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So Much Support and Magic in Maryland
This morning I was pretty tired when I got up around 5:30am. But I knew that I really wanted to make pancakes! So I got packed up pretty quickly and then headed to the kitchen area. Just about everyone else also was up and moving around the same time too. So I started making batter and cooking, and enjoyed hot coffee with hot cocoa packets inside. The classic mocha.
Pancakes for breakfast at Cross Trails hostel!
The pancakes were actually so good! Even just from the box they were some of the best pancakes I’d had in a while. Maybe it was the childhood nostalgia factor, who knows. Then we got the rest of our things together and set out for the day. It was a cold morning when we left but wasn’t too bad.
Watching the train go past as we walked back to the trail.
We backtracked to the trail and then got going again. Enjoying the perfectly flat bike path that the AT for the moment. The bike path went beside a small channel of water on its left. Most of the portions were covered in a green film or algae. Then all of the sudden we noticed something swimming in the water. It was a baby beaver! We got to watch it for a really long time as it swam through the water and explored around. Every now and then it would climb up onto the land on the other side of the bank. That was one of the tiniest and cutest creatures that I’d ever seen! I think it wasn’t scared of us because the surrounding area was so loud. A train was roaring by at the time that we saw it actually.
A baby beaver swimming in this water way next to the trail!
After watching that for a while we continued along the bike path. Then after a few miles we crossed a road and got back onto some trail along the other side. Over the next section of trail we passed some people out for a day hike. Then began a really gradual climb before the trail leveled out for the foreseeable future. The next few hours were so nice! The trail was incredibly flat and pretty mindless. Plus I had service for most of the time, so I did some stuff on my phone and enjoyed some scrolling. It was a little cold out at times when the wind picked up. But I wore my montbell wind jacket the whole time and was perfectly comfortable. That jacket is probably one of the pieces of gear that I’ve been using the most recently. It is the perfect layer to wear while walking. Alpha would be way too warm and so would rain gear. But the wind jacket just protects me from getting cold, while also not making me get too warm. I’m a big fan and don’t know how I ever lived without one.
I haven’t seen ivy like this on trail since Florida!
While I walked I had some service and wound up talking to someone on Instagram who had reached out. He was local to the area and wanted to come out to a trailhead later on in the day to meet us with lunch! The whole situation and timing would work out perfectly so I coordinated with him. Then planned to see him later on in the day. That was so exciting! The idea of being able to gorge on some real good today sounded amazing. I just know that my body needs as much of everything as it can get right now. Calories, fat, protein, you name it.
Watching the train go by as we walked the beautiful bike path.
The stayed pretty much the same for most of the day. We walked through a really nice forested area that was astonishingly flat. We also went by a bunch of different “attractions”, such as Gathland State Park. There is a big stone arch in the parking area and some other stone structures nearby. Then we had another small climb to do before the trail once again flattened out. I couldn’t think of a nicer or more enjoyable section of trail other than this.
The large arch/monument at the state park we went past.
Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been keeping in touch with and trying to coordinate with one of my blog readers. He’s been tuning in since 2023! When I was on the Appalachian trail for the first time. I’ve been enjoying reading his comments for a couple of years now. Him and his wife are local to the area and they wanted to come out and say hello! And it turned out we were really close already to the trailhead where they would be today. Right around 1pm we got to the parking area by the Dahlgren Camping area. I stayed there with my tramily back in 2023! You can actually order pizza to the parking lot too! So we ate pizza and pastas in our tents that night.
Walking along a particularly nice flat section of trail. Today was incredible!
When we were approaching the road a guy came up to us. He had apparently ran into Old Man Paul who we were meeting up ahead. Paul was talking us up to this guy and telling him about all of the things we’re doing this year. That was so adorable and reminded me of something my mom or dad would do. The guy we were talking to was named Don and he made these cool wooden AT tag things which he hand burned the AT symbol into. He gave us each one and we talked to him for a little bit longer before walking out to the lot.
I can never resist taking a selfie in these circle mirrors by roads.
Old Man Paul was parked in the lot with his wife Karen. They were both so sweet! I’ve been reading Old Man Paul’s kind words in the comments of my blogs since 2023! It was so cool to finally meet him and be able to hang out and talk for a little bit. Him and his wife brought us out some super thoughtful goodies. Things that he specifically thought I might need, want, or had talked about enjoying in the past. That was so ridiculously nice of him.
Punisher, Old Man Paul, and myself!
They gave the two of us some bottles of water m which we enjoyed right then and there. Then we said our goodbyes and continued on, having another 15-16 miles ahead of us still for the day. Today looks like it’s going to continue to be pretty cruisy and straight forward. And at this point we were only about 5 miles from the next parking lot at US Route 40. That’s where Tom was going to be meeting us. What a fun filled and exciting day!
Old Man Paul’s sweet wife Karen.
It was pretty chilly as we set out from there. When you stopped moving it cooled down a lot. There was a good bit of wind as well. But the weather was perfect for hiking all day. When we were walking I felt really good. Only on the segments of flat and downhill did I want to put my wind jacket on. In this next stretch we passed the little Washington monument, a shelter, and some historical signs. I really like this section of trail. There is so much to see!
Punisher and I when we were hanging out with Old Man Paul and his wife Karen.
Then we were just walking through a leisurely forested area which was nice and easy. We wound up going past a big group of women, who Old Man Paul had also talked to! He was talking us up to everyone he saw. These ladies were so excited to see us and asked us some questions before we continued along.
The AT crosses over a highway along this enclosed bridge.
Right around 3pm we got to the section of trail where you had to turn off for the parking lot. We actually missed the first turn off and didn’t realize. But were able to take another trail down to the lot. We really surprised Tom, who was expecting us to come down the other way. Tom was an incredibly nice guy who made me feel right at ease and comfortable. It was so nice talking with him and just telling him more about our plans and journey. He’s been watching my videos, not every single day. There are alot of them! So understandably not everyone has time for all that.
When we got to this parking lot Tom was set up with trail magic for us!
Tom had brought us 2 pizzas that were still warm, a liter of chocolate milk each, and some sodas. I was starving and this felt like one of the best meals of my life. I ate so much pizza! The crust was crunchy and thin, which is actually one of my favorite types. And I drank that whole liter of milk real quick.
This pizza was so crispy crunchy and delicious.
We spent a while hanging out there in the parking lot with Tom. It was so pleasant and enjoyable just talking and hanging around. He even let us use a charging brick for our phones. Because of having such good service all day today I actually used up most of my battery. So that was perfect! As it got closer to 4pm we decided to set back out. We still had 8 or so miles to go for the day. So we said goodbye to Tom who so generously came out here just to feed us a late lunch. Then continued on our way!
Climbing up the many rock steps toward Annapolis Rocks.
I had cooled down a lot at the parking lot and the wind had picked up. So it felt great to get moving and warm up a bit. As we left the parking lot we had a fairly gradual climb for a mile or so. There were more steps than I could count! But each step was quite short so it wasn’t too tiring.
Then the trail flattened out again in the typical Maryland fashion. This has been a delightful state to walk through so far. It’s so dang flat! The rest of the day was a lot like that. We had maybe one or two more small climbs. And there was a segment where the trail was all large rocks to navigate around. That definitely reminded me of Pennsylvania! A state which I actually always really enjoyed.
A little intro into PA! This stretch of trail was quite rocky.
Then the last couple of miles were nice and easy. We just made our way to the shelter and were hopeful that it wasn’t too packed with hikers. There was a water source before we arrived. Then we headed the last stretch to the shelter itself. I could smell smoke as we got closer, so I knew someone was there. And when we turned the corner there were 2 people set up inside. It was a 10 person shelter though, so that was just fine!
One of the guys was named Blaze and he’s out thru hiking. He actually knew us! Which was so funny. Originally he was actually just in front of us. But got injured and had to get off trail. So when he got back on he flipped north a bit. It was cool to meet him! And his buddy is out with him for a few days because he just got back on.
The rest of the night was so nice and chill. I just ate some leftover pizza and did my stretching. I even had service! So I got my video ready for tomorrow and wrote up and edited my blog. Plus tomorrow is Thursday, so I upload my weekly vlog on YouTube! That should be up by the time you’re reading this! If you want to check it out, my YouTube and Instagram accounts are @madisonblagden. By the time I got everything done I was exhausted and ready to roll over and call it a night!
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Comments 18
Excellent post PL. I always love hearing about you getting some magic on the trail and meeting up with some of your many followers ❤️. Makes me smile 😊. Loved hearing about the beaver 🦫 sighting – I don’t think we saw a beaver, only their dam’s on the AT. Those rocks definitely do look very Pennsylvania 😂. Be safe out there ❤️
You’re so kind. You and Punisher make a perfect trail team. God Bless
Paul, love your Yuengling hat! I grew up in central PA. How fun to meet these two masters of the trail.
We went to Pottsville and Yuengling for the tour in November. Stayed at the Maids Quarters. Family in Manheim we visit a lot
God Bless
Good to hear about all the trail magic you are getting. People are drawn to positive people like yourself. You are crushing it! Stay safe and godspeed to you.
What a nice day with all the friends you met on the trail today!! I watch all your videos! So fun!
Hey PegLeg! Great update, so glad to see the love from fellow fans. I still can’t believe how fast you guys are moving north. Hopefully the weather forecast is wrong/exaggerated because it’s not looking too dry the next few days. At any rate, I’m sure you’ll kill it and crush the rocks of PA ahead 🙂
i think om tired of hearing about the same people all the time and most of the reason your out here are for yhe wrong reasons your someome who is just looking for fame your doing nothing that many people have do e before and you should keep your rv groupies out and away from shelters your not special your just a hiket maybe
Gil is a a troll with atrocious spelling and a punctuation deficiency. Trust me, tough guy, neither PL nor Punisher give two sheets about your opinion. They are out living their best lives while you troll away from your mom’s basement.
LMAO. Candace, that was the best! Way to stand up for PL and Punisher against basement trolls.
Do the Attendents at the Hospital know that you are loose and have access to the interwebz? Also I think you need to up your meds.
Hello PegLeg!
A good while back I wrote about an alternative to Venmo. We agreed that I could mail a check to the Boulder address. I did and it has been well over a month. My bank account reflects that my check to you has not been cashed.
Just letting you know.
I have read your journal entries since before you exited Florida into Alabama. I have become a fan and I look forward to you reaching Maine and the finish.
Good luck.
Harry
I think you’re becoming an instigator PL😜😂🤣 First you get a crazy lady ticked off by walking with your friend and her dog as. Now you’ve got poor Gill and his two followers in a tizzy. Well, one follower is is caseworker and am sure she’s just fine. Not sure about his momma. Enjoy PA
PegLeg,
Always love your posts. So glad you are getting trail magic from nice people! You continue to amaze and inspire. Keep on keeping’ on.
PL, I’ve been following you since 2023 and have enjoyed every post, and now videos! The videos are great, providing an opportunity to arm- chair-experience something I may never be able to do. I love your adventurous spirit and positive attitude. Please don’t take heed to posts such as Gil’s above. Just do your thing and know we are rooting you on.
As you go through Rocksylvania be sure to see the AT museum. Perhaps donate a pair of shoes.
Thx for the posts.
Gil’s post made me wonder about mental health issues too. What is it about Pegleg’s blogs that are so triggering for him? He is failing to realize that PL’s goal is not for fame, but to see how far she can challenge herself, and she has the courage to take us along on the journey. I don’t think the majority of hikers can do the ECT, turn around 4 months later and do the CDT and then 2 months later turn around and do all 3 big trails.
To The Trek & PL: I have been reading Trek blogs for several years now, and have never read anybody threaten an author until now (i.e., “keep your rv groupies out and away from shelters.”)
Hi Peg Leg, I’ve been following your blog since early in your CDT hike. I’m not a hiker and have some physical challenges that limit what I can do. That said, reading your posts (and sometimes other thru hikers as well) has been exciting and inspiring to me. You have an excellent writing style and know how to weave the people you meet and those you’re hiking with into the narrative. I hope you publish a book with all of your articles at some point .
On another note, I have a couple of things I’m curious about. First, do you think you may reach Kathadin before it opens with these 30 mile plus days? Also, what happened to Long Shot? I thought he was rejoining you guys on trail?