One of the hikers who hopped into the shelter last night goes by Indiana, and he has been hiking around 20 miles a day… Every day. I decided that sounded fun (or something like fun), so when he left that morning, I joined him.

I am fascinated with the philosophy out here of “hike your own hike.” It is truly awesome how every hiker respects the other methods of hiking. Some people hike fast, while others hike slow. Some say that the last person to Katahdin wins. Others enjoy the energetic and competitive nature of the trail. So far, I have enjoyed experiencing all of these ideas by myself and with other hikers.

Hiking with Indiana was exploring a side of the trail that I had not tried yet, which was fairly extreme. I had said before I left, mostly in jest, “the more extreme the better.” However, I have realized that this can not always be true. In fact, it is rarely true, but some extreme is definitely a good thing. Out here, extreme is easy to find, but finding the right personal balance is a beautiful thing.

Well, I decided to try a little more mileage, but before it got to that point, Indiana and I reached a junction at a road. Indiana had a couple of difficult days and decided to head into Gatlinburg. I moved on, despite the weather, and reached a shelter pretty far down the line. I got to meet up with a hiker from the UP (of Michigan), and we talked about hiking other trails. I am considering which trail to hike next, hopefully soon in my future life.