Welcome To The Good Life

Here it is, my first post from the trail. Well not technically the trail. Michelle and I are currently sitting in the beautiful Burgundy Lane B&B in Waynesboro, PA taking our first zero day. I busted my sleeping bag on the first night, which is a long story, and had to get a new one shipped here. Also, I was beginning to smell like onions wrapped in a vinegar soaked diaper, so we decided a shower would be nice.  I’ve actually taken two showers now, and still kind of smell like that; I’m starting to think it might be permanent.The hospitality, hot meals, showers and warm bed are great, but I find myself itching to get back to the trail already.

We’ve been taking it easy for the first week, hiking no more than 10 miles a day. I certainly feel like I could do more, but I’m not interested in leaving the trail 10 days in due to a blown knee or something, so we aren’t pushing it. We do plan on picking it up to roughly 12-15 a day once we get back out there tomorrow.

We stop whenever we damn well please

I must say that life on the trail suits us well. Now our mind set may be a little different in a couple of months, we may not be as jovial and optimistic as we are at the moment, but for now life is great. We’ve met a couple of NoBo thru hikers, and some of them are looking rough to say the least. I hope not to look as defeated when we’ve hit the same mileage as them.

As I walk, I can’t help but to compare this way of life to that of being a kid. You wake up with no true responsibility, worry or stress. This is something you take for granted as a child, and realize only too late how good you had it. That just makes us appreciate this experience even more, having had a taste of the real world. If you’ve ever taken the time to do something that gives you a break from it all, you know the feeling I’m talking about.

Even when it’s pouring rain while we’re walking down a steep, jagged, boulder filled section of trail, I find it hard to wipe the smile from my face. This experience has provided us both an exponential amount of happiness, and there isn’t a single thing I’d rather being doing right now.

Photo courtesy of the beautiful Michelle Aguilar