View Full Version : Ashby Gap, US 50 in VA - go north or south?
I'm going to be traveling on US 50 through Ashby Gap at the end of October. I've driven it many times and have actually stopped to spot the blazes.
This time I'm thinking of parking and hiking to a shelter to overnight. Returning to the car in the morning and continuing on my merry way to PA. The idea is to do an overnight on the trail and add some miles to my meager total.
My questions to the community:
1. Do I go north to Rod Hollow Shelter or south to Dicks Dome Shelter?
2. How secure is the parking on VA 601 for overnight parking?
Distances aren't a factor, only 3.8 miles north or 4.8 miles south. Going south I'd get to play Frogger twice on US 50.
Do I get to claim double the miles for this out and back? :banana
Thanks for the advice.
rmitchell
09-26-2017, 21:28
For what it's worth, there is a new shelter near Dick's Dome. I cannot recall the name of it. When there in late April it was not completely finished but it was being used.
I'm going to be traveling on US 50 through Ashby Gap at the end of October. I've driven it many times and have actually stopped to spot the blazes.
This time I'm thinking of parking and hiking to a shelter to overnight. Returning to the car in the morning and continuing on my merry way to PA. The idea is to do an overnight on the trail and add some miles to my meager total.
My questions to the community:
1. Do I go north to Rod Hollow Shelter or south to Dicks Dome Shelter?
2. How secure is the parking on VA 601 for overnight parking?
Distances aren't a factor, only 3.8 miles north or 4.8 miles south. Going south I'd get to play Frogger twice on US 50.
Do I get to claim double the miles for this out and back? :banana
Thanks for the advice.
Bump..........
Kaptainkriz
10-11-2017, 17:29
The parking on 601 is excellent - used it a number of times. South is a very nice hike: https://goo.gl/photos/ycFcRMsBcEpCr27e8
North to Rod Hollow, most likely there is no water at the shelter: https://goo.gl/photos/LnPT1L6AjfYG51ro8
I'd go South!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6UZo3gW_7E
Kaptainkriz
10-11-2017, 17:32
Not that anyone is counting, but you can claim both northbound and southbound. I'm currently working the whole trail as a series of in and outs and having fun at it.
Do I get to claim double the miles for this out and back? :banana
The parking on 601 is excellent - used it a number of times. South is a very nice hike: https://goo.gl/photos/ycFcRMsBcEpCr27e8
North to Rod Hollow, most likely there is no water at the shelter: https://goo.gl/photos/LnPT1L6AjfYG51ro8
I'd go South!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6UZo3gW_7E
Thanks. Just the info I was looking for. Unless my plans get changed I'm heading south on Sunday the 29th for a night tenting at Dicks Dome. Back to Pgh on Monday.
chknfngrs
10-12-2017, 08:12
Whiskey Springs Shelter fwiw
Twodays on the AT at Dick’s Dome Shelter (apologies to Tipi Walter)
Ispent last week in VA, the weather was beautiful from Wednesday throughSaturday.
I’vedriven to and from VA many times, I prefer to avoid Washington and the I-95 ratrace, so I drop down from PA through MD and WV to VA. I’ve passed through Ashby Gap on US 50 manytimes, this time I decided that on the way back to PA on Sunday I’d stop andhike on the AT to Dick’s Dome Shelter.
Anotheraspect of this hike was a test of the Guthook app for the AT. I’m an old map and compass Pathfinder and hada printout the section of the trail from GoogleEarth. I had annotated it with the information that’sin the AWOL Guide and the Companion; I’d almost memorized the short section. The trail is well trod, blazed and signed sonone of it was really necessary. I haveto agree with everyone else about the Guthook Guide, with all its informationin the palm of your hand, it is worth the price. (I had some problems getting the Guide todownload but Ryan was a great help.)
Thereis an established parking lot on VA 601 on the north side of US 50 with a blueblazed trail to the AT. I turned south withDicks Dome shelter about five miles away as my goal, just for an overnight stay. The first challenge of the hike is to playFrogger over the divided lanes of the highway, I survived.
The trail south is good, not rocky or steep. Unfortunately, on Sunday the weather turned. It was cloudy and overcast and slightlymisting all day. It didn’t really startraining until I got to the blue blazed trail to the shelter at about 1430. The crossings of the creek on that trail werethe only rocky sections. I caught upwith a SOBO thru hiker at the side trail; his intent was to push on theadditional 4.5 miles to the Manassas Gap Shelter, he had to have gotten wet.
Dick’sDome shelter is small; the guides say that it sleeps four. It’s a single roundish room with an open front. The privy sits up behind it to theleft. The water source is right in frontof the shelter.
Thereis a new (2016) shelter – Whiskey Hollow Shelter - located uphill and to theright. It’s much bigger with a frontporch with picnic table and a back room with upper and lower levels. It would sleep eight (four up and four down)with plenty of space and ten to twelve if you got friendly. There is a Plexiglas window in the backwall. It’s well constructed and tight,no gaps. I didn’t see any evidence ofmice, I don’t know if they haven’t found it or if they’ve moved out for thewinter already. There is an oversizedmailbox with a shelter log and other stuff in it.
I wasgrateful for the shelter because it absolutely poured rain from 1430 on Sundayuntil 0400 on Monday, 2.5 inches overnight. I had intended to tent but gave up that idea fast. It rained so hard that the entrance and sidesof the porch and half the picnic table were wet. I only had the inner end of the picnic tableto use. The old shelter would have been wetand very uncomfortable, at least I had room to move around in the new shelter.
Itwas so windy that I used my windscreen, pack and food bag to shield my stove. PATC has screwed metal plates to the picnictable and side rails of the porch to put your stove on to prevent burning thesurfaces.
Theback room stayed dry. Figuring that it wouldn’tbe as drafty, I set up my sleeping bag on the upper level. They’ve put railroad spikes in the supportsto hang stuff on.
I wasin my 23* bag by 1900 wearing my UA long base layers, socks and a watchcap. I read until 2200 and lightsout. It was 41* and damp overnight but Iwas warm. I didn’t have the best sleep becauseof the rain and wind noise; every so often acorns would hit the metal roofsounding like a gun shot. It’s a long,dark walk back to the privy.
Thehike back north on Monday morning was great. The storm had blown through and it was clear, sunny and cool. The trail wasn’t muddy for the amount of rainthat we got overnight. I saw five SOBOhikers, three thru hikers and two day hikers. I survived Frogger again at the highway. My car was safe at the parking lot.
I hikedon the trail and stayed overnight at a shelter, so I guess that this makes me anAT section hiker - only 2184 miles to go.