Back on trail!! The wedding, DC, old friends, and other stuff!

Hey folks!

As you could infer from the title, I’m once again shaving away miles northbound on the Appalachian Trail! I was dropped back on trail just this morning, and put in an easy 10.5 mile day to reacquaint myself with the mountains. I must say, the time off has softened me up a little bit. My short day has definitely got my feet and knees questioning why on earth they’re being subjected to more of this torture. However, I could not have asked for nicer weather to welcome me back out here, as I’m being treated to sunny, 78 degree, gentle breezes.

Deric’s wedding went great, so congratulations to Deric and Claire Tingo! It was great seeing everybody, and meeting folks from Claire’s family, too. Special shoutout to Jimmy’s Burn and Turn for catering some excellent food, too! Also, my brother got me a super neat custom Leatherman as a groomsman gift. Though it was too heavy for me to want to pack on trail, it is one incredibly cool, thoughtful gift. After the wedding, I was even able to convince my parents to go for a short hike in the badlands near Medora. Medora and the surrounding country are, without question, the most beautiful displays that North Dakota has to offer.

After NoDak, I flew my way back to the east coast. In particular, I paid a visit to Washington DC to do some sightseeing, and to visit my good friend, Caitlin Flynn! Aside from the overall swampy atmosphere and super crazed drivers, I really enjoyed my time in DC. It is a nice city, with loads of stuff to do. I visited some monuments, museums, ate some delicious ramen, and had a great time. It was even better, though, to catch up with Caitlin as well as meet her boyfriend Timmy over some Georgian food. Mind you, that’s Georgia the formerly Soviet country in Eurasia, not Georgia the formerly confederate state in the US. Having never had Georgian cuisine, I commend Caitlin for making some well-informed choices for our dinner, as well as respect Georgia for their cheese forward menu items. Top notch. Thanks, Caitlin, for providing such a fun excursion!

Back on trail, the folks I was hiking around when I left have now left me behind. Interestingly, though, I have re-met a bunch of folks that I had previously left behind. It’s been neat to see people that I last saw back in Georgia during my first week on trail. Today, I got my obligatory photo at McAfee Knob, which is said to be the most photographed spot on the AT. That’s for good reason, too. I am camped just 0.5 miles past the knob, and am considering waking up early, backtracking, and watching the sunrise at McAfee. We’ll see if morning Colin is feeling up to that.

That’s about it for now! That’s 715 miles down (about 32.5% for those so inclined) and many more to go! I’m glad to be back! Oh, and one last shoutout to Karri LaBarre. Karri, if you by some slim chance are reading this, I had a bag of your freeze dried spaghetti for dinner this evening, and it was delicious. My mom passed it onto me, who got it from Deb Jalowitz. Thanks!