AT hike to David Lesser Cabin

A couple of weeks ago (3/12/11) a friend and I hiked to one of the most remote Appalachian Trail cabins in Loudoun County, Virginia. The David Lesser Shelter, or Cabin, is located south of Route 9 and north Blackburn Cabin. It is remote because you can only access it by hiking several miles, unlike most of the other AT cabins in the area that feature roads. This hike was a terrific opportunity to photograph the Blue Ridge in sunny weather ahead of the spring bloom. The photo above looks east over Loudoun County with Hillsboro in the distance. This particular view is roughly half way to the cabin itself, which is a total of 3.5 miles in one direction.

The David Lesser shelter is shown in the photograph above. The three wall cabin is open to the east and features a full size deck. There is a covered picnic structure just out of view. Several camping areas are located just below the cabin. When we arrived on this chilly afternoon, the cabin was occupied and several folks had tents pitched. A serene setting to say the least.

This sign hangs outside of the cabin and provides general information about the site. Out of curiosity, I conducted online research into Mr. Lesser and found nothing about him. Can anyone share some insight here?

As early spring approaches, daffodils leaves poke through the ground in preparation of their more colorful counterparts. This photo was taken somewhere along the trail during the hike. Among streams that appeared from the ground, several plants of similar green hues also vied for sun. Next month, leaf buds and ground plants will transform this section of the trail to appear completely different.

Also found along the trail was this interesting fallen tree with some of it's rings completely missing. Somehow, the core rings remain while creating a curious piece of nature to observe. The fallen log was presumably cut by the kind folks who maintain the trail.