First Month Down

Hey everyone! Had a great fourth week out on the trail. Hopefully y'all have been enjoying the photos and videos. Yes that is a y'all in there. I've been picking up some southern slang, but don't worry I am heading North and I'm sure it'll fizzle away. 

I'm currently taking a nero (short mile day, not a zero) in Hot Springs, NC to resupply on trail food, give my body some rest and pack on some calories with town food and beer. Oh, and Hot Springs sits just on the 274.4 mile mark, so less than 2000 miles to go. Yeah!!!

So these posts seem harder and harder to write as so much happens within a week on the trail and the days sort of blur together. But some of the big highlights this week include hitting the 200 mile mark, hiking with Tom and Beckman in the Smokies, having the longest day yet at 18.3 miles and standing at the highest point of the trail at Clingman's dome (6655ft).

But the biggest thing yet to happen is that I've hit the 28 day mark. And I've been told that the moment you hit that amount of days you can make it to Maine. You're body is getting stronger and you've mentally figured out what the hell this hike is all about. And I'd say it was one of the best days I've had yet on the A.T. as we ended out the day up on Max Patch. Max Patch is a bald where the summit of a mountain was cleared for cattle to graze, but now it's just enjoyed by hikers, day trippers and the locals.

When we arrived at the top of the bald we were greeted by some past thru-hikers that were giving out trail magic (hot & ready pizza, chips, beer ,soda, water), but sadly, 15 minutes after I arrived the trail angel broke his collar bone diving for a frisbee. So we put him in a sling, gave him some pain killers and helped him and his friends carry the coolers and chairs back down the mountain. We hung out and camped on top of the bald the rest of the day and watched the sunset on one side of the mountain range as the moon rose behind us. We then woke everyone up early to watch the sunrise from the other side as the moon dipped away from view.

Other than that I've been hiking, eating and living a fairly simple life. So if any of you amazing supporters out there have any questions about this hike so far, hit up the comments and I'll have the next post be a Q&A. 

Thanks again for all the support family and friends. And thanks again Tom and Beckman for coming out and crushing so many miles that we turned your 6 day trip into 3. You guys are beasts. Happy trails!