Getting to the middle of the Appalachian Trail feels strange. I’ve accomplished a lot by walking 1,100 miles, but I’m also sad to be halfway through my journey. After over a thousand miles, dozens of nights in the woods, countless climbs, and enough ramen to last a lifetime, I began to reflect on the moments that stood out the most. Some were amazing, and others…not so much. Here are my highs and lows from the first half of my hike:
Highs
Albert Mountain Fire Tower Shenanigans
Imagine being with new friends on a beautiful sunny day with nothing but an easy walk ahead of you. That’s exactly how I felt this entire day.
About eight days into the hike, the trail was still new to me and everything I did seemed exciting. My new friends and I decided to take an easy day, repeatedly walking a couple of miles before taking equally long breaks. This is how we earned the group name, “The Loungers.”
View from Alberto Mountain
We finished the day at the top of Albert Mountain, a beautiful summit with a fire tower and 360-degree views. We camped at the top and watched the sunset from the tower. While we were there, some hikers arrived and we played a silly joke on them that became an inside joke for our group.
Ponies and balds in Grayson Highlands
Beautiful views, easy hikes, ponies – what’s not to love?
Grayson Highlands is easily one of the most fun sections of the trail. My group was excited, so we decided to walk together most of the day. We enjoyed lunch at the campground where the ponies like to hang out and somehow resisted feeding them, even when the adorable ponies begged us for food.
“Wild” ponies
The animals are kept in the Highlands to graze and maintain the balds.
That day was one of those fun-filled trail days where everyone is happy and the miles fly by. We also crossed mile 500, which seemed like a huge accomplishment at the time.
Reaching mile 500
Strangers in Shenandoah
“How do you get water to drink?”
“Do your parents support what you are doing?
“How do you use the bathroom on the road?”
These were just a few of the questions we received from a curious couple at Byrd’s Nest Hut in Shenandoah.
Byrd’s Nest Cabin
I’ve written about this night before. We had a tram sleepover at the shelter while listening to an intense thunderstorm during the night. What I didn’t mention was the couple who joined us while we were preparing dinner.
They explained that they had just learned about the AT and that a ranger suggested they visit a shelter to meet some hikers. They asked if they could sit with us while we cooked and of course we offered them a seat.
I found the entire interaction extremely memorable. I love introducing people to something I’m passionate about and for one night I felt like an expert. I hope that one day they will have the opportunity to experience the trail themselves.
Honorable Mention: Hot Springs
Hot Springs, North Carolina, is the first trail town that the AT passes directly through. There’s no better feeling in the world than getting out of the woods and taking a victory lap down the sidewalk of a main street. We did just that when we arrived in Hot Springs.
Our first day zero was eating, relaxing, hanging out with new friends, and eating some more. It felt like heaven on earth.
The first of many gastronomic experiences.
All the essentials for a great night!
Minima
The Great Southern Virginia Storm
Yes, it rained on Virginia. A lot.
You’ve probably heard me complain about it by now, as has almost every other hiker. For seven days in a row, it rained heavily or threatened to rain under dense, hazy fog.
Keep morale high during the storm
On the second day, we escaped to Angel’s Rest Hostel in Pearisburg for the night. By the fourth day, my skin was raw from constantly wearing wet clothes. By the sixth day, we had had enough and split a motel room in Roanoke.
Everything he owned was, at best, damp. My body was covered in skin irritation and heat rash, and I was exhausted from walking all day without any real rest. When it’s raining non-stop, there’s no point in stopping just to sit in the mud. Instead, you just keep walking from shelter to shelter, hoping to stay warm enough. By the end of the week, my feet were destroyed.
McAfee Knob
Fortunately, the rain let up just in time for us to enjoy the Virginia Triple Crown.
Shenandoah Blues
While I was excited to enter the second national park of the trip, I could also feel the exhaustion.
I left Waynesboro with a heavy backpack and tired feet. A heat wave had arrived and the first day in the park included a long water ride. The higher temperatures I had experienced on the trail, combined with the extra weight, left me feeling a level of fatigue that no shake could fix.
Beyond that, I found much of the forest boring. As I mentioned in a previous post, many sections of the trail were covered in nettles and poison ivy.
The green tunnel
By the third day, he had already overcome the problem. We spent one night at Big Meadows Lodge, had a couple of hearty meals, and was ready to crush the rest of the park.
mouse attack
I woke up feeling small footsteps at the bottom of my hammock.
“That’s weird,” I thought. «It seems there is a mouse under me.»
Then I felt the little taps inside my shirt.
I’m proud of myself for not yelling. There is nothing more disturbing than feeling a mouse crawl across your skin in the middle of the night.
I jumped out of my hammock and started taking everything out with me. Once only the mouse was left inside, I wrapped my hand in my shirt, picked up one end of the hammock, and pushed the mouse into a corner. Without thinking, I grabbed it and threw it as far into the forest as I could.
The hole in my hammock has since been repaired, but the entire experience is a constant reminder that I am simply living in another creature’s world.
Honorable Mention: Another Bad Night at Shelter
TLDR – A sick and possibly homeless man urinated in the attic of a shelter one night. It dripped all over the ground onto another hiker, who (understandably) got very upset and left at 3:30am. I also decided to leave instead of spending the rest of the night alone with the boy. This wasn’t exactly one of my favorite trail memories.
Half gallon challenge completed as a group.
