Beat the Half Gallon Challenge

After a good night’s sleep in our secluded campsite. We woke up rearing up to start walking. Today was going to be a good day, we had a big mile day ahead of us as well as a stop at the Pine Grove Furnace General Store. We packed up camp and started heading north.

get halfway

The hike was pretty calm to start the day. We were hiking with OG and Retriever. We had met OG before and really enjoyed talking to him, but Retriever was new to us. It was nice to see a new face and hear another hiker’s story. It wasn’t long after hitting the trail that we reached the 1100 mile marker. Well, we got to the place on the trail where we had hiked 1100 miles, there was no marker there. So we decided to make our own. When you are on the path you need to celebrate every achievement. It makes traveling the next hundred miles even easier. Immediately after passing this reference point we reach another one, the midpoint. Now, Appalachian Trail mileage differs from year to year due to closures and detours, so this halfway point wasn’t exactly correct, but it was still nice to see.

The Half Gallon Challenge

After walking 9 miles, we arrived at THE Pine Grove Furnace General Store. This isn’t just any store: it’s home to the famous half-gallon challenge. This is a widely known challenge among AT-thru hikers. Your challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to eat an entire half-gallon of ice cream in one sitting. This is a dangerous game when you plan to walk in the sun the rest of the day. Avalanche and I decided to give it a try. We chose our flavors and started the timer.

Avalanche reached the middle of his tub of ice cream. Understandably, he didn’t want to feel miserable for the rest of the day. I, on the other hand, was not willing to retreat without a fight. After finishing the large tub of vanilla ice cream, I still had to finish the small pint to complete the challenge. I was really starting to feel like the ice cream was weighing me down, but I decided to persevere. After starting on my last pint, another hiker, Fozie, arrived and started cheering me on. The last pint was not pleasant in the least, but I was able to drink it. The half-gallon challenge was completed in just 31 minutes. After celebrating with Avalanche and Fozie, I returned to the store to claim my prize. I received a small wooden tasting spoon and a place on the wall of fame (or wall of shame, depending on how you look at it).

A frozen coma

Once we had our fill of too much ice cream, we decided to relax in the tent and let our stomachs settle. Avalanche took a nap in the sun and I welcomed all the incoming hikers. Everyone marveled at my wooden tasting spoon and was inspired to try the challenge themselves. It was so much fun watching everyone take on this ridiculous challenge. The hiking community is very special.

In the end we had to keep walking. I was surprised how good I felt after eating almost 2,400 calories of ice cream. But really the second half of the day wasn’t that bad. We ended up walking 21 miles and found another dispersed campsite.

A difficult start to the day

Starting the next day with very little sleep was a struggle. Our sleeping pad was really on its last legs. I woke up several times during the night to re-inflate the pad. This was the last straw and we ordered a new sleeping pad before the day was over. It was going to be another 85 degree day and we weren’t looking forward to it. We were just planning on walking 16 miles to Carlisle PA where we would check into a hotel for the night.

We had to climb Rocky Ridge first thing in the morning and it lived up to its name. It was a rock filled section that had us using our arms to climb up the rocks. Struggling to find the flames caused us to go a little off the path. But we finally reached the end of Rocky Ridge, Center Point Knob. Avalanche told me the knob plate was stolen in the ’40s. They eventually made another plate to replace it, but it’s still an interesting fact.

Flat fields at Boiling Springs

We went down the hill and found ourselves in new land, pastures. For the next few kilometers we walked through pastures and crop fields. We walked through open fields for several miles until we reached Boiling Springs. We immediately filled up with water and headed to the local outdoor store. There wasn’t much there for us, but another hiker had leftover permethrin. We took the opportunity to respray our equipment and clothing. We then headed to Café 101 for an early lunch.

Coming to Carlisle PA

We only had 8 more miles to complete before reaching Carlisle. Fortunately, it seemed like the entire path was going to be flat. There was some concern that we would have to walk through more open fields and that the sun would burn us. But the trail kept us in the wooded areas between the pastures and fields. We also have some magic on the way! We made quick work of the miles and finished before 2pm. We checked into the hotel and did all the usual tasks. We then had the rest of the afternoon to relax. We were excited to sleep in a real bed instead of our «air pillow.»

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