Magic in the Mountains

June 21, 2021 (18.6 miles)

Pine Grove Furnance – Boiling Springs Campsite

Today was just a normal day. After so many great days, having an average done feels very uneventful. I camped next to Shep’s family last night with another thru hiker named Haymitch. He and I were both out early this morning by 6:30am. The high today was supposed to be in the 90s so I wanted to beat the heat as much as possible.

The terrain was crazy smooth and I was absolutely cruising! I had done 10 miles by 10:30am and briefly considered doing a 33 miles day to get closer to my friends ahead, but that was short-lived when I reminded myself I don’t have to rush. Because of that, I found a beautiful spot by a creek for lunch and ended up sitting there for 2 hours… I had great signal and played on my phone after calling mom.

The only climbs all day were in the afternoon and they were little baby hills, but doing it in the heat took it out of me! I took lots of breaks and tried to drink water as much as possible.

Despite all this I still made it to camp by 4:30pm… there’s a backpacking camp right outside of town. The weather looked scary this afternoon so I mostly hung out in my tent. Bummed I didn’t get to check out the town, but I’m shooting for a marathon tomorrow! I want to get into Duncannon tomorrow and catch Sticks, Slobber, and the Mississippi Brothers this week.