• Mates on tour
maj – sep. 2017

Appalachian Trail

En 133-dags äventyr från Mates on tour Läs mer
  • Whistling Gap Campsite 329.4

    28 maj 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    What a night. It felt like being directly in the clouds when the thunderstorm rolled over us and the rain was pouring down. It started at about 11 AM and lasted for a few hours. First of all, the tent did its job perfectly fine, just a bit of condensation in the morning.
    And oh, what a beautiful morning with a stunning sunrise that could be seen directly from our tent. Then we managed to make some miles to the next Shelter and have a breakfast together with Blitz (a German guy who's incredibly fast) and C# (a musician from Florida). Our breakfast currently consists of a cold oatmeal (I just found and fell in love with the fruity tastes) and a pop tart. Soonish we'll add some breafast nutrition drinks and maybe instant coffee.
    The main part of today's hike was getting up to "Big Bald" - a huge area on top of the hill is cleared from trees for whatever reasons... Recreation, cattle... But by the time we arrived there it was completely foggy and you couldn't see for more than 20 feet. Bad luck, because about an hour later everything was clear again.
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  • River Rd Hostel 342.7

    29 maj 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌧 22 °C

    With the goal of a town ahead we went out at about 08:30 after a dry night. The hike was a bit more challenging than we expected and after two breaks we ended up at the hostel about 8 hours later.
    Initially we didn't want to stay at the hostel to save some money but after all consideration it was the easiest option. We restocked at Walmart and bought probably waaaay to much. We'll see about that tomorrow when we pack our packs.
    Now we're falling into a food coma and tomorrow there is Pizza All you can eat scheduled :D
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  • Wild Camping Indian Grave 349.3

    30 maj 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    We needed to wait for an Amazon delivery before we could move on today. So we had plenty of time to enjoy the nice weather with some beer from fellow hikers.
    One of those we met today was Ragnar, who actually looked like a Viking :) And finally my Kilt arrived and I'm super happy with it!
    Oh yes, and we've also hiked a bit afterwards. Despite the massive weight of our backpacks we made some good miles after 5pm. It took a bit more time to find a spot for our tent so it was already dark when we set up our tent and had lunch.
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  • Wild Camping near Rock Pillar 364.8

    31 maj 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    Slow start into the day and after about an hour on the trail already some trail magic happened by Brother Tom. He set up his truck at a gap with several cold drinks and delicious selfmade brownies and banana bread! That's how every day should start :)
    Afterwards we made some miles but every mile has been hard work since the last week. Plus we're carrying quite a heavy load since Erwin...
    I saw another bear today who was running directly in my direction. As soon as he noticed me he stopped for a second, looked at me and ran away. He was just about 15 meters away so it was a bit scary when I saw him running at me.

    Our nightly camp was a last second choice before it got dark. We didn't want to stay at the initially planned camp site because it was already crowded and didn't look very inviting. The complete site had really tall grass around it.
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  • Roan High Knob Shelter 377.4

    1 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Late start, slowly moving :) But the terrain was tough today with two long uphill parts. So on the end we were happy with the miles we made.
    We met another German girl today named Cubana. Already the fifth person from Germany. They're everywhere with their towels :D Apparently there was a documentary on the German TV about the trail which inspired many to do it.

    From our experience the origins of people on the trail:
    1. Floridians - everyone makes vacation where it's hot and sunny, so they're going where it's not flat
    2. Pennsylvania
    3. Germany

    We're now at the Shelter which is the highest on the AT at 6193ft. And it's way colder than we were used to the last few days.
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  • Camping near Bear Branch Rd 393.9

    2 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    The snoring in the Shelter kept us awake for most of the night so we were glad to head out early in the morning. At 10 we made our first break and had already ascended to three summits.
    Next on the list were two balds, Little Hump Mountain and Hump Mountain. Hiking them felt like in Switzerland where you're often above the trees. We were rewarded with a beautiful weather and some breathtaking views. Directly on the summit at 5583ft (or in Julias measurement 1997 steps) of Hump Mountain we had our lunch break.
    Afterwards we ran into a German woman who we had last seen in Neels Gap, so in our first week. On the way down from Hump Mountain we crossed the border from North Carolina to Tennessee for the last time!

    AND THE KILT IS MAJESTIC!!!
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  • Campsite White Rocks 414.3

    3 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    Another eventful day gone by. After a really good start and almost 12 miles for lunch we got a bit slower but managed to make more than 20 miles today! Oh, and we enjoyed our breakfast in front of a church this morning that was right next to the trail and looked like it had comfortable grass.
    We also reached our next milestone with 400 miles :) There were two nice waterfalls next to the trail today. Overall the trail was a bit easier with less elevations than we are used to. You go Tennessee!!
    One month in the trail and as a first summary we can say that it is an amazing experience. Both mentally and physically challenging sometimes. But we're as motivated - maybe even more - as we were at the beginning.
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  • Kincora Hostel/Shook Branch 427

    4 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    On our today's bucket list is a visit at the Kincora hostel for a bit of resupply to make it until Damascus. But it did turn out other than expected :)
    We arrived there at around 10ish AM and talked a bit with Bob (trail name Kincora - kind heart I think), the owner of the hostel. He is a super nice man and told us a lot about his experiences on several trails, especially on the Camino de Santiago. As we mentioned that we were planning to move on today he made us an offer we can't refuse. So first we got to sleep in the tree house with a gorgeous view over the area. Second he offered us a ride to Shook Branch Recreation Area from where we can slackpack (see the bottom text for an explanation) back to the hostel. And the last, most important point was that every evening around 9:30 PM there's a raccoon coming to the table and enjoys his dinner there!! As I said, an offer you can't refuse.
    So we hiked pretty easy today up a quite high hill on the trail and afterwards headed to a magnificent waterfall. But by the time we arrived there, it started pouring... So I just quickly dipped in the stream and we moved back to the hostel.
    After restocking we made a huge barbecue with 6 steaks and 6 sausages that we ate easily thanks to the hiker hunger. A little bit later the racoon showed up and we enjoyed seeing him eat while we rewarded ourselves with a beer!!

    Slackpacking (imo: slim backpack) means that you're leaving your heavy backpack at your accommodation and you only take the stuff that you need for the day with you. Then you're dropped off somewhere, hike the trail and then get picked up somewhere later and stay another night in the accommodation. Usually it's pretty expensive because you have to pay for the Shuttle up to three times. You can also "cheat" by getting dropped off at a summit, then you're just having the descents. For us it was basically the same ;)
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  • Iron Mountain Shelter 442.9

    5 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    In the morning Bob dropped us off at the Shook Recreation Area from where we continued on the trail. We hiked along Watauga Lake, which is almost completely closed to any other activity than hiking the AT. This is because a hunter used to put dog food as bait to the Shelter so they could easily shoot the bears when it's hunting season :( Idiots!
    Right when we were moving across the dam we got in a huge downpour which lasted almost the whole afternoon.
    Despite being completely soaked, we still made almost 16 miles!

    A few more words about Bob because he is such a fascinating man. Originally from Massachusetts the 70ish year old owns this property close to the AT. He extended it to host hikers and still builds more facilities like the tree house we stayed in. He can accommodate about 26 people and does it basically for free! There is just a suggested donation of 5$ which is used to cover the cost for water, electricity. And if there is any money left he uses it for trail maintenance.
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  • Somewhere before Unnamed Gap 460.2

    6 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    With a nice decent instant coffee we started into a new day. The part of the trail where we are currently on is named "Tennessee Turnpike" because the terrain allows to make more miles than usually.
    In parts we could use this to our advantage :) In the afternoon we saw a rattle snake directly next to the trail. It was enjoying the sun there and seemed to be sleeping. It didn't care about us making noises.
    Tennessee is named "The Volunteer State" - like New York "Empire State" or Florida "Sunshine State" - and now we know why. First Bob Peoples with his projects like the Hardcore Volunteers. And today we met Greg who worked the whole day to clear a part of the trail from weeds. It's amazing to see how much time and money they spend and you can really see that the trail is in a perfect condition here.

    The tent is still wet from the rain last night so we hope to have a dry night so it can dry...
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  • Campsite Laurel Creek 476.2

    7 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Today we made it to Damascus and the first thing we did is to figure out where to get pancakes because Julia didn't talk about anything else since yesterday :) She even taught me some Spanish breakfast vocabulary ("Quiero un hot cake con miel de maple")
    After we got those pancakes we went for a resupply at Dollar General and used the free WiFi access. We got an almost full can of gas from Rocket and Rockette because they've sent their stove home and asked us if we needed it. Until now, we've only bought one can, the others were found in hiker boxes or just randomly like now.
    We've met those two about a week ago at the trail angel Brother Tom and we kept on seeing each other along the trail. They are a lovely retired couple who are thru hiking the AT by flip flopping. We hope to see them again soon, they're usually faster than us :D
    In the afternoon we visited an outfitter to check on a new pair of shoes for Julia because the ones she's currently using are starting to fall apart. And we were actually successful in finding one that fit her and were at a reasonable price! So now she'll carry them until the others break completely.
    After an enormous meal at the gas station with free soda (apparently we look like we're in need ;)) we finally went back on the trail. It was quite an easy and flat hike along the Laurel Creek to a Campsite directly at the river. Eventually we made a small detour, but luckily some trail runners managed to get us back to our beloved white blazes!!
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  • Thomas Knob Shelter 497.3

    8 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We really made some miles today! If we can keep up this pace we're going to be done with the trail by middle of September. In the afternoon the trail led us through a bunch of cows, they seemed friendly.
    The Shelter where we're staying is pretty neat. It looks more like a house and is even a bit isolated. But just like any other Shelter there are mice everywhere. They're cute as long as they stay away from your food and gear.
    There is a report from a bear that visited the next Shelter last night, broke a branch and ate the contents of a food bag. Afterwards it tried to steal a backpack out of the Shelter but was chased away. I hope our food will still be there tomorrow otherwise we'll have to walk quite a bit to get something to eat...
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  • Campsite near Dickey Gap 518.5

    9 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

    Luckily our food survived the night, so we started early into the hiking day. In the morning it was foggy so we couldn't enjoy the view that we supposedly had close to the highest mountain in Virginia. At our first stop at the next Shelter we read about the bear incident and someone we actually know was involved in it.
    But before the Shelter we had the pleasure of hiking across the 500 miles line :) It's a good feeling but still there's still some way to go... Later this day we felt pretty exhausted and found us a nice Campsite. Hopefully our feet will feel a little better tomorrow.
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  • Chatfield Shelter 539.4

    10 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 20 °C

    After a pretty easy and fast hike in the morning we've already made 14 miles at 1 PM and arrived at the Partnership Shelter. This Shelter is similar to the one in Fontana Dam quite modern and even with a shower!! Although the water was freezing cold we've enjoyed the refreshment on this hot day. Just a few steps away from the Shelter is the Mt Rogers Visitor Center from where you can call a Pizza Service which we did of course :) And there was also some trail magic at the Visitor Center with fresh made peanut brownies, mini Snickers and other treats.
    So we took a two and a half hour break there and had a "Crazy Carnivore Calzone" (Sorry Bernie - not sorry) and a XL Pizza Alfredo. Oh, and for dessert a triple chocolate cake :D The first two hours on the trail we barely managed to make a move because of Food coma and the weight in our stomachs. Afterwards it went better and we even made it to the Shelter which means that we made a Triple 20!! Whoopwhoop
    In the Shelter we met a girl whose bear bag was torn and cleared by a bear in the Wise Shelter.
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  • O'Lystery Pavillon Campsite 556.5

    11 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Pizza for breakfast!! How much better can a day on the trail start?!? After about two miles there was an old school building with some trail magic. It had almost everything that hikers need :) After four miles we reached our first target for the day at a gas station and intersection to the town of Atkins where we wanted to resupply.
    Because it is easier for one person to hitchhike I've stood there and tried to catch a ride. But after more than an hour I gave up :( It wasn't a good place and time to hitch a ride - Sunday morning and many that just came off the interstate to refuel. So Julia went for it and walked in direction of the town and got a ride after some time and also back :)
    Afterwards we went to a buffet but the food there was as bad as it was cheap. We still ate too much of it and back on the trail we had a tough fight with the food coma... Although we went super slow for the first three hours we still made it to 17 miles by hiking until 8:30.
    Aaaaand we've got already 1/4 of the App Trail behind us!! Unbelievable :D

    So we challenged ourselves to make it to Harper's Ferry - the xxxx halfway point of the Appalachian Trail - by the 4th of July. Which means 23 days with about 22 miles per day with resupply... So that's a tough goal but worth it :)
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  • Campsite near Rd VA623 574.3

    12 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We went super motivated on the trail today after the good miles we made in the last few days. But after two extremely exhausting ascends - one short and steep, the other one long - we merely made 12 miles at 2 PM. This was quite frustrating for us and so at 6 and 15.5 miles we decided to have a break, a nap and lunch and then head on for a night hike.
    So that's what we did but I was quite exhausted from the day and hiking at night needed more concentration. So we ended up nearby a road after about 17 miles at 10:45PM.
    Being interestingly watched by raccoons and some other animals we set up our tent, hang the bear bag and went to sleep :)
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  • Jenny Knob Shelter 602

    13 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Shortly after we went to sleep I've heard howling from quite a distance. I wasn't too much worried about it but then it got louder until they were clearly at or near the road where we set up our tent... You could hear the breathing and the paws of them at our tent. But then they just went on :) Julia slept through all of that ;)
    Because we were almost out of water we went straight to the next Shelter about 4 miles away and had our late and extended breakfast there with some newly met trail mates. It was very humid this morning so we were glad that it started to rain around noon. It was the first day of rain after about a week and the refreshment was really necessary although it was accompanied by a thunderstorm. So the downpour latest for about an hour in which everything got soaking wet. Too less water, too much water... Never happy :P Typical German...

    On our further way we met Giggles again. The first time we met was in the Smokies and our ways crossed for several times. She is super friendly and always happy. She already hiked the PCT and shoots for the triple crown next year. It's always nice to see her again. So we told her about our challenge to make it until Harper's Ferry by 4th of July and she joins us. But for her it's much easier to make that 25 miles per day...
    Regarding miles!! Wow, already hit the 600!! Just 4 days after the 500, so we're picking up the pace now :)

    And we've got some trail magic by a fellow thru hiker. His name is Cool Breeze and he's doing a supported thru hike, which means that he has almost no backpack, a van where he sleeps at night and gets resupply of food and water directly along the trail. Although this makes it easier, you still have to hike the same distances. He also has a blog where a photo should be: coolbreeze2200.com
    His supporter is a German named Mick, trail name "Sherpa" as he is coordinating all the supplies and driving the van to the road crossings. Together with Giggles we ate almost all of their trail magic, tangerines, chocolate and pistachios. We spent more than an hour in the evening with them and chatted. It was easy talking to them and so entertaining that we forgot about the time.

    At around 8:30 we still felt good and went on to hike to the next Shelter as we didn't want to set up our tent. So this was our second night hike and it went much better. I used the better head light and we easily made the remaining 3.3 miles where we disturbed everyone that was already sleeping :D It was a good day and a great mileage.
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  • Camping Sugar Run Gap 623.7

    14 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    For our goal we need to make miles so we tried getting up early. But we were both tired because a guy snored the WHOLE night, so it took us until 7:30 to get started. After a few miles we met Mick again and soon afterwards also Cool breeze.
    They were shooting for 24 miles today and so did we, so we thought we'd meet up again later. The hike was mostly flat along a river and thick rhododendrons protected us from the sun. So it was a pretty neat hike until the afternoon when we had lunch in the Wapiti Shelter. An older guy named dog breath told us in detail about the murder that took place in this Shelter. So a mentally unstable man just randomly came up the hill and shot two persons directly in the Shelter and then moved their bodies somewhere around... Spooky!!

    In the evening we didn't manage to make our miles and ended up about two miles earlier. Right when the tent was set up it started pouring so we had a quick dinner and then went to sleep.
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  • Camping near Pocahontas Rd 640.5

    15 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Resupply and shower day!!! That's always a big event and we're excited which makes us go faster :) We crawled out of our tent at 5:30 just to find Giggles laying on the road a few feet away from our tent...
    She had been up on the ridge when the downpour started and all of her stuff got soaked. She arrived at the Gap at 2 in the morning and put her sleeping pad and bag right next to the road. There were no trees so there was no water dripping on her. We were a bit worried at first but she said that she's fine.

    Afterwards we had some nice views and arrived around noon at the Hostel in Pearisburg where we booked at "day pass" to shower and do laundry. We had planned to only stay there for three hours but in the end it was six hours at the hostel and two more in the Dairy Queen and Pizza Plus :D Resupply for our bellies ;) And it was raining heavily again at two points when we wanted to head out so we took it slowly. Another night hike later we arrived a few minutes before midnight at a pretty nice campsite next to a dirt road.

    The most exciting thing we saw today were dancing fireflies all over the nightly hills, trees and meadows. Just like a fireworks they synchronized in the illumination and created an artful show for us :) I've tried to catch it on a video but wasn't intense enough...
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  • Camping on the way to Windy Rock 660.8

    16 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    This morning we started later because of our night hike and had a long breakfast near the Rice Field Shelter with a beautiful view over the valley.
    We intended to make it to a campsite with a view but it was a bit to far so we ended up at a Campsite somewhere two miles before.
    We've met a fellow thru hiker named Screetch today who had two leafs behind his ear. He told us that this plant is called Sassafras and has different cool attributes. The leafs smell lemonish and are supposed to keep bugs away. The branches of the leaf can be eaten and have the same lemonish taste. The root can be chewed and tastes like root beer. And some of else mentioned that it can also be used as a tea.
    So far I can approve that it tastes like lemon and the roots taste a bit like root beer. We're not so sure about that it keeps bugs away but it seems to help a little bit. Next time we're going to try the tea...
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  • Camping Sinking Creek Mountain 679.8

    17 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    After quite a short night we made the plan to set up our tent by 9 PM so we can rest and start in the mornings earlier again. Good plan :)
    Our first stop was the viewpoint where we had planned to camp yesterday. There we enjoyed our breakfast in the company of two rattlesnakes (we haven't seen them but people insisted that they are there!!)
    Afterwards we had a tough hike with two long uphill parts. We managed to complete it, though it was raining heavily (like the last five days). Right at a clearing on the second uphill we found lots of black berries along the Trail and spent about half an hour treating ourselves.
    In the evening we found a pretty nice spot (which was unfortunately crowded with bugs) directly on the ridge.
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  • Camping near Catawba Creek 702.4

    18 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    That was an intense day!! We managed to get up as early as planned and already had 10 miles at our lunch break. Today was special because of one of the most picturesque places along the AT, the dragon's tooth. A huge obelisk that is climbable and has an amazing 360 degree view to all the surrounding area.
    By the time we got there it was already 7:30 PM so we both quickly got up there and took some pictures. And we almost peed ourselves because it was super scary up there with the wind blowing just a few steps away from a quite certain death. But we survived this experience and got some really nice pictures. With our bodies still flooded with adrenaline we headed for the descent but who knew that this would rush our blood even more... Now we needed to climb down steep - and sometimes a bit slippery - rocks with our 40 pounds backpacks!! We could almost see the blood splatters at the bottom :o And somewhere there on the way down we crossed the 700 miles line :)
    Especially the way down this trail literally killed my feet. We're not quite sure what it is but there are blisters, trench feet and holes in my feet. I hope this will get better soonish :)
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  • Daleville behind BP gas station 728.1

    20 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Another remarkably day with an uncommon sight. The McAfees Knob, another popular photo spot along the AT. If not the most scenic one. And we had the pleasure to climb it today :)
    When we arrived there we heard a family talk in German so when they greeted us, I greeted them in German. He asked if we're thru hiking the trail and we spend about an hour talking. They are a really lovely family. We exchanged numbers and we're planning to meet when we come by on the AT close to his current home in Pennsylvania. After August they're going back to their home in Heidenheim.
    After taking lots of pictures and a scenic lunch we went on to make it as close as possible to Daleville, our next resupply point. On the way to there, we got into another huge downpour with thunderstorm. Just as we went up some rocks we saw a lightning bolt directly in front of us and a split sec later a thunder that our ears were hurting. It was quite scary to go all the way up afterwards... We stopped at around 5:30 to make dinner and get some energy for our night hike into the town. We ate almost all of our food to have a good motivation to make it into town, not to starve :D At the Shelter we saw two guys sleeping and were pretty sure that we knew them, the Floridians. But we haven't seen them in about a month and weren't completely sure, so we let them sleep. Later they caught up to us and it was as we thought, Jacob and Walter. It was really nice meeting them again after that time.
    At 7 we shot for the remaining 8 miles into town! And we made it!! Although it was a tough ride and we were close to a breakdown after almost 19 hours. We set up our tent behind a BP gas station so we could charge our devices and went to sleep at 2 in the morning...
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  • Campsite Blackhorse Gap 741.7

    20 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    After a short night directly next to a roaring air conditioner from the gas station we tore down our tent and went for breakfast and WiFi. We were too lazy to search for a diner and as it was directly across of the supermarket we went to McDonald's. They have a large breakfast plate and although it it was pretty fake, we still enjoyed it :)
    After resupply we went to Taco Bell. This was my first time and I actually liked some of their stuff. If you don't expect to get Mexican food there, you'll be fine. Even Julia liked the Shredded Chicken Quesadilla ;)
    Then we finally went back to the trail. We wanted to get to an outlook about 16 miles after town but Julia didn't feel well, so we stopped 2.5 miles earlier.

    1/3 of the AT down! It's crazy how the time flies. About now Christi would've needed to go and we're even not that far behind the initial schedule.
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  • Cornelius Creek Shelter 765

    21 juni 2017, Förenta staterna ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    The day started great when we went to the place where we had planned to camp. With a scenic view and a large breakfast the day is about to get good :)
    Miles, miles, miles... Until a spot which is supposed to be a swim hole. Unfortunately I didn't take a picture but it wasn't what you'd expect. Beside that was the Summer Solstice today, which means in terms of AT thru hiking, Hike Naked Day :D But we didn't see anyone participating.
    After an exhausting long ascent we were glad to arrive at the Shelter on top of the Floyd Mountain. I guess we're not really popular at Shelters because we're usually arriving later than everyone else and set the alarm to 5 :D
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