Bryson Hikes the AT

Hello, everyone! Sorry that once again it’s been so long between updates. I’m starting to realize that I’ll be finishing a lot of the story after Katahdin. Hopefully my writing will benefit from having a real keyboard.

Things are going great! I’m hiking with a really fun group, and recently finished the White Mountains of NH and entered Maine! We hiked the Mahoosuc Notch a couple of days ago, the most hard or most fun mile of the whole AT, depending on your perspective. In a couple days, we’ll be passing mile 2000!

6/21 Mile 1032.7 – Ed Garvey Shelter

Was Alison and my third time in Harper’s Ferry today, and this time we finally hiked in! Had a super cruisy morning of hiking; was kindof surreal in a strange way. We had had these previous two trips to Harper’s Ferry and kept seeing all these little reminders of both of them as we walked in under our own power like the rest of the thru-hikers. We passed the little side trail leading to the Airbnb we stayed at with my Dad, and many other landmarks we remembered from before. Nice little blueberry-picking session along the way, followed by our official stop at the ATC headquarters to get our photos taken. Again, we’d already been here, but now we were here as thru-hikers.

Great lunch at a new restaurant in town that we had yet to try on our two other trips in. Began with baked brie and coffee, perfect for the drizzly day. One final stop at the outfitter for ice cream, and then we were on our way! We crossed the bridge and turned right (instead of left, the direction we’d turned to go hiking with my Dad, Jen and the kids). And just like that, we were on brand new trail! It felt like the end of an era. We cruised along the C&O canal, and Huckleberry decided to go after a duck and swim in the scummiest little pond we’d ever seen. He smelled like swamp for the rest of the day. We continued on and eventually arrived at a beautiful, large shelter. Nice and cozy out of the rain. We adventured the half mile downhill to the shelter water source in our new, matching Frogg Toggs ponchos, and then it was time for bed.

6/22 Mile 1050.9 – Annapolis Rocks

Another wet day, but nice. We met up with a couple friends of Alison’s, Greg and Courtney. So nice; we showered, did laundry, resupplied at Walmart and had pizza with them. Greg, thanks for opening up your lovely home to us, it was so appreciated.

We overdid the resupply at Walmart. Plums and English muffins and other luxuries. When we got going again, our packs were heavier than they’d ever been. We had to eat some of this food. After passing the original Washington Monument, we eventually got to the Annapolis Rocks camping area. It was near empty, so we had our choice of the lot. We picked a nice little site and settled in. Alison, who up to this point hadn’t done a whole lot of food experimentation on trail, made a plum crumble sort of thing for the both of us to have for dessert. It was amazing! It was a bit rainy, so a hot dessert was exactly the right thing for the moment. I provided some yogurt and tea for us to have with it.

6/23 Mile ~1070 – Site just off the trail a bit past the PA border

Crossed the Mason Dixon line and entered PA today. And Huckleberry got to zoom around a pasture full of Longhorns, cows make him go crazy. Some wonderful trail magic at Pen Mar Park, just before the border. Hot chili, chips, fruits and veggies, ice cream, even consumables like duck tape and glasses wipes and such. Such a nice thing to stumble upon around 6pm Learned a bit about the history of the park from Dennis, a kind parks and rec employee. Apparently, it used to be an amusement park owned by the railroad company that operated until the 1940s. Now it’s a town park. They had this really fun zipline thing that Alison and I had a great time playing on before we headed down the trail and entered PA! I don’t know what it is, but I really like the vibe of this Pennsylvania forest. We’re officially in the North!

6/24 Mile 1090.5 – Some Old Forest Road

Soon after departing our little trailside site, we once again made plans for a lovely little house-stop. My friend and former boss Konrad put me in touch with his sister Erika, who lives in PA. She was so sweet and hospitable: we hung out and drank the German beers she shared with us, showered and did laundry, and dried all of our damp items on the back patio after all the rain in recent days. Amazing conversations about Erika’s time on the PCT and biking across the country! Erika even took a bit of our resupply to bring back to us in Duncannon, so our packs were lighter when we left!

6/25 Mile 1112.3 – James Fry Shelter

I don’t know if I’ve ever had a 23 mile day this packed with activities! Amazing and unexpected morning trail magic from Kelby, Chaz, Simon and Paul who were staying at a cabin just feet off the trail. Great coffee and hot brisket around their campfire for breakfast! And lovely conversation. Then more trail magic less than an hour later! Thanks Twister!

WE HIT HALFWAY! The traditional thru-hiker way to celebrate is something called the “Half Gallon Challenge:” consume half a gallon of ice cream as fast as you can. Finishing wins you this little wooden ice cream scoop that says you finished, but it’s more about bragging rights. 24:19! But Alison smoked me with a time under 17 minutes! Pine Furnace State Park, where the challenge takes place, also has the AT Museum, which was fun to check out. Remember Earl Shaffer, whose memoir I read earlier in the trail? There was a lot of info about him here, including a trail lean-to that he built long ago, that was brought here and reassembled when it was replaced! This state park also has a beach, so a group of us went swimming! So nice to just float and look up at the clouds after some hard miles. After we eventually got moving again, we did another 7 or so, then settled down at this lovely huge campsite by a river.

6/26 Mile 1135.7

Pleasant, but hot morning of hiking. Eventually arrived at Boiling Springs, PA. It’s always fun encountering towns like this that the trail passes directly through. On the way in, got some trail magic from a kind man with the thickest Boston accent I’ve ever heard. Then, there was a congregation of hikers at the former ATC building in Boiling Springs. Chatted with folks and relaxed here for a while. Got a smoothie, espresso, and burrito from the nearby café, then worked on some postcards at a nice little picnic table. Relaxing little town stop, right on the trail. Was even able to pick up a bottle of stove fuel at the outfitter. We moved on, and after a while encountered this great little Amish farm stand where the trail crossed a road. Got fresh milk and homemade ice cream, and packed out a lot of fruit to take to camp with us. The apricots in particular were fantastic. Huckleberry wanted to herd the cows, and ran under the fence to do so. We had to run in and grab him, and then the cows chased us all the way back out. Ali caught a little zap from the fence on the way out (she laughed it off). What a time, Huckleberry just can’t contain himself around cows. Eventually we moved on, and settled down by a stream an hour or so later, getting into our tents with a few of our newly acquired fruits to snack on just as it started to rain.

6/27 Mile 1154.2 – Clark’s Ferry Shelter

Alison and Huckles started a little before this morning, so did a bit of music-fueled solo hiking until I caught up to them at an overlook. We hiked into Duncannon, PA today. Neat little town; the outfitter had a hiker lounge, which means their back room had couches, places to charge devices, and was a safe place to store your pack while you did other things in the town.

We met back up with Erika, and got to meet Konrad’s other sister Lynn! Such a nice time! Erika brought us the things we had left with her, as well as a pair of new shoes for me! So good to see her again, and it was lovely meeting Lynn as well! We had a lovely dinner with them at a local restaurant, then they brought us by the grocery store to resupply. A banana split on the way out of town, and then we were on our way. We crossed a bridge before heading back into the woods, and the views were absolutely gorgeous. A climb up took us to some really pretty boulder-walks through the evening forest in the golden-pink light. A bit of night-hiking, and we arrived at the shelter. We saw our friends Rainbow and Broadway, who gave us the scoop on available tent-sites. We set up and ate, and it was time for bed.

6/17 Mile 975.5

We awoke to a new person in our hotel room! Part two of family week, a visit from Alison’s friend Jarika. This was part of why we chose to get a hotel in Front Royal; Jarika had a long drive, so it made it easy for her to be able to just join us and go to bed when she got here in the night. Which means that Gwen and I woke up and immediately made a new friend! Definitely a new way to meet someone. Next stop was coffee in Front Royal, where we all got more acquainted (and had some excellent fruit turnovers), then a resupply at Walmart on the way back to Harper’s Ferry for the second time; this time for a river day! Gwen’s DJing in the car during the drive was superb. Music is definitely something we miss on trail. Jarika brought her paddleboard, so I got to try that for the first time. Gwen, of course, being from the coast, was zooming back and forth on the rocky river, no problem.

Eventually, we started packing up; it was time for Family Week Stage Three! Gwen’s Mom, Valérie, flew all the way from France to come hike some of the AT with us and Gwen! The planning for this had started at least a month previously; Valérie had been acquiring gear and doing training hikes around Brittany, and now the day was finally here. Gwen and Valerie’s reunion when her train arrived was absolutely beautiful.

After her arrival, Valérie insisted on buying us each a beer, which was so sweet of her. Then, it was time to head back to the trail. Gwen, Valérie, Alison, Jarika, Huckleberry and I headed back to where we had hitchhiked into Front Royal from, and hit the trail for some night hiking. Not an easy way to start the trail for Valérie and Jarika! After a few miles, we found a spot, made our dinners, and settled in for the night. We were all tired, and Valérie and Jarika had traveled a very long way.

6/18 Mile 987.3 – Whiskey Hollow Shelter

Nice surprise when we awoke: Cookie and Snore were at the site we night-hiked into! Always good to see them 🙂

This was our only day of the five of us hiking together, and it was a good one. Some shelters have a reputation for being very nice for one reason or another. Some are huge, one has a big deck with Adirondack chairs, there’s even one shelter with a hot shower. The shelter we took a long break at early in the day had horseshoes! We had a lot of fun with that. All of us started out playing, then Jarika and Alison left to go fill up waters and Gwen and I played best two out of three. It was a good thing we weren’t competing against Alison; as a PE teacher, she’s quite good at horseshoes. She got ringer after ringer during that initial warmup period. I beat Gwen, but only barely; pretty impressive for his first time playing horseshoes.

One aspect of family week is that a good bit of planning was involved, and that some of it had to happen on the fly. Jarika only had one day to spend with us, so with the help of Medic T, I jogged forward and moved her car about 10 miles forward so we’d be near it at the end of the day. This was a fun little adventure, and I got to catch up with Medic T while he drove me to Jarika’s car and back from it to meet the others. Really good to see him for the first time in a long time! It just so happened that there was some good trail magic at the trailhead where I got picked up from, so that was delightful (and a nice place for the others to wait for me). I had my first cheerwine (which is not wine, but was really great)!

We eventually continued on as a group. After a nice afternoon of hiking together, Ali and Jarika took off to get Jarika back to her car on time. We had left some resupply items in Jarika’s car for later, so Gwen and I made a plan for Ali and Jarika to drive to a road near where we’d be camping and we’d “bushwack” through the woods to come get the supplies. We were ready with map and compass, but it turns out that getting to the car was less bushwacking and more “walking a forest road.” Still a fun little side adventure. We said our goodbyes to Jarika; it was truly so nice to meet her, and I’m so glad she joined us.

Once the four of us were back at the shelter, we had a relaxed dinner at the picnic table under the shelter awning. Another fun dinner conversation with Valérie, and then time for bed. Gwen, Valérie, and Alison were all in tents, so I had the whole lower floor of this nice shelter to myself!

6/19 Mile ~995

The blackberries were becoming ripe! Alison and I spent a good several minutes picking a pint or so of those for a special surprise back at the campsite later.

Had a nice relaxing lunch break by a little stream. I learned a fun fact from Valérie: remember that Opinel knife Gwen gave me? Those are incredibly popular in France, and have been for over 100 years. Gwen and his family used to live in an old stone house, and apparently, there was a specific stone near the entryway where folks could sharpen their Opinels as they entered the house. That was a neat story to learn; Gwen didn’t even know that!

It started pouring just before we arrived at the shelter where we planned to camp. Yet another new AT Experience for Valérie. We, and a bunch of other hikers, convened under the shelter as soon as we got there, and hung out while we waited for the rain to stop. It eventually did, and we decided to camp in this nice little area of sites a little ways away from the shelter that we mostly had to ourselves (except for Valérie, she decided that she’d try out sleeping in a shelter tonight). Very nice campfire hangout. I had bought one of those “Campfire Colors” packets in an outfitter somewhere, and people were enthralled by that. Also, I made the post-dinner surprise that I mentioned earlier: some blackberry jam made from the blackberries that Alison and I picked! I just copied what I remembered my Grandma (Grammy Nae!) doing when I was younger, and it turned out great! We didn’t really have anything to put it on, so we just kinda ate it as dessert, and it was delicious.

6/20 Mile 1013.6 – Blackburn Trail Center

Very hard day today. We knew this was coming, but that didn’t make it any easier. Gwen came to the US on a 90-day ESTA. We knew from the beginning that he wouldn’t be hiking the whole trail, and now his time on the AT was coming to an end. Gwen and I met on my second day on the trail, and had been hiking together more or less full time since just after the Smokies, so this was extremely difficult and emotional. The 1000 mile marker was to be our separation point. Alison and I would continue on ahead, and Gwen and his Mom would finish out Gwen’s last couple days on trail together, visit New York City for a couple days, then head back to France on the same flight.

We began “the Rollercoaster” together this morning (explanation below). We knew when the 1000 mile marker was coming up, and we all subconsciously started hiking slower and slower, trying to put off the inevitable. Eventually, we saw the sign. An incredible milestone like that felt like an appropriate place to end this phase of the hike. It was tearful and tough for all of us; Valérie was emotional as well, seeing Alison and I say our goodbyes to Gwen. Was tough to say goodbye to Valérie as well; I’m so, so grateful that I got to meet her and hike with her, and I’m excited to see her (and Gwen, obviously) again, probably in France next time!

And that was that. Alison and I hiked on. The hiking itself was pleasant, but we were obviously emotionally raw. We were glad to arrive at Blackburn Trail Center later in the day. It was like a resort for hikers, just the relaxing sort of place we needed that day. It had a spring-fed shower, nice tent pads, charging on the porch, and a complementary soda and rest in Adirondack chairs when we arrived.

Figured I’d do a little bonus “explainer” post. For the purposes of knowing what’s coming up on trail, there are two options: paper guidebooks and the FarOut app. I use the former.

I bought the loose leaf version so I can easily carry the couple pages that are currently relevant in my chest pocket, and keep the rest safe in my pack. I burn each page as I finish it, so the guide gets lighter as I go! As you can see, it packs a lot of information into a small space. Here is the legend from the front of the book:

That line in the background is the elevation profile, showing climbs and descents against the numbered scale lines. As you can see, today will be pretty flat, but check out the handy warning below the line marked “Village Vista Trail.” Just because it’s flat doesn’t always mean it’s easy.

The numbers to the left of each line are the distance to the end going Northbound (NOBO) and the distance to the end going Southbound (SOBO). Each shelter (the red names) has a handy row of numbers below it: those are the distances to the three shelters preceding it and following it.  To be clear, the guide also indicates established camping areas that aren’t at shelters, though there aren’t any of those on the above page. You’re also, for the most part, allowed to camp anywhere you want, but the established sites are a bit easier, and sticking to those when possible better aligns with Leave No Trace principles.

Each parking area (the green P all the way to the right) has GPS coordinates; often punching those in is by far the easiest way to navigate to these out of the way spots.

The things we most often look for in the guide are water, shelters and campsites, and towns to resupply in (and once we’re in town, the town maps and blurbs about businesses on the backs of pages are extremely handy). The tidbits about upcoming views, monuments, and other fascinating little things are nice also. Things like this:

Little boxes like that often contain information about plant and flower species you might see on that part of the trail as well, which is always fun to learn. Thanks to David “AWOL” Miller for making such a well-designed guide!

Hi everyone! I hope that everyone’s enjoying the blog. I’m so grateful that people actually care about and read this. Sorry I’m so behind; as the mileages have become longer, it’s gotten tougher to find time to write. I do journal every night, so I have source material to go back to when it’s time to write this. Behind as I may be, it will all get written eventually.

Current status update: I’m at Mile 1364, almost done with New Jersey! I passed the halfway point about two weeks ago. Last night, Double H, Huckleberry, and I went to the famous Warwick Drive In, which allows hikers to camp for free and watch movies! We saw the new Indiana Jones. I’m currently at a laundromat here in Warwick, and I plan to do my next resupply in New York City!

6/10 Mile 895.1 – Ivy Creek

Had a chill first breakfast in the Shennies, then got hiking. Fun rockhopping up to a panoramic view just off the trail. Huckleberry enjoyed the challenge.

The Guide didn’t indicate campsites or anything near Ivy Creek, but that was our plan anyway, thinking that surely there’d be something nearby, and what do you know? Three good spots right by a nice cold creek to soak our feet in and lull us to sleep. We made a fire ring and had dinner around a lovely campfire. We were all feeling sort of silly tonight, which was a lot of fun. The laughing, joking, and chatter kept up once we were in our tents as well, since we were all close enough to each other to hear, and there was no one nearby to disturb.

6/11-6/12 Mile 908.5

Family Week commences! We hiked 15 miles or so filled with anticipation, and guess who met us on the trail at the end! My Dad came and picked us up and drove us back to the Airbnb he had rented months before. My guess about where I’d be wasn’t tooooo far off, and would’ve been pretty close if not for noro. SO good to see him! We resupplied at Walmart along the drive and got some additional goodies since we’d be hanging out for a couple days. When we arrived, Jen was making her amazing meatloaf, along with mashed potatoes and salad. Perfect post-trail meal (and Gwen’s first time having meatloaf). After dinner, we spent some time relaxing by the fire and making smores. Got to emphasize how great it was to see my Dad, Jen, Kendyl, and Adam.

We had a slow, relaxed morning and biscuits and gravy for breakfast, then made our way over to Harper’s Ferry to see it and do the touristy things. It was a lot of fun! It was rainy, but most of the exhibits are inside, so we got to beat the crowds. The whole town of Harper’s Ferry is a National Historical Park; essentially a museum town for Civil War-era history. Doing all of this with my Dad, Jen, the kids, and Gwen, Alison, and Huckleberry was a wonderful time; I’m so glad everyone got to meet. Before heading back, we got some coffee and ice cream.

Upon returning home, we had a restful evening. The sun came back and Gwen, Alison, Huckleberry and I relaxed on the porch for a while, doing the occasional trail related chore. We had pizza for dinner and watched Talledega Nights. It was actually both Gwen’s and my first time seeing it! What a fun movie.

For a while after, Gwen, Alison and I laid on our pads outside and talked and stargazed. We saw a couple shooting stars, and even a train of Starlink satellites making its way across the sky.

6/13 Mile 914.9 – Baldface Mountain

Gwen, Ali and I (mostly Gwen and Ali, thanks!) made breakfast this time: eggs, bacon, fruit. A lot better than we’re used to on trail. Since the weather was better, today was to be the outside day. We went back to Harper’s Ferry and did two hikes: first to see Jefferson’s rock, a sort of rock podium with a beautiful view of the Shenandoah. Then, we crossed the old rail bridge and hiked a bit of the Maryland Heights trail. Pretty surreal to be literally walking part of the AT with my Dad. We had a lovely meal at Almost Heaven, and the day, of course, wouldn’t be complete without more ice cream. This time, it was Gwen and Ali’s treat, which was very sweet of them.

Eventually, it was time for my Dad to take us the two hours back to trail. We wanted to hang out all day, and figured we’d just night hike until we got tired. We said our goodbyes. Everyone had had an amazing time together and really enjoyed getting to meet and talk, which I was so glad for. The three of us hikers had so much fun and got so much rest, and I’m so grateful to my Dad and Jen for making this happen. Love you both!

After returning us to the Trailhead, I had one more difficult goodbye (for a few more months). My Dad was there to see me off for the second time, which was lovely. We started hiking around 10pm or so, so we only did about 6 miles before we were very ready for bed. We took turns telling stories during the night hike.

6/14 Mile 935.9 – Little Stony Man Cliffs

A very gray morning turned into a beautiful, golden evening. I grabbed some earbuds from my backpack when my Dad visited, so this was the first time I listened to music on trail! I definitely won’t do it all the time, as the forest sounds are really nice as well, but sometimes an album just really sets the correct vibe for the moment. Today it was Colter Wall’s self-titled album. Really seemed to match with the hike. Alison and I reconnected in the afternoon, and hiked together through golden hour, which was extra gorgeous today for some reason. We found Gwen near one of the “Waysides” that the Shenandoah mountains are known for on trail – a trailside restaurant/gift shop that many hikers frequent instead of carrying dinners. We knew a beautiful overlook was coming up, so we had the bright idea to grab a bottle of wine, which a server was kind enough to open and recork for us. We made our way the final miles or so from the wayside to the cliffs, set up our tents, and shared our wine as we watched the sun set. Then, we all made dinner, still on the cliffs. One of those evenings that really makes you grateful to be out here.

6/15 Mile 957.9 – Between Little Hogback and Gravel Spring

Had breakfast on the beautiful overlook where we’d had dinner the night before. Gwen’s Mom FaceTimed! She was in Paris in preparation for her flight to the US to hike with us. It was kinda surreal to see her walking around in front of the Louvre while I was sipping coffee on top of a mountain.

We each did some solo hiking this morning, then Gwen and I convened at a lunch spot. We hiked the rest of the afternoon together, then found a spot with potential that just needed some cleanup work. We cleared some sites and a fire ring area next to a log that would make a good bench. Yet another wonderful fireside conversation. I ended up the last one by the fire finishing my bedtime tea, then tucked in as well.

6/16 Mile 972.1 – Front Royal, VA

I made the switch from my rain jacket back to the classic Frogg Toggs poncho (what I used on the Ozark Trail), and it really got tested this morning! We filled water at a spring near the first shelter after our campsite, then continued on; soon it was pouring. It was a fun sort of rain, and the poncho worked well! The motivation for the switch was to keep my lower half drier to avoid chafing, which worked.

Exited Shenandoah National Park, another milestone. We hitchhiked into town with Bryan, thanks! I was so impressed by the “Basecamp” hiker lounge run by the outfitter/brewery! It was a sort of “backstage” feeling area between the outfitter and brewery, with free backpack lockers, showers, and laundry! So all our stuff was safe in there, and we could all pop over to the brewery while our clothes washed. Also fascinating to see the wall filled with trail names of folks we know who are just ahead of us.

The beer was great, as were the conversations. It was beautiful and sunny on the patio at the brewery, and Spice, Suits, Gwen, Double H and I had a lovely time.

Next up was Thai food at the restaurant in the downstairs of our hotel! It had been awhile, and it definitely satisfied a craving. Then, we hustled over to C&C Frozen Treats to grab some of their amazing house-made ice cream before they closed. Caught a few songs at some live music we encountered along the walk back, behind a barbecue place. Finally, back to the hotel where I fell asleep after about 7 minutes of The Mighty Ducks. Lovely town day, and all after hiking 17 miles!

6/7 Mile 848.7 Rock Point Overlook

Rocky forest hiking today. Continued crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway over and over, which provides ample opportunities for views. At one such view in the late afternoon, we encountered Paul, doing some reading in his chair overlooking the mountains. He approached us and asked about our hike, and we proceeded to have a lovely half hour talk about the hike and life in general over a beer each that he kindly shared with us. These human connections are one of the best parts of the trail.

We settled down at an overlook with a couple flat spots nearby. Billy Bob joined us, and cowboy camped directly on the overlook itself. We all had dinner in front of a beautiful sunset.

6/8 Mile 864.4 – Waynesboro

DOUBLE H CAUGHT UP!!! So good to see Alison and Huckleberry again! After taking several days off to go see family and attend her brother’s graduation, she pulled multiple marathon days (literally) to make up the miles. Gwen started hiking before me this morning, so my lateness out of camp meant that just as I was getting ready to start hiking, Huckleberry trotted up and tackled me, he was so excited to see me. Alison wasn’t far behind. Fantastic to see her again! We hiked together and talked the whole morning, then caught Gwen at the shelter where we were planning to have lunch. It was an amazing reunion, made even better because we knew we were only a few miles away from a fun town day in Waynesboro.

When we arrived at the trailhead we met a hiker named Slow ‘n Steady who was there to do trail magic. He offered us beers and a ride into town, which we graciously accepted. We had him take us to the YMCA, which offered free camping for hikers in a nearby field, as well as free use of their shower facilities! Never has a gym shower been so appreciated.

After getting clean, we walked to a live music event across town that we had heard about. It was packed! We chilled to listen for a couple songs, then our stomachs got the best of us and we went and got a massive Pizza at Benny’s. Was fantastic, and we knocked out some of the logistics planning for what we came to call Family Week (more on that in the next post). We wanted ice cream, and the recommendation from some locals we chatted with at Benny’s was Kline’s. Boy were they right. Maybe the atmosphere and the moment contributed, but I think it ranks among the best frozen custard I’ve had. We finished the night with a resupply at the odd little groceries-only Wal-Mart, including some luxuries for the morning, then headed back to our free campsite on the edge of town.

6/9 Mile 872 – Calf Mountain Shelter

We had debated whether to zero or not today. I enjoyed the strategy we went with: have a slow morning leaving our edge-of-town campsite, relax in Waynesboro for as long as we felt like, then hit the trail again. It wasn’t a zero, but it was super restful. We chilled and journaled/blogged/hung out at this great coffee shop (The French Press) for hours. Gwen and I both really enjoyed the comics and collectibles shop next door. I even bought a comic to read on trail and change things up a little.

Eventually, we got some food at The River, then hit the trail again. We were officially in Shenandoah National Park! It was a relaxed, happy evening of hiking with the three of us back on trail together.

6/1 Mile 738.9 – Curry Creek

Such a nice morning. Beth cooked breakfast for us, she called it Appalachian Toast, and it was a bananas foster casserole bake type thing. Delicious. Just beforehand, I finally finished Walking With Spring, Earl Shaffer’s memoir of the first thru hike. It was really enjoyable to read while hiking, especially when so many of his experiences just happened to line up with mine. Certain things were different hiking the trail in ’48, but a lot of things weren’t. However, I am ready to get into my tent in the evening and read something totally unrelated to hiking now. Next up is Guards, Guards by Terry Pratchett.

Beth was running into town after breakfast, so I had her drop me off at the Verizon store and replaced my phone. I cracked it like a week into the trail, and was eligible for an upgrade anyway. Nice to no longer be typing on a cracked screen.

The Verizon store took a while, so by the time we hit the trail, it was 3ish. I was feeling rejuvenated; it was a good shower and I felt like I got a lot of town stuff done. Being back on trail was good. The weather was perfectly sunny, exactly what we needed after the days of rain before. Bright sun mostly covered by dense deciduous canopy is one of my favorite things.

We were planning to push further, but after 7ish miles, we encountered a beautiful little site just above a stream, and both agreed we didn’t want to pass it up. Passing up spots like this just for the sake of miles wouldn’t feel right. We set up, and Billy Bob joined us soon after! Fantastic to see him; we had a brief encounter in town, which was our first time seeing him since Trail Days, so it was good to catch up around the fire.

I got a surprise from Gwen! I’ve liked Opinel knives for a while. This is actually something we bonded over on the day we met (day 3 of the hike), as it’s a very French knife, and we both started the trail with one. However, the one I started with is the carbon steel model. Beautiful and picks up a nice patina, but in four days of constant rain, it’s nearly impossible to keep it rust free. I had known this was coming since this morning, so I had the opportunity to mail home my old knife for safekeeping. Around the fire, we had a bit of wine Gwen had packed out as a surprise, and then he presented me with my lovely new stainless steel and walnut Opinel. What an amazing gift, and a reminder of this hike and this moment every time I use it. Thanks, Gwen!

6/2 Mile 758.5 – Jennings Creek

One of the hottest days yet, but beautiful out. Gwen and I both were feeling pretty tired this morning, but perked up after lunch. We hiked separately for a bit, and because there was service I took the opportunity to call and do some much needed catching up with my Mom and my Dad. We noticed in the guide that where we were headed was listed as having a swimming hole, which was exciting to me, Gwen, and Chuckles, who we chatted with along the way.

I arrived during the golden late-afternoon; there was a bridge where a road crossed a river, and it looked like great swimming. No sign of Gwen until I noticed he had left one trekking pole off to the side of the trail to point me in the direction of a side trail, where his other pole topped with his hat made sure I knew that that was the right way to go. I took the side trail and found that he had already set up in a womderful little site set back among the trees, with room for three or four tents.  We were ready, so I quickly tossed my tent up, put on my water shoes, and we headed down to the swimming hole.

The water felt lovely. This was the first swim (other than that icy cold Laurel Falls) where we could actually just float about. We did, and it felt great to have the weight off our muscles while the cool water soothed the little aches and pains. Soon, Chuckles joined us; we had a great time chatting about all sorts of stuff in the water and on the shore. We learned that Chuckles used to live on a sailboat (in her native Australia) and commute by dinghy to the shore every day for work.

We eventually dried off and transitioned back to the campsite, where Chuckles had set her tent up as well. We built a fire, made our dinners, and continued the wonderful conversation until it was time for bed. This was honestly one of my favorite evenings on trail so far, everything was just perfect, including the hiking that preceded it.

6/3 Mile 772.5 – Thunder Hill

Big climb this morning! 4200 feet over five miles or so! And then some showers on and off into the afternoon. We got to Thunder Hill Shelter and ate lunch. I had a really good mango I had carried for a couple days, so that was great.

We originally intended to keep going, but as we settled in the cozy shelter and the rain came back, that started seeming less and less likely. We thought about it while relaxing and reading and snacking for a couple hours, which was a really good rest. Finally, we decided the weather had improved enough that we were going to move on. We started packing, and there was immediately a huge thunderclap. We looked at each other and stopped packing. It was nice to do an early stop and relax in the shelter, totally dry, as it poured outside. Gwen, Shooter, and I had the shelter to ourselves as well, so it was a nice little hangout.

6/4 Mile 787.3 – Glasgow Shelter

The rainy morning made us glad we stayed in the shelter. Had a lovely slow morning staying dry while it was misty and wet out the front of the shelter, always the most cozy.

Eventually, we did get moving, headed toward Glasgow. Only got a little damp on the way there. It was still just misty, which always gives a very mystical atmosphere to the forest. Shooter, Gwen, and I got to the Trailhead around the same time, and stuck our thumbs out. Within a few minutes, a nice man gave us a ride to town in the bed of his pickup. Between the Glasgow Grocery and DG, we were able to put together a resupply. Today was another situation where we had been planning to head out, but got vortexed. The town of Glasgow runs a free AT hiker shelter in town, with electricity and a hot shower! I decided to check out the Italian place next to the shelter with Shooter, and who do we see there but Billy Bob! He joined for dinner (a very good calzone and an italian sub for lunch the next day), then we all headed back to the shelter. There was no chance we were hitching back to the trail at this point. We decided to enjoy Glasgow’s hospitality, with most of us tenting near the shelter. We had a great fire, with split firewood provided by the town instead of sticks we gathered. After some great fireside conversations, we all headed to bed a bit later than usual.

6/5 Mile 807.3 – Brown Mountain Creek

On the way out of town, we hitched a ride with Tom, one of the City Council members in Glasgow! He was really enjoyable to talk to about all sorts of things; he is also a very recently retired university professor. Beautiful hiking with Gwen and Billy Bob, perfect weather climbing out of Glasgow.

Later in the day, on the way into camp, Chuckles and I hiked together for the first time. Was nice! Hiking solo with someone out here is a different experience than hanging out in camp. There’s a certain freedom that, for some reason, allows you to talk about anything and everything while hiking. That’s one of the reasons deep friendships can happen so fast.

Chuckles and I rolled into camp and picked sites near Gwen. These sites were all clustered around a nice little rocky creek, with the shelter up a small hill. I soaked my feet in the creek while writing my journal entry for the day (peak relaxation), then joined Chuckles and Gwen in making the fire. It’s pretty much always a group effort, which makes it more enjoyable.

6/6 Mile 834.5 – Tye River

Good hiking today, but it just got longer and longer. We were initially thinking we’d camp at Spy Rock, but then Gwen, Billy Bob, and I were feeling good and pushed on to The Priest. By that point, we were only four miles or so from doing a marathon, which was on Gwen’s AT Bucket List before he has to head back to France. We decided to go for it. The last part was some nice cruisy night hiking (another one of Gwen’s bucket list items) that ended up putting us just over 27 miles for the day. We were feeling it, and quickly found great sites along the Tye River. This was a pretty big river, and the water sounds lulling you to sleep are always a good thing.

After setting up around 10PM or so, we ventured over to a nearby campfire and were welcomed by some folks named Stickyfingers, Mule, and Ray. Was nice to have a fire that we didn’t even have to start to eat dinner and chat around, and to talk to some new folks. They even shared their marshmallows with us!

Note: For anyone who reads French or can use Google Translate, check out Gwen’s blog at the link below!

5/29 Mile 697.9 – Pickle Branch Shelter

Everyone knows they’ll get rained on on the AT. You carry rain gear for a reason. What starts to be a problem is when the rain is consistent one day after another and you start to feel like you’re never going to be dry again. This was day two of rain, and it was heavier and more consistent. Not all day, though, which was nice. The morning was a bit of a slog. Wet shoes, wet shorts. There was a very cool rocky ridgewalk that was some very fun hiking (although it would’ve been even better if we could see out from the ridge). We stopped for a nice lunch under cover of a shelter, and it let up for a while after that, which was fortunate. Second real water crossing of the AT today! We were worried the water would be too high due to the rain, but it was easily doable. The rain came back with a vengeance in the later afternoon, and I had some shockingly bad chafing that started in the last couple miles of the day.

I don’t typically stay in shelters; I usually prefer the privacy of my tent at the end of a long day. Today was an exception. It was wet and that didn’t seem like it would change overnight, the tent spots near this shelter sucked, and the shelter was already populated with friends of mine (Cookie, Snore, Gwen, Shooter, and a new friend named Tuna Shorts). We had a lovely evening in the shelter doing our best to get dry. We ended our day together, with a lovely little group conversation. Solidarity is nice on harder days.

Addendum: today, I taught Gwen about sassafras and he really appreciated it. For those who also don’t know, it has three distinct types of leaf on every plant: an oval, a mitten shape, and a shape with three rounded prongs. It has a very good, very distinctive smell, and the stems taste good if you chew them. Thanks, Dad, for teaching me that in our yard when I was a little kid!

5/30 Mile 712.5 – Catawba Shelter

Glad I stayed in this shelter. Nice slow rainy morning, awakening with friends. We all took off around the same time, mozying toward the 700 mile mark and toward Dragon’s Tooth, an iconic rock pinnacle that is the first piece of what’s known as the “Virginia Triple Crown.”

After coming down from Dragon’s Tooth, we were all looking forward to a mini-resupply at a gas station/grocery store just off the trail in Catawba. That was our motivation for the couple miles after Dragon’s Tooth. So glad the rain held off, it would’ve made the climb down super treacherous. We made it there and restocked; they had a really good kitchen there as well. The burgers were solid!  Of course, minutes after moving on, the rain started again. Figures. We had a couple stints of rain throughout this afternoon. The first wasn’t so bad, it brightened up for some lovely meadow-hiking; during the second, it poured for a while, then lightened up as I approached the shelter (we had split up for some solo hiking by this point). For some reason, I suddenly encountered some of the most intense chafing of my life.

Was once again a nice little group of friends at the shelter (similar group to the previous day, with the addition of Chuckles). Over dinner (with the addition of a trail beer each that we had packed out from the Catawba Grocery), we concocted a plan for a sunrise hike of McAfee Knob, the second feature of the VA Triple Crown.

When I went to bed, my feet looked awful. After being wet all day, the bottoms become white and look like they’re separating from the rest (they’re not, actually). Luckily, I happened to wake up to pee around 2AM. My feet had dried fully and looked much better, just a bit shiny red on bottom. I slathered them in Aquaphor and went back to sleep, which helped a ton. 

5/31 Mile 731 – Beech Hill Hostel

Set an alarm for maybe the third time on trail? Shooter was the first to take off, then Gwen and Chuckles, then myself around 5:30, then Cookie and Snore. It was some once again amazingly peaceful doing morning hiking in the dark. Our arrival at the Knob was initially a bit disappointing; it was totally fogged in. Resigned to our fate, we made breakfast and coffee up there, which was a good choice. The fog burned off, and we got a great view of the valley below and sunbeams through what fog remained. It was mystical-looking and gorgeous, and I was glad to watch it happen over breakfast with friends.

Eventually we moved on from the knob in groups of 1-2 after a nice breakfast and photo sesh; because we had gotten there so early, it was still only 7AM or so, and we had already done 2 miles. The fog eventually finished burning off. It became a positively hot day.

We started getting excited as we approached Daleville. Shooter, Gwen, and I had booked bunks at Beech Hill Hostel. It ended up being a lovely little hostel where we got our own mini bunkhouse and a nice space to get clean and dry everything out after the days of rain. At dinnertime (and after showering and changing clothes, thankfully) Beth drove us to town and dropped us off at Three Little Pigs, where we had excellent barbecue (along with house made pork rinds, fried pickles, and a free order of hush puppies for the table when Gwen asked what hush puppies were), then walked over to Kroger to resupply before being picked up. Upon our return, we had a chill evening of reorganization and chatting, first at the picnic table, then in our little lamplit bunkhouse before settling in to journal and sleep.

5/25 Mile 641.5 – Clendennin Road

Got an early start today; I was so excited to meet up with Jacob and Mitch and catch up to Gwen. Left my site just after 7 in perfect weather. Hiking as the forest awakens is always lovely. So many deer. Got to Angel’s Rest, a lovely overlook, around the same time as a nice hiker named Hip (actual name, not trail name) who I first met just before Trail Days. Always nice to see the town you’re walking into from above before you get there.

It was a pleasant 11 miles or so down to the road for Pearisberg, then a walk of about .7 into town. I saw Gwen sitting in front of the Grocery store from far away on top of a hill; we waved excitedly from at least a quarter mile apart. It was a lovely reunion; we went to a Mexican restaurant and caught up on all the things each other had missed during our longest period of hiking apart since the Smokies.

Next, we had some missions before our guests arrived. First, a resupply at the grocery store to get us to Catawba, VA (around 70 miles). Next, I had previously encountered the owner of the Angel’s Rest hostel and been offered free laundry when I got there. Without time to do laundry, I headed over there and they were happy to let me take a free shower instead. I quickly did that as well as picking up a package I had sent there, then hustled back to the Mexican place to meet Jacob and Mitch while Gwen finished up a phone call with his mom (she’s going to come do a section of the AT with him!)

They were here! They had currently been awake since 3AM the previous night for their flight to Roanake via Charlottesville, where they were then shuttled to Pearisberg by a nice driver named Homer who thru-hiked in 2004. It was fantastic to see Jacob and Mitch after so long. We went back to the Mexican place and had a lovely time catching up over margaritas while Gwen finished his planning call with his Mom.

With that, we were off! Jacob and Mitch were starting their first AT adventure.

The hike away from Pearisberg followed a highway for a bit, but pretty soon we were climbing through the woods as usual.

Of course, for the full AT experience, there needed to be some rain. That started maybe an hour after we set off. I was very worried that would continue the whole weekend, after the week of perfect weather we’d just had. Luckily, that didn’t bear out. We passed through a rare area where no camping was allowed, and just after we got through it the rain let up.

With the rain done (for now) and 6ish miles accomplished, we found a flat spot and made it work as a campsite. We had a little wine and cooked a lovely group dinner for the four of us: rice and beans with fritos and cheese, which Jacob and Mitch brought for us! It was already dark at this point, but the vibes were great; it was a lovely start to this new group adventure. Now was the start of the wonderful series of “surprises” Mitch and Jacob had brought to share with Gwen and I. The first two were the wine and a bag of Maltesers, which are like Whoppers but better (Jacob had brought them from France, you can’t get them in the US). Everyone was pretty beat at this point; Jacob and Mitch had been up for most of 24 hours. It was time for bed.

5/26 Mile 651 – Campsite before Dickensen Gap

Waking up to a lovely morning after some rest, we made breakfast and got rolling on our first full day. Eventually, we came to a nice open ridgeline with lovely views down into the valley, as well as Jacob and Mitch’s first ever AT shelter. At the shelter, we stopped for a nice long break and took advantage of another of the surprises: the game Carcassonne! This is a game all four of us enjoy very much; Jacob, Mitch, and I play it all the time at game nights, as does Gwen at home in France! It was lovely to play a board game with friends for the first time in months, and to play it outdoors with a beautiful view was even better. Some note: introducing friends who you know will like each other is always fun, and this was no exception. It was so fun having Jacob and Mitch meet Gwen and vice versa, everyone got along so well.

Eventually, after that lovely shelter stop, we pressed on. Most of the rest of today’s hike followed the ridgeline we were now on, so the elevation change wasn’t too bad. We had another lovely little break at a campsite with a great view before finding a spot to settle down at after 10 miles. It looked like a site that didn’t get a lot of use. We started off by clearing leaves, weeds, and some fallen branches. It was a nice little 3-place campsite when we were done with it, which was satisfying.

We got a fire going and shared the three remaining mini wine boxes while having great fireside chats. After dinner, Jacob and Mitch revealed another surprise: gooey butter cake! I’ve been craving it like crazy, and Gwen got to try it for the first time. Amazing that it had traveled all the way from STL. It was unspeakably good.

Truly ideal evening of camping. Good friends, good fire, good food and wine.

5/27 Mile 660.6 Bailey Gap

Another lovely day of hiking the AT with friends. We ended up playing a couple word games while hiking that ended up being a lot of fun. Mitch suggested one of the games: two players each think of a random word, then say them simultaneously. Then, they each try and think of a word that relates those two, and say those simultaneously. The game ends when they get to the same word. There was a fantastic moment where Gwen and Mitch were absolutely thrilled to finally get to the word “swim.”

I also took this opportunity to do a little gear repair. With 900+ miles on them, my trekking pole tips were looking pretty round. New tips and my pliers were some of the many things Jacob and Mitch brought for me.

After another entry in the shelter log on behalf of the Fleur de Lis crew, we moved on. There were some healthy hills this afternoon, but we made it to Bailey Gap shelter, our destination for the evening. Jacob and I decided to tent, while Gwen and Mitch stayed in the shelter itself. And who showed up, but Cookie and Snore! It was amazing to see them, this was the first time since just after Hot Springs! The “shelter social hub” experience was another nice little AT first for Jacob and Mitch.

5/28 Mile 675.2 – Laurel Creek

Lovely slow morning leaving the shelter. I made coffee and tea for the group, and we played another game of Carcassonne. This time, Jacob won. Eventually, we moved on and finished the final 4 miles or so to get Mitch and Jacob to their pickup point. It was a drizzly one, a sign of things to come. We used the informational sign as shelter for a bit once we arrived at the point, then braved the rain once more to get one last photo by the nearby overlook. I can’t overstate how appreciative I am that Mitch and Jacob wanted to come out and experience a bit of the AT with me. It was a wonderful weekend for so many reasons (including all the thoughtful things Jacob and Mitch brought with them), and I’m so glad I got to share a piece of this experience I’m having with two amazing friends from home. Thanks again, guys, I miss you already!

Eventually, Homer arrived to pick up Jacob and Mitch, and we all said our difficult goodbyes. And with that, Gwen and I hit the trail once more. It remained a mildly wet one, but not unpleasant. We made it another 10 or so miles after Mitch and Jacob got picked up, which put us at Laurel Creek Shelter. It was aptly named, I tented in essentially a tunnel of Mountain Laurel, while Gwen slept in the shelter. I joined him in the shelter for dinner out of the rain, then headed back to my tent.

Some bonus photos:

5/21 Mile 560.4 Knot Maul Shelter

Trail Days was lovely, but I will admit: after only doing 11 miles in four days, I was ready to hit the trail! I got a ride back to Atkins with Chuck, who was taking several friends back to Bland and could drop me off along the way. After saying goodbye for now (until I catch up) to Rambo, Medic T, Aaron, Teabag, and Carrots I had a final cold ginger ale, then headed back into the woods. It felt absolutely right to be back. It did seem I had to relearn a little bit of the self-motivation I have on trail though, as I was stopping for much more frequent breaks, especially while I briefly still had cell service. Hit the quarter-way point! The 3/4 way ME>GA sign on the opposite side of the tree had me thinking about things from the Southbounders’ perspective for a moment.

After about 15 miles, I came to Knot Maul Shelter. I had been planning to go a mile or so further, but I was presented with an opportunity: an entire shelter to myself! I took it, and it was marvelous. My own little cabin in the woods. I slept great, and no one cared if I snored in the shelter.

5/22 Mile 577

I truly love hiking with my friends, but after the chaos of Trail Days, a few days of solo hiking was a nice reset. Lovely morning with a little breakfast reading of Walking With Spring before I left my solo shelter. Parts of today really reminded me of the Ozark Trail hike I did a couple years ago; it was nostalgic in the loveliest way. There was a bridge out, so I did my first real AT water crossing (other than the countless rock-hoppable creeks and streams). I’ll expect many more of those later in the trail.

Chestnut Knob shelter was one of the nicer shelters I’ve seen on trail. Made of stone, it even had a door! I had a snack by the lovely view out front, then headed inside for some reading that turned into a much needed afternoon nap before I ventured on.

I still didn’t feel I quite had my hiking rhythm back today. Probably not a bad thing that I eased back into it though. I did around 17 miles. Toward the end of the day, I encountered some free water jugs someone had put out at a road crossing. This turned out to be excellent, because it allowed me to take a sweet little nearby campsite just up the trail, when otherwise I would’ve needed to push on to the next water source.

5/23 Mile 604.4

Got my rhythm back! 27.4 miles today! Hiked a little pre-breakfast (saw a good sized bear crashing away from me through the woods in the distance) then stopped at the next shelter for breakfast and a nice little chat with a hiker named Ranger San. Just kept going and going today. I encountered a new hiker from Denver, CO named Roadrunner, and we stopped together at an unexpected little restaurant at a road crossing called the Outpost. He’s going quick! He did a third of the trail five years ago, and is out to finish the rest now, before the Fourth of July! 25-30ish mile days nearly every day, with no zeroes so far. He was fun to chat with, always lovely to share a meal with a new person. And surprise burgers and onion rings are the best!

I was expecting to stop twice before I finally did. Just past the 600 mile mark, there was a water source marked in the guide as “unreliable.” My plan was to camp near that if there was water, or push another two miles to the shelter if there wasn’t (the shelter, like most, had a reliable spring). Well, option number one was dry. Onward! As I hiked on, a small black bear swung down out of a tree and ran off just in front of me. After another 40 minutes or so (and another bear taking off down the trail in front of me), I arrived at the shelter and saw Roadrunner again. I filled up on water, but the tent site selection near the shelter left a lot to be desired. Onward, again. Night hiking this time, I found a flat but very buggy spot and set down for the night, ate dinner, journaled, and went to bed.

Warning: spider photo!

Side note: found a new favorite dinner combo. I know people wonder what we eat out here, so I’ll try and mention these things more often. I did the Knorr Teriyaki noodles side, with added peanut butter, olive oil, and Teriyaki beef jerky cubes. This was one of my favorite combos I’ve tried so far. Another day, tried the same with gochujang flavored tuna instead of the beef. Also very good!

5/24 Mile 625

Final day of my push to both catch up with Gwen and to meet Jacob and Mitch for their visit that I’ve been looking forward to since we first started planning it around mile 100 or so! So exciting!

Today was one of those days where the hiking just felt correct. Everything was happening at the right time, I was feeling good, I got to see some wildlife (two newborn deer with their mom, a baby possum, and a big black snake). I pushed a little past sunset. After a bit of night hiking, I noticed a perfect spot all on its own nestled into a little tunnel of trees, after traversing some rocky woods. I set down for the night happily, with only 11 miles to do to meet my friends in the morning!

Note on post titles: they were getting cumbersome, so the title will now just be where I was at the start of the post and where I was at the end. The subheadings will be where I slept each night (and my current mileage on the trail).

5/16 Mile 534.1 – Partnership Shelter

Relaxed 12ish miles into Partnership shelter, then set up my tent under the lovely pines around 1:30PM, much earlier than usual. With camp made, Gwen and I hitched into Marion, VA for our resupply (thanks to Ashley and her adorable dog Scout!). We once again got some luxuries for the night, and Gwen experienced his first Walmart as well as getting to have a nice long talk with his parents.

Supplies in hand, a nice man told us to hop in the bed of his pickup and drove us back up the mountain. We began a luxurious dinner with sandwiches from Ingles, wine, bread, and brie. The weather quickly closed in, and we transferred to the shelter’s covered picnic table as it started to storm heavily. We continued enjoying our wine and cheese, and the others in the shelter joined our chat. Someone already in their sleeping bag pointed out that watching us all through the front of the shelter was like watching a movie play out on a big screen, and they were really enjoying it. Legs showed up; I’ve seen her name in logbooks for weeks but hadn’t met her yet, we had a lovely chat. Eventually we finished our wine and the storm let up, and I made my way back to my tent, which had stayed entirely dry through the monsoon (pretty proud of my site selection, I had the storm in mind).

The good vibes of the night quickly came to an end however, as I woke up around midnight realizing I had a stomach flu (probably norovirus, which has been going around out here). That woke me up several more times throughout the night.

5/17 Mile 538.3 – Glade Mountain Road Campsite

Today was a hard one. I hung behind at Partnership Shelter to wait out Noro. Gwen moved on, which would be our first time hiking separately in a bit. He wished me luck and hit the trail, while I checked out the nearby visitor center to see if I could keep down a Powerade, and then a Sprite (only for a little while, unfortunately). I slept in my tent on and off throughout the day. All in all, this was a decent shelter to have Noro at, considering the nearby visitor center with a real bathroom and vending machine, and the good weather.

Toward the end of the day I was beginning to feel better. I still hadn’t successfully held down any food or liquids, but I had plenty with me, and decided to hike a little. Since I had slept all day, I figured hiking some would make it easier to sleep that night, and boy was that true. I started around 5:30 pm and hiked the hardest 4 miles of my life. I came upon a campsite just off a tiny road with nearby water and immediately plopped down for the night. I had zero energy remaining, I was totally drained after getting water and setting up my tent.

5/18 Mile 545.7 Trail Days!

I felt so much better when I woke up. Still weak from not eating the day before and with a dehydration headache, but the nausea and other symptoms were entirely gone and I was very ready to start eating again.

I wasn’t originally planning to get to trail days so early, but my only two decent options for hitching a ride were in 7 miles and 50 miles, and I wasn’t feeling confident about the second option. I figured I would head to Damascus and finish resting up there (being very careful in case I was still contagious, obviously). I eventually got to the highway interchange I was heading for near Atkins, got a gas station chicken sandwich and relaxed for a moment, then headed to the Southbound ramp of I80 and stuck my thumb out. Within 5 minutes I was riding with a great guy named Cecil. The first thing I noticed when I got in the car was his Embry Riddle coffee mug, and I asked if he flew. He did, and his son did as well! We spent the whole 40 minutes to Damascus talking airplanes and flying, it was great. He’s lucky enough to go flying with his son nearly every day while his son is home for the summer from Riddle, which I think is amazing.

Being in Damascus for the second time a week or so later was a strange feeling. Very different atmosphere this time, as the town of 600 was in the process of becoming a town of 20,000. Cecil dropped me off in the park, and I made my way to Tent City and set up. After taking a nice nap and having my laundry done by the free laundry service operated by a local church, I almost immediately started to see old friends. First Pyro and Nick; lovely to see them for the first time since Standing Bear. Then Travis and I found each other and started catching up as Feral Goat, Olivia (now Protractor), Josh (now Doo Doo Brown) and Firefly made their way into town for the free 7:30 fried chicken dinner. It was incredible to see everyone again, it truly felt like being reunited with friends I hadn’t seen in years. And the chicken was great too!

After dinner, we hung around chatting for a while, then made our way into the woods to join the party for a bit. Tent City consists of the field area, which is a bit quieter, and the woods, which becomes party central at night. Particularly the part of the woods where a group of thru-hikers and former thru-hikers called Riff Raff sets up. We ventured in; it really is structured like a city, with streets between the many branching rows of tents. The Riff Raff area has a massive bonfire (usually burning logs 2-3 feet in diameter) and a dance floor with a massive tarp roof. We joined the party for a while (which was great, when we were there it was very mid-2000s dance music), then eventually made our way back out to our tents in the quieter field area for some much-needed rest.

5/19–5/20 Mile 545.7 More Trail Days!

I stayed at Trail Days until Sunday morning. There were constant, wonderful reunions with so many people I’ve known from every part of the trail. People shuttled back or forward for it, or walked straight into Damascus. Gwen, Double H, Teabag, Medic T, Aaron, and others showed up on Friday; they had gone 45 miles further than me, to Bland. I was going to have some catching up to do. I had done some more sleeping before they got there Friday, but got a new wave of energy when they showed up that afternoon and set up near me. We had our own little group in Tent City.

During the daytimes, various groups of us made the long trek from Tent City back to the main festival area several times, where there were vendor booths, free food at times, fair food, concerts, a gear auction, so many gear raffles*, and the “main event,” Saturday’s hiker parade. The nights involved things such as the famous drum circle around a massive fire in the woods, an amazing concert Friday night that a large group of us went to together, and just general joyous revelry. I’m really glad I chose not to miss this. It’ll be nice to come back in the future, but attending Trail Days as a current thru hiker is a unique experience.

*Side note: Olivia (now Protractor) won the grand prize in Outdoor magazine’s gear raffle! Hundreds of dollars of gear, including a pack, trekking poles, and lots of other good stuff. She just had to figure out how to get it home, which was a little bit of a struggle on short notice.