Va. 630 to Brush Mountain

Va. 630 to Brush Mountain

Day Twelve – Friday, April 4, 2014

13.2 miles
7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

We were on the trail by 7:30 a.m. We knew we must be close to Keffer Oak, the largest oak tree on the A.T. in the South, estimated to be 300 years old.  Last measured, the girth was 18 feet, 3 inches.  Sure enough, just over the first knoll we saw it.  It sits right beside the trail after going through a fence gate and is labeled with a small sign.  I couldn’t stop looking back at it as we moved on up the trail away from it. 

Keffer Oak

Brian Turner at the Keffer Oak - I had a pic just like this but lost it.

 On top of Sinking Creek Mountain the rocks are piled up on the sides of the trail.  Someone went to a lot of trouble to do that.  Then the trail turns into a trail of boulders.  We walked a few miles on top of the mountain overlooking a beautiful mountain lake.


Rock Pile beside the trail

The trail goes over these boulders.

























Brian Turner at the Continental Divide

Our Thru-hikers Companion told us that Sinking Creek Mountain is the northernmost spot where the A.T. crosses a notable “continental divide.”  Waters flowing down the western side of the ridge drain into Sinking Creek Valley and the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico.  Waters flowing on the eastern side empty into Craig Creek Valley, the James River, and the Atlantic Ocean.


At Niday Shelter we stopped for water since no more water is indicated in the book as we approached Va. 621.  Wait-up slipped and slid down the 75 yard trail to the water source.  We had to take a break at the shelter because my feet were hurting really bad and had been hurting for the last few days.  Especially the downhills made the bottom of my feet almost unbearably painful. 

When we reached Va. 621 we found plenty of water—we crossed about 6 foot bridges.  I don’t know why it’s not indicated in the book. 

Then we started an incline of about 1600 feet toward the Audie Murphy Monument. Before we got there, we stopped somewhere on the side of Brush Mountain and set up camp.  The wind was blowing hard across the mountain so we made sure we tied our tent down good before going to bed. 

(Photos on this page courtesy of Brian Turner.)