Category: Appalachian Trail 2021

Start: Trail of Hope Hostel (AT mi 1084.9). Stop: Birch Run Shelter (AT mi 1094.9). Today’s miles: 10 miles. Total AT mileage: 69.9 miles

I slept incredibly well in the little bunk room at the back of the church/hostel. I woke up around 8 fully expecting my new friends to be long gone (because they weren’t waiting on my package to arrive lol), but they were both still there! I sprung out of bed and darted up to the front of the building to check to see if my box came. When it wasn’t there, I checked the tracking and knew it would be sometime before 10am.

We all ate breakfast together (Lizard made us grits with cheese and some extra spices, super yummy), and while they started packing up, I worked on posting my blog from yesterday (it takes a while for the app to upload the pictures and whatnot). Before I even finished, I got an update on my phone that my special delivery was indeed dropped off.

I was like a kid on Christmas opening that thing! My warm sleeping bag, some Marino wool leggings to sleep in, some running mittens, batteries, TP, and some more mountain house meals and probars! Talk about a spoiled princess. I am definitely feeling the love from my family and couldn’t even begin to tell you how thankful I am for them.

I repacked my pack, packed up the box to return. While I was doing all this, Showtime made her exit and headed for the trail. Once I was mostly done, the preacher came to the church and was checking on us, making sure my stuff came and whatnot. I asked if he’d be willing to take me to the post office (if he had said he couldn’t I already had a list of shuttle numbers to try). He said sure and that he’d drop me off at the trailhead too (almost a mile the opposite direction from the hostel). Since he was feeling so generous and I wasn’t expecting to get a lift all the way to the trailhead, I ran to find Lizard to see if she wanted to come with, so she wouldn’t have to trek that road mile for no reason. Naturally, she agreed!
We went by the post office, Lizard ran into family dollar next door, and then preacher took us back by the hostel to grab some ramen for Lizard bc family dollar didn’t sell individual packs. Then he took us up to the trail so we could actually start our day. He was such a nice guy.

It seems like I say this everyday.. but the climb at the start of the day was a beast. I guess that’s one way to warm up your body first thing. It probably felt more difficult bc of the added weight from the food resupply and my new sleeping bag weighing more than my quilt did. That thing felt like a behemoth today. Plus I packed it in a hurry and didn’t Tetris everything in as smoothly as I’d have liked, so it was packed high instead of low and wide. It made for some discomfort with my neck since I couldn’t lean my head back. Whatever, it’ll get better.

We were greeted at the top of the hill by a gorgeous green tunnel. And then not much farther I almost poked my hiking pole into a huge black snake. I saw it just before I put the pole down, and then screamed and jumped so high I startled both the snake and Lizard, too. He was maybe 6 ft long and pretty thick.. those are Lizard’s estimates because he might as well could have been an anaconda in my eyes. Gi-frikin-normous! I scared him with my screaming that by the time I could breathe again and thought about getting a picture, he was long gone. Maybe next time I see one I won’t act like a 4 year old-but I doubt it. Haha

We crossed lots of different terrain, some pretty trail with rocks, some beautiful pines with their cushy needles under our feet, and a strange area that looked like a controlled burn or some other kind of clearing.

We ate lunch at a little cabin.. and then finally made it into camp around 4:30 ish. We met Red here, another flip flopper, and a couple we had been leap frogging with all day was already here, too, along with Showtime. We all hung out and ate dinner together. Some NOBO thru hikers made it into camp maybe 10-15 minutes after we ate. Pizza Cutter, Heater, and Day Hiker. They started the traditional route at the end of February and they’ll be passing the official half way mark tomorrow morning. Seeing how they met along the way makes me a little sad I don’t have the traditional trail family start most do, BUT I wouldn’t change a thing.. and I’m happy I’ve met Lizard along this journey so early. Even if we don’t end up staying together long, I really enjoy her company and she’s made my first week out here that much more enjoyable.

I’m all wrapped up in my toasty sleeping bag and wool leggings. Even with my first night of no service, I’m one happy camper. Also, I really hope I sent the “I’m ok” message out correctly on the Garmin InReach! I guess we’ll find out when I get some service again.

Start: Birch Run Shelter (AT mi 1094.9) Stop:Unnamed Campsite (AT mi 1107.6). Today’s miles: 12.7 miles. Total AT mileage: 82.6 miles

I woke up a little before 8am hearing the birds chirping and the folks around me quietly packing up. After laying there a bit, completely content in my warm sleeping bag, I figured I better get a move on or I’ll never make it to Pine Grove Furnace store.. the home of the half gallon challenge. While most thru hikers love this place for the challenge- which is to eat an entire half gallon of ice cream to celebrate hiking over halfway from GA to ME- I was dead set on getting a burger and fries and some kind of soda. It’s the little things that get me out of bed these days!
I packed up the inside of my tent, rearranging a few times. The bigger sleeping bag takes up more space and makes it a little difficult to get everything inside the pack AND keep it comfortable. But I managed!

I ate breakfast with Lizard, almost everyone else was out of camp by the time we were boiling our water.. lol.. maybe one day I’ll be an earlier riser. Maybe. Anyway-we ate, finished packing and I hit the trail just ahead of her, knowing she’d probably catch me sooner rather than later, and if not, I fully intended to wait for her at Pine Grove.
Today’s hike was beautiful, no seriously steep inclines or descents.. birds were everywhere and so were butterflies. I saw a few lizards scamper off into the leaves and I startled a deer when I rounded the corner where it was standing drinking water at a creek. I felt bad that the little buddy got so scared and didn’t get to finish drinking.

I stopped a couple times to rest, take off my jacket, drink my zip fizz.. shockingly the miles flew by so quick! I finally came into the area where Pine Grove is and got so excited! I purposefully held off on eating lunch, and it was pushing 1:40pm. I did just under 10 miles in 4 hours and 16 minutes.. maybe I am breaking in my trail legs!

I got to the outdoor seating area and saw everyone from last night! Showtime and the couple section hiking Pennsylvania were there, Day Hiker, Heater, and Pizza Cutter were still there, too. I thought surely I’d miss them by hours! Haha PizzaCutter looked absolutely awful, you could just see the nausea he was swimming in. He completed the half gallon challenge in under 20 minutes. Impressive!

Lizard got there not long after 2pm, and got her some food.. she inhaled that hiker burger so fast I think she should have been able to add her name to some challenge! Hahaha

We hung out awhile and then headed off into the woods again. We went just under 3 miles to a little unnamed campsite. We brought water with us so we don’t have to worry with finding a stream. It’s going to be a peaceful night, that I’m sure of 🙂

Start: Unnamed Campsite (AT mi 1107.6). Stop: Alec Kennedy Shelter (AT mi 1120.1) Today’s miles: 12.5 miles Total AT mileage: 95.1 miles

I woke up to the sound of birds chirping and then some other familiar buzzing noise. Flies. For whatever reason, 5-10 flies were buzzing around our campsite and irritating my peaceful sleep, which meant I might as well get up. It was almost 8am anyway, if I ever plan to leave camp before 9, I may need to set an alarm.. and so far I just can’t bring myself to do that.

I got up and got moving, slowly. Made some coffee and ate a protein bar, still completely stuffed from yesterday’s burger. Lizard ended up doing the same.. except she doesn’t drink coffee, so while I sipped mine, she did some yoga stretches on her sleeping pad. Maybe I need to start doing that in the mornings, too. But then I’d really never leave at a decent time!

Today was filled with ups and downs, rock scrambles and pine needles. While beautiful, with the sun out and shining, I’ll be honest.. it totally kicked my ass. The uphills were a struggle for catching my breath and for my quads, too.. but I enjoy that burn and struggle so much more than the careful slow step down the rocky declines.. on those I can catch my breath and cool down, but man it makes my right knee ache with each step.
I also took another tumble today, as well as one yesterday.. not sure if I mentioned that. I just randomly fall all the way to the ground with no obvious culprit besides lack of grace. I felt fine afterwards both times, but I’m sure my little slips to hug the earth aren’t helping my knee any.

However strenuous today was.. it was also pretty flipping awesome, because we got our first ever trail magic! A mom brought her 10 & 11 year old and their same aged cousin to hike into the trail some with trail magic! I got a coke and a cheese and jerky combo stick thing. So yummy! And she let us offload our trash! (It’s a big deal, we literally have to save all of our trash from food, snacks, wipes, everything until we pass a town or a state park with trash cans.)

When we got to camp, Adam and K were there! I thought for sure I’d never catch up to them! And Patron, Polka Dot, and Gandalf were already there, too. We briefly met them yesterday at the restaurant. They’re pretty funny, and none of them knew each other before starting either, they all just met within the last week! Patron is a huge Lord of the Rings fan, so he gave us each a ring (very nice one too, might I add), and said it’s to remind you to embrace your own journey (or something like that). Very cool. I put mine on my pack since my hands are swelling and then returning to normal with all the hiking.

We all cooked and ate our meals together.. we told our dinner mates about my falls, saying we may have to change my trail name to Tumble. Then I learned what Brown Blazing is! So; for the hike, we follow the “white blazes” that mark the entire Appalachian trail. Blue blazes mean a side trail, like the shelters or some other trail that intersects. Lizard told me today that pink blazing is when you speed up or slow down to be able to hike with a crush, I told her yellow blazing is when you “taxi” ahead to meet your friends to stay at their pace.. BROWN blazing is when you have to dig poop holes instead of going in the privies! YALL! I’m a brown blazer! Maybe my trail name should be BB. Hahahaha! Because of this convo, I told them about my Petty Bowel Syndrome, they said I should be named that, and PBS for short.. and when people ask why, instead of explaining just say, “I’m very knowledgeable.” LMAO!

Well, my food is in a bear box and I am all toasty warm laying in my tent in my most prized possession: the sleeping bag. It’s not nearly as cold as it was at the beginning of the week, but I’m keeping this baby with me for the foreseeable future. It just makes me happy.

Tomorrow, Lizard and I plan to do a nearo (nearly zero miles), and go to a hostel in Boiling Springs. We were considering also taking a zero (no AT miles hiked for the day) after that, but the town is small and the reviews of the area aren’t great. We’ll play it by ear, but if we don’t zero there, we’ll have big days the following 2 days, and then be able to zero in the bigger town of Duncannon. We shall see what happens! I’m excited for an easier day either way.. and so are my legs!