Testing out the gear

The four of us decided to get some practice hiking done to test out new gear and get our legs ready. We drove up to Mary’s Rock in Shenandoah National Park, a trail about 3.5 miles long with 1200 ft elevation gain. We arrived at the trailhead to find it cold and blustery, so we were super happy we all had hats and gloves. Everyone’s new backpacks were comfortable, and water bladders all worked fine. With our early morning start, we were the first to the summit, and had it to ourselves for about 10 minutes before other hikers started arriving. Of course any good hike ends at a winery or brewery, and we made no exceptions this time, enjoying the selections at Valley Road Vineyards. General consensus: we can do this!