Another highlight of hiking the AT is the variety of people that I meet on any trip of longer than a few days. In particular, it is especially fun to find folks that hike a similar pace and/or have similar mileage goals. This means that I will have sustained time with the same person or group of people. (To get a really clear picture of how this principle can bring together people who are quite diverse, you should definitely watch the movie, The Way with Martin Sheen.) Although I met Cobweb and Magnolio (the male form of Magnolia?) on Day 4, I was excited to see familiar faces on the evening of Day 7 (it is especially encouraging on a day with bad weather). They are pictured to the left with Cobweb in front. I knew that our paces were similar, I liked being with them and wanted to get to know them better, and I looked forward to our few days together. We had only been separated earlier because they stayed in a hostel one night (a regular occurrence for thru-hikers, but not as frequent for section hikers, especially me). It was fun to be able to hike with them all of Day 8 and Day 9.
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