Hello, Virginia (almost)!

Hey Everybody!

Abbey and I are headed back onto the trail today.  We are currently over 1/2 way through maryland, which is only 40 miles.   We'll have 5 miles in West Virginia, and then we enter Virginia, the longest state on the Appalachian Trail accountable for nearly 1/4 of the total miles we'll do at 550.

We took a couple days off to visit friends and family in the D.C. area, which was nice after our 2 week push doing 250 miles.

Pennsylvania was very rocky, but nothing we hadn't seen before.  One of the interesting things about talking to hikers headed in the other direction from us, is they (and we) have no concept of what the others have seen/experienced.  We've been hearing for 2 months that Pennsylvania is 'where shoes go to die' 'Rocky, rocky, rocky, rocky hell'.  But it wasn't anything Southbounders haven't seen already in Maine and New Hampshire.  So we coasted more or less,  feet tired, but still able to make good miles.
Pennsylvania also had the Cumberland Valley, which is 17 miles of Valley walking, through woods and pastures, with cows and horses, and corn fields.

Maryland has been lovely so far, just as rocky in some parts as PA, but enjoyable and full of history as we walk through Civil War sites and battlefields.

D.C. was nearly overwhelming just to see that many people...  We spent some time in the Air & Space museum and now I (Preston) are pining for flying again!  Guess I'll have to do that when we get back :)

Anyway, we're looking forward to returning to the trail as Fall is fully here and blowing in some upper 30's Temps in the mornings, and seeing some fall colors as we go through Virginia.

Shenandoah National Park is on the horizon, in about a week or so, and the highlands and Wild Ponies are somewhere in the big state.

Oh and some big news, we crossed the 1/2 way point in Pennsylvania and now have less miles ahead of us than we've already done, and that feels fantastic.  That song by the Proclaimers, (500 Miles), is funny because they talk about walking 1,000 miles and we've done that, and are going to do it twice.  I loved singing that song as a little kid and we sing it on the trail.

Also, less snakes the last week, which is nice to not worry about stepping on a venomous snake every step you take.

We love you all and hope you're well, and warm.  As always, we love letters :)

-Preston & Abbey