Well, it was another great week on the trail! I finished up PA, which I ended up really enjoying. At first I was dreading Pennsylvania because of all the hype about how rocky it is. However, after the first few days, the big nasty rocks basically disappeared and there was plenty of nice easy walking. One day I walked 16 miles through fields and flat wooded trails- so lovely! I also crossed two important markers this week- the half way point of the trail and the Mason Dixon line! That’s right folks, I’m back in the south!
Also, all of the unexpected trail magic made PA even better. On Thursday I was hiking through a state park, and walked right up on a huge potluck picnic. About a hundred senior citizens that live in a golf course community had an enormous spread of food and invited me to join! Within a minute, my pack was off, I had a soda in one hand and a huge plate in the other, and was being ushered down a buffet of delicious comfort food prepared by grandmothers. It was awesome. Plus they packed up leftovers for me to take! Rock on, PA! I don’t want to jinx anything, but I’ve got kind of a ridiculous streak of trail magic going. Literally every day for the last month, something cool has happened to me. It’s not always something big, but it’s always greatly appreciated. Just like today, someone gave me a pair of new sunglasses, which I’ve been desperately needing! I don’t know if lately I’ve just been more aware of the nice things people do for me, but I’m definitely grateful.
So I was making really good time moving through PA and realized I could be in Harpers Ferry, WV by Saturday afternoon. This created an ideal situation for me to take a quick side trip, since I had to wait to pick up a package at the post office on Monday. So, I decided to go into Washington DC for the weekend to visit my old running friend Steven from Birmingham. Even better, Steven was having a rooftop party on Sunday. How convenient! As I was telling Kyle about my fun weekend plans on Thursday evening, I jokingly mentioned that he should come. Well, he actually did, which was an awesome surprise! I met him at the train station Saturday afternoon, and we hung out in Harpers Ferry that night. Then on Sunday, we took the train to DC and stayed with Steven for the night. I was stoked to get to visit Steven since I hadn’t seen him since last spring. And of course having Kyle there too really made it the perfect weekend!
Back to the trail today, and I’m excited about being in Virginia, especially this time of year! The leaves are changing, the air is cooling, and *I hear* the trail ahead is smoother. I’m just going to keep walking south, and I’ll be bringing fall with me.
Miles of Misadventures 
I noticed you are wearing Hokas. How do they handle the varied terrain of the AT? I have the Stinson Trail Hokas and I like them pretty well for running big miles on trails.
I’ve had two pairs of the Stinsons out here and honestly they’ve just been okay. They didn’t last very long and I rolled my ankle quite a bit at the beginning. But I used them in pretty rocky states, I think they would have done much better on smoother trails!
As always it is a pleasure to read about your “misadventures”. I truly look forward to seeing an update in my inbox (especially with some photos!). Impressed with your dedication and wishing you the best moving South! Keep us posted… Andy Knight
Those photos are great! Sounds like you are having awesome experiences. I can just see you bellying up to the senior citizen, pot luck, picnic, food bar! Lol! Nothin like a variety of Gma’s cooking! Trail magic, blessings… you are sure getting the best! Please DO keep walkin and bringing Fall with you!!!