“A Pooh Bear takes care of his tummy by never forgetting to eat“
Day 75
May 29, 2022
Hike from James Fry Shelter to Boiling Springs, PA
AT miles: 17.3
Ascent: 1463’
Descent: 2421’
Weather: warm and humid
Sightings: a red eft, several beautiful butterflies
High points: the delicious hamburger at the Pine Grove General Store
This morning started with an interesting conversation with a Mennonite woman who backpacks! She goes out with a few friends one or two times a year for four days. She even worries about maintaining her trail legs! This blew my preconception of Mennonite women out of the water.
In the beginning the trail was really rocky.
Thankfully the rocks stopped and almost the entire rest of the day the trail was smooth. We sped along!
We passed the sign marking the halfway point of the Appalachian Trail, where we are equidistant from Springer and Katadin. Since I have been jumping around so much, I have another 114 miles to go before I am halfway done hiking the AT.
For lunch we stopped at the Pine Grove General Store, a hiker hangout and home of the half-gallon challenge. I like my relationship with ice cream, so I didn’t try that challenge. Instead I had a wonderful hamburger.
Non-hikers there were very generous with trail magic— we were given fresh oranges and drink mixes.
The afternoon was long— in total we hiked 17 miles! Thankfully the trail was fairly smooth.
Our shelter tonight was quite nice, and a young woman named All Heart made a fire. Campfires are great at fostering long conversations!
The only drawback to the shelter is the 5-6’ black snake that was hanging out on the bear box right behind the shelter!
Today is a great day for a long walk in the woods!