Day 15 of AT in VA NOBO

Rockfish Gap (864.6) to Stealth camping spot near Wildcat Ridge parking area (879.6)
Total Miles: 15.0

Was a nice night last night for camping in the back grassy area of the YMCA. 34 degrees at wake up.
Another trail angel, Susan Medford (and her dog Lilly), picked me up at the YMCA at 8:30am and drove me back up to Rockfish Gap. Waynesboro has a volunteer driver list that hikers can use to get rides to and from the trail. They don’t accept money. I got to Susan’s name, which was 7th on the sheet, and she said she would be over in 20 minutes. The town doesn’t have many Uber drivers, so this process is wonderful. Angels like Susan are very busy come prime time hiker bubble season!
After I had been on trail for about 8 miles, I descended from a ridge line and saw a van in a parking lot and a 70’ish gentleman sitting in a chair next to it. I also saw coolers and other unoccupied chairs and knew it could only mean one thing… trail magic! Mike from Stanhope, NJ quickly introduced himself and gave me a seat and cold soda. I was his first “customer” of the day. He had thru hiked the AT in 1978 and now likes to give back to the hiker community through these acts of kindness somewhere along the trail for about 4 weeks per year.
Such a nice guy. (See pics)
Found a nice stealth camping spot in the woods a few tenths of a mile after the Wildcat Ridge Parking area. About 10 yards off the trail, and about 75 yards from Skyline Drive. Was by myself but it was the perfect place to set up shop.Meer informatie