Photos courtesy of Tim Thornhill

Tim Thornhill (from left), Kris Willis and Jim Rhodes.

The three friends pause atop McAfee Knob.

It was 22 degrees as Jim Rhodes, Kris Willis and I set out for Hardees for an unhealthy start to a long day of hiking. We don't claim to be professionals; we just enjoy it now and then and the appetite it gives us. This was to be our ultimate local day hike.

Two of the jewels of the Appalachian trail are right here in the valley -- McAfee Knob and Tinker Cliffs. They are linked by a ridgetop for an awesome 12.1-mile hike. From one parking lot on Virginia 311 above Catawba it's a 3.5-mile hike to McAfee Knob, then 5.1 miles farther along the ridge to Tinker Cliffs and then down 3.5 more miles to our second parking lot in the Catawba Valley.

McAfee Knob is the most photographed spot on the Appalachian Trail and is featured on a new Virginia license plate coming out this year. The view from the knob is directly looking at Tinker Cliffs, part of a ridge that connects to our familiar Tinker Mountain near Hollins. The view from Tinker Cliffs back to McAfee Knob is just as impressive. The hike includes these views plus views of the airport and Roanoke, almost all of Carvin's Cove, the Peaks of Otter clearly in the distance, and Botetourt and 220 North -- probably the West Virginia border mountains as well.

But this wasn't turning out to be the best day for our hike. Two days earlier Kris and I made a beautiful cold hike to the snowy, icy Cascades. Later we would each be sick to our stomachs -- Kris from a migraine and me from food poisoning. We weren't at our best. Jim began that Wednesday at work at 4 a.m. and was going to meet us at 8 a.m. Kris had an appointment at the doctor with his wife, I had an evening funeral home visitation in Martinsville and Jim had church dinner to get to. But when guys make a plan like this we force it to work rather than postpone, especially with such clear weather.

We each brought our own version of a man picnic -- sunflower seeds for spittin', beef jerky, peanut butter and jelly, protein bars, nuts and chips. And lots of heavy water despite the cool temperatures.We figured on 2 miles per hour as our rate since it involved a good deal of ascent. Beginning at 8 a.m. and allowing an hour for lunch and stops and six hours for hiking we hoped to be at our second parking lot at 3 p.m. so Kris could make his appointment at 4 p.m. in Roanoke.

The cold morning was invigorating and we reached McAfee Knob in less than two hours, right on schedule. This was going to be a breeze. The view was amazing as always. After some photos and pointing out some local landmarks to Kris we moved on over to the connecting ridge. Kris is a recent transplant from Alabama. Jim and I grew up here in the valley. Geocaching last year got Jim and I, both 49, back into hiking. Finding hidden treasure boxes along a trail made us realize the real treasure was the trails themselves and the exercise.

Coming down McAfee Knob was easy and quick. It descends rapidly and we felt like we were back on schedule after a lengthy stop on the knob. However, the 5.1 miles to Tinker Cliffs seemed to never end. The cliffs continued to appear just as far away as ever each time we got a view of it. The final two hills ascending Tinker Cliffs were especially steep. We stopped at least four times for breath going up the last one.

Finally the first large boulder appeared and then we knew we were almost to the top of our second goal, Tinker Cliffs. That still left 3.5 miles to our second truck. The boulders became more frequent and then the rocky cliffs opened up a tremendous view looking down the entire length of the Catawba Valley. Dragon's Tooth, another local favorite hike, was in the distance. So was the Homeplace! A hiker's favorite post-hike meal. Or any time for that matter. But sadly, not for us today.

Lunch on the cliffs never tasted better. We figured we could take 30 minutes and still be on schedule, barely.

Lunch went by way too quickly and then we were off for the final segment, mostly downhill. While McAfee is more popular, Tinker Cliffs is just as good a hike on its own. Each are 7 miles roundtrip when done separately. However, it requires a steeper ascent than McAfee. Today for us this meant a steep descent. Naturally just before the parking area is one last uphill that nearly did us in. But we wobbled to the finish line just seven minutes past our goal of 3 o'clock. Kris made his appointment though without a chance to shower. Good thing it was February!

Hiking can be addictive, nature beautiful and the fellowship great. Last year's introduction to geocaching has led us to some amazing hikes and then to our recent weekly church family hikes. This year's hiking has produced some awesome photos and good times, which only makes us want to go on to the next one as soon as possible. Sometimes even immediately after working a 10-hour midnight shift. That was me on Monday, the day of the Cascades in the snow. But such good sleep.

For more photos of the Appalachian Trail adventure, visit The Notebook on swo-co.com

Submitted by Tim Thornhill