Spring Break in Paris

While the majority of students on spring break probably sought out a warm weather getaway, I froze my ass off on the Appalachian Trail. A group of friends and I drove about two hours south to Paris, Virginia and hit the trails for an 18 mile hike. My parents still think I went to the other Paris. I’ll tell them someday.

For the first time in many years I didn’t listen to any music for more than a few hours (in fact, no tunes for three days). That gave me a lot of time to think about life’s possibilities and just how much my body hurt from walking so damn far with excessive weight on my back.
We’d wake up at dawn, eat breakfast, get in gear, and then walk for the entire day. Once the hike was done for the day, we’d then make a much needed fire, make some dinner, drink some wine, then pass the f*&k out. If it sounds like I’m complaining, I’m really not. It was a ball.
On the last night in the woods, we met a gentleman by the name of Jason. He was from York, Pennsylvania and had already hiked over 200 miles south on the famous trail. Just then it started to snow big fluffy flakes. Jason was on his way down to Georgia, planning on arriving at his destination in the middle of June. We talked all night and it was truly a special experience.
In the morning we exchanged numbers with Jason. I gave me a copy of The Alchemist, a good book for finding your individual destiny and he was off. We finished our hike. Then we were back on the road to Baltimore. It was a nice way to spend the break.