called for 8" of snow in the mountains. Definitely not worth the driving risk. We literally cancelled Friday about 4hrs before we would have hit the road. We didn't even discuss an AT hike since the same winter storm was pretty much a done deal for shutting down Shenandoah Natl Park. Rosie and I slept in this morning instead (well, I slept in while Rosie tried and tried to get me up). We (well, me) finally got moving around 10am. I decided that a hike was in order, because a) Rosie deserved one, and b) I needed one. It was about mid-30's and spitting wet flurries so I wore my rain jacket and Endo trekking pants. We started hiking around 11:30am. After about an hour or so, the precip stopped and the sun came out! Wow! It must have warmed up into the 40's. We sloshed around in the mud, bushwacked through woods and fields, and generally had a great time! At one point, I was distracted by a hawk hunting in an open field. He/she would soar in tight circles, then drop down into the tall grass, only to emerge and repeat the process. I'm guessing it was hunting. I think I must have stood there for a good while watching, because when I turned around the skies had suddenly turned dark and foreboding behind us. Egads! I checked the radar on my iPhone and saw a pretty intense, but thin, line of rain/snow headed right for us. We were close to the end, so i was hoping we'd make it back to the Escape before it hit. I'm so glad we didn't.
We were less than 1/2 mile from the Escape when it hit. It started as ice pellets. I flipped up the hood on my TNF rain jacket to keep my head dry, then proceeded to catch pellets in the palm of my hand and taste them. They were kind of like Dippin' Dots, except they didn't taste like ice cream, only ice. After about another 100 or so yards, the ice pellets changed to snowflakes, then bigger snowflakes, then BIGGER snowflakes. They also went from coming down, to coming sideways. We were smack dab in the middle of the snow squall! Rosie didn't care much for it, but I thought it was awesome!
Once we got the Escape, I gave Rosie a rubdown with a towel and she seemed rather happy to snuggle down into her crate and dry off. We stopped at Chipotle for combination lunch & dinner which was tasty. I even shared some with Rosie! My best guess is that we covered around 6 miles in 3-1/2 hours. A good workout for both of us. Rosie has been sleeping the rest of the day.
I cleaned up (a looooong hot shower) decided between Bingo, or an REI run. I ended up doing the REI run. They're having their winter sale. There's nothing I need, but figured it was worth a look. I did find the Barefoot Sisters sequel book "Walking Home". I liked "Southbound" so now I can continue reading about the adventures of the Barefoot Sisters. Of course, I found a few other things I don't need, but the price was right. I got Jen a headband similar to mine so she can keep her ears warm without overheating. I also got a Turtle Fur gaiter tube and a pair of down booties for cheap.
Don't tell Jen, but I FINALLY found her a new Thunder jacket. I went to the TNF store on Thursday, but they only had smalls left. I ordered her one online from 6pm for a really good price. I hope she likes olive green. While I was at it, I found myself a Patagonia nano-puff for cheap. I've always wanted one.
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