We had gotten into camp late yesterday and by the time we had finished dinner, it was well past 9pm which is a very late night these days. So we decided to sleep in. To wake up whenever we did, knowing that it was only a 13 or 14 mile day. No need to rush. 

We hung around slowly eating breakfast and chatting with a SoBo thru hiker who had just started a few weeks back. It’s fun to see the thru hikers on the beginning of their journey. To see them doing exactly what we did a few months ago. The sense of excitement, especially for every little thing that has happened or will happen. 

By the time we left it was a bit past 9am. Not an early day. To top it off, we were both moving a little slowly in the morning. The day yesterday had taken it out of me more than I had expected. I wasn’t sore. But I was definitely struggling to hit my stride. 

But even with a slow start, the day turned exciting very quickly as we walked past a stump with writing on it. I stopped to read it. “2,000 miles” it read. Holy shit. It was the 2000th mile of trail that we’ve covered. A number so large that I couldn’t really comprehend it. It just seemed so vastly large that all I could do was laugh a bit. 

The rest of the day was a classic AT day. Torey got to experience the rugged terrain, the steep ups and somehow steeper downs and the lack of views. He even got to experience the threat of rain. We spent the afternoon hustling to make it to town before the impending rain began. 

We hitched a ride with an off duty cop and her husband. They were off to a dinner date, they said, but like so many others in the towns we’ve been going through, enjoyed helping hikers. So they had pulled over and brought us to town and even given us each a bottle of water. 

We stuffed our faces full of too much food before retiring to the hostel. Tomorrow Torey heads back home to London and I’ll take the day off. There’s a storm coming through and I just don’t want to hike in it. 

Key stats:

Miles: 13

Elevation gained: 3700 ft

Mile marker: 2010

What I did when I could walk 1,000 miles: walked 1000 more