James River to Bluff Mountain

Saturday, September 22, 2012:

Nine miles of trail north of the James River took me up to Fuller's Rocks where you get a spectacular view of the river valley when the weather is clear.  It was hazy today.  It was much better the last time I was here, on July 1, 2011:

Here's how it looked today:

On up to Rocky Row you get much the same view, then after some very easy level trail between Saddle Gap and Saltlog Gap (not to be confused with Salt Log Gap a bit further north) you come to the open summit of Bluff Mountain where there used to be a fire tower and where, on a November day back in 1890 a boy, not yet 5 years old, wandered away from his schoolhouse.  His body was found at the summit the following spring, seven miles away from where he disappeared.  A plaque now marks the exact spot.

Bluff Mountain offered a view to the west, not half bad, I guess.  I didn't even take a picture back in 2011.

It was a warm day but the evening showers that were in the forecast (30%) formed off to the east and never threatened here.  Now some cool autumn air is moving in - several days of beautiful hiking are in the works.

------------------------------------

Here's the map and link to all the photos from today's hike:

AT Day 236 - Fuller's Rocks at EveryTrail
EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in Virginia