Camped Just Past Bear Garden Hiker Hostel

Forest and I are back on the Trail. My wife dropped us off at Bear Garden Hiker Hostel (mile marker 556.3) at about 2 p.m. today. I set up our hammocks just past the hostel so we could catch a nap before we set out. The whole East Coast seems to be socked in by the tropical storm coming up from Florida, and there is a Flash Flood Watch here until 8 a.m. Wednesday. We just can't seem to get out of the rain this year, but the good news is that the temperatures are only supposed to be in the upper 70s during the day and mid 60s during the night for the rest of the week. Although the views aren't as pretty, the cloud cover provides some often-appreciated protection from the sun and heat. We just have to watch out for thunderstorms and falling trees, which can happen when the soil is so saturated. I don't have a cell signal here, and apparently Spot didn't go through either━probably because of the cloud cover and stormy conditions. There's a full moon, though, so we plan to hike late tonight.

It felt good to be home with my family, but I knew I needed to get back to the Trail and get on with it. Forest enjoyed running around in the house and stalking my son to see if he left any food unattended.  🐾🐾👀  The good news is that I put back on almost exactly the 11 pounds that I had lost since I started my hike. I was eating constantly. Here's an example of one evening "snack."  🐷🍔🍖🍗🍞🍦🍩🍪

People don't realize how hard it is to maintain weight on the Trail. The more you focus on your hike, the harder it is to keep eating. It saps your appetite, and if you aren't careful to increase your fluids and electrolytes, that decreases your appetite even more. Just last week, one woman had to be evacuated from the Trail with dehydration. In addition to keeping on top of my own food and hydration, I have to be sure that Forest is drinking enough and eating regularly as well. That's why it's so critical that we take frequent breaks for both of us to drink, replenish our water supply and eat, and why I prefer to hike at night when it's too hot during the day.