Hanging out tonight with Skyline & Sundance, Rockhound, Hoplite, Kinloch and a section hiker named Frenchy.

I have been following Skyline and Sundance since the beginning so it is cool to finally meet them tonight. Hoplite’s currently eating dinner #4 right now. That is a record even among this crowd. I ate light myself: trail mix, 2 tuna roll-ups, 4 servings of mashed potatoes with bacon, 2 liters of Tang and a Milky Way bar dipped in peanut butter. Gotta save space for the AYCE restaurant tomorrow! The Home Place restaurant is supposed to be the best on the trail.

Nice walk today. We climbed and descended a steep 1,500 foot mountain in the middle of the hike and the rain held off for most of the day. We walked in the rain for just an hour but that was enough to get most of our clothing wet. We just have to hope tomorrow will be drier.

Saw another 4 foot black snake today, they are getting more common as are the deer we are seeing daily now. Despite coming across a huge pile of bear scat, I have yet to see a bear. Grouse & turkey flush loudly and fly away from the trail as we encounter them. We have been walking among irises for 3 days now, and the azaleas for 2 days. Spring has caught us finally and the woods are bright green. We’re in the sweet spot since there aren’t many bugs yet—I’m not missing them at all!