Wednesday, July 15 9:48 pm 19.8 mi
AT 1131.9 Carlisle → AT 1151.7 Stealth Site
Weather: Hot and sunny
Trail Conditions: Relatively easy, switchbacky climbs. Started getting into some gnarly rocks, particularly on the climb down into Duncannon
My Condition: Sore feet, body still seemingly recovering from 4 State Challenge/1000+ miles of continuous backpacking
The PA diner tour continued this morning in Carlisle – ice cream and waffle for breakfast with a side of bacon. I’ve never been a big coffee drinker, but on trail I’ll always drink it when it’s available. Relatively gentle terrain walking over farms today, until the start of PA 101: Intro to Rocks on the climb down to Duncannon. Snacked at Kind of Outdoorsy outfitters and got a milkshake at 3B’s. I definitely could have hiked on to the next shelter, but I waited around for Blue and Puddles. I love my trail family and really enjoy my time with them. Some days, I’m out in front. Some days, Puddles is. Some days, I hike all by myself all day and don’t see them until camp. Some days we walk and talk. Some days, we all walk together but don’t say a word, headphones in. We’ve been recommending audiobooks and podcasts to one another – Blue is listening to the audiobook Becoming Odyssa by Jennifer Pharr Davis, Puddles recently finished the Missing Richard Simmons podcast, we’re all currently listening to the podcast Office Ladies. I recently finished the podcast series 1619, and listen to NPR’s Up First, Trevor Noah’s The Daily Show, and Backpacker Radio whenever I can find the service to download the newest episodes. Dolly Parton’s America was mostly an interesting listen, and Finding Fred was a great Mr. Rogers series. I’ve somewhat stalled out on the book series The Wheel of Time – I need to finish the series, but it has definitely hit a lull. Although I’m with a group, I still very much enjoy my independence. But without a doubt, I believe we’re all stronger together. Blue definitely got me through the end of the Four State Challenge. There’s a degree of accountability that comes with hiking together. There’s also a sense of camaraderie, common struggle, and shared experiences. Really getting to know them is also a real treat – what makes them tick, what makes them laugh, what inspires them, what brightens their days.
Post Trail Analysis
I love the sounds of nature – more than most I’d wager, backed up by years of experience as an outdoor camp professional and an upbringing full of camping trips with the Boy Scouts. There’s tremendous peace, and value, in listening fully and quietly to the sounds of the natural world that surrounds us. Thinking is great, and there’s precious few times in life when you have the luxury to follow an uninterrupted thought train through its entirety, end to end. On the trail, you can do that! I did some of the deepest reflecting, contemplating, and general thinking that I’ve ever done while on the AT. One of the things that excited me the most about the journey, as backwards as it might sound, was getting the opportunity to consume some media! My booklist was a mile long, and my podcast queue was all backed up. Backpacking is great and there’s beauty in the rhythm and simplicity of packing it all up, putting it on your back, and taking one step after another in pursuit of a goal. The people are amazing, the views and vistas breathtaking, but ultimately it’s five months straight of just walking – the good, the bad, and the boring...not just what you see on social media.
I listened to The Hobbit, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers, The Return of the King, The Silmarillion, and The Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien (and Christopher Tolkien). I started the Wheel of Time series, listening to The Eye of the World, The Great Hunt, Dragon Reborn, The Shadow Rising, The Fires of Heaven, Lord of Chaos, A Crown of Swords, The Path of Daggers, Winter’s Heart, and making it mid-way through Crossroads of Twilight by Robert Jordan before I simply got bored of the series 10 books in, missing out on the last 4 when it allegedly gets better. For the first time since my initial childhood read, I listened JK Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, the Prisoner of Azkaban, the Goblet of Fire, the Order of the Phoenix, and started The Half-Blood Prince before I ran out of time on the trail, interspersing the Audible version with the home-recorded chapters that my amazing friends Pat and Kelsey had made for their nephew so they could read this favorite series together while separated by the pandemic. I listened to one of my absolute favorites, Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archives – The Way of Kings, Words of Radiance, and Oathbringer, in eager anticipation of the upcoming (at the time) Rhythm of War. I also listened to his book The Rithmatist. I listened to The Art of War by Sun Tzu, narrated by Aidan Gillen of Game of Thrones fame. There were so much more books and series I had hoped to listen to, from familiar series like George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire to Patrick Rothfuss's Kingkiller Chronicles, Andy Weir's The Martian to Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher series, Joe Abercrombie to Neil Gaiman, Stephen Fry to Frank Herbert, Homer to John Muir. If you want to catch up on your reading, thru hiking is a great place to start! Whether you use Audible or many of the free public library alternatives, audiobooks are a great way to make your reading ultralight as well. The listening didn’t stop there, though. I binged the podcast series listed above, in addition to Serial, Undisclosed, 9 Days in July, and The Lord of the Rings Minute, which watches the extended edition of the movies one minute at a time and breaks that minute down in a long 30-60 minute podcast! I didn’t get to nearly all the content I had hoped to reach, including Critical Role, or the podcasts which came highly recommended by friends both on and off the trail including This American Life, Stuff You Should Know, Factually, Very Bad Wizards, The TryPod, You’re Wrong About, and Threedom.
We also got to go to SHEETZ for dinner tonight!!! A personal favorite of mine as a proud Pittsburgher, nothing beats the made to order goodness of this delicious gas station food. I'm a fan of the deep fried box of love, also known as the appetizer sampler. With three options, I usually choose the cheese curds, the fried macaroni and cheese bites, and the mozzarella sticks/jalapeno poppers. What could beat a box of crispy, fried cheese?!?
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