Hiking Day

We left the mountain house early with a stop for a good pancake breakfast before going back to the Blue Ridge Parkway to hike a couple of places.  The first was the Devils Courthouse...a granite outcrop that is 5720 feet above sea level.   The trail is not very long, about a half mile, but it goes straight up from the parking lot.  I could not get a photo of the view of it from the parking lot because the sun was directly in front of me.  The area is very protected as it has many rare species of plants.   We did see some ghost pipes (those white things in the photo) and a pink turtlehead flower (per the Seek app).  We loved that we could see the cloud cover below us.  And we had a place to rest the real camera for a selfie!   

Next we drove a few more miles to the Graveyard Fields where there were two waterfalls.  The lower falls was full and running.  We climbed all on the rocks below the falls.  The hike to the upper falls was a challenge with huge rocks and roots for the last part.  Then we were a little disappointed as with dry weather this falls was only a trickle along the side of the rock wall.    But we did manage to sit on a flat rock to remove our shoes and soak our feet in the cold water.   

 I stumbled going up on the rocks and caught myself as I fell on a rock but I managed to jam my thumb.  It has throbbed all afternoon and swelled at little but I can wiggle it and move it so I don't think I broke anything.  It is hard to type and hold on to things as the pressure hurts.  Icing it after I get finished with my post!

In the extra are the waterfalls we saw these last few days.  Laural Creek Falls, Mooney Falls, Lower Graveyard Fields and Upper Graveyard Fields.

We hiked a total of 4 miles today in high elevation so we worked off that big breakfast.   Stopped on the way home for Mexican.  

Now I am for a soak in the tub and then bed!