Yes, we are ramping up the mileage! I want to make sure we can realistically finish this thing, so I’m kicking things up a notch.

We made it past 400 miles on the AT! Whooo! That’s so big. It feels good to have surpassed this milestone. We weren’t even expecting it when we crossed the markers. But let’s start from the beginning.

Another scheduled zero day.

Town Day again! However, today we don’t have a short hike into town. Luckily we have a zero day tomorrow, so it’s okay if we get in a little late. We had a leisurely morning as usual and left camp around 9 am.

Today we hiked the most miles we’ve hiked so far on trail! To set ourselves up for success, we woke up (relatively) early and left camp around 8:30 am.

Back on trail! And no slackpacking this go ‘round. Today our goal was to reach a campsite near a water source around 13 miles away.

Trail Days – an Appalachian Trail thru hiker tradition. We got a ride to Damascus late Friday morning and arrived in the early afternoon. Everything was in full swing; hikers were walking down the town streets, vendors were working their booths, and the band was playing their musical selection.

Last slackpacking day before Trail Days! We had planned to go to the Beauty Spot and do around 10 or 11 miles, but the road accessing that spot was closed, forcing us to modify our plans.

At one point in the day, there was a huge downpour, but it only lasted a few minutes. By the time we reached the shelter so I could put on my pack cover and put away my trekking poles, the rain had stopped. I had everything ready to go for rain and then I had to undo it. It was frustrating.

Slackpack day! Waking up was a bit rough this morning. I could’ve had at least two more hours of shut eye, but we had miles to make.