Miles: 747.7 | A late start and intentionally short day reflect growing fatigue as we ease into Virginia’s rhythm. After crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway for the first time, we stop early at Boblett’s Gap and spend the evening talking with section hikers. Their frustration and self-comparison highlight something I’ve learned the hard way: negativity makes everything feel heavier, slower, and harder. Out here, mindset matters as much as strength. We fall asleep on a sloped patch of ground, tired but steady, carrying that reminder forward.
We hung out at camp pretty late. We were still really tired. I was starting to feel burnt out again. We decided to take it slow today. We got out of bed around 9am and left camp around 11am. The sky was finally clearing up.
We hiked slowly. We crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway for the first time. Rain came and went bWe arrived at the next shelter, only 7.3 miles away from the last one, and decided to stop there.
We set up Miles' tent on a hill, the only spot available. There is pretty much no tenting at this shelter. We sat and chatted with Sparky, who we had met at Laughing Heart Hostel in Hot Springs. She had gotten off to go home for some logistical reasons for a week and was just getting back so we hadn't seen her for a while.
Over dinner we talked to some section hikers. They were older folks with big, heavy packs. They asked us about our gear and our lives. For some reason, section hikers always want to know what we did with our lives at home. Our jobs or school, our living situations, etc. Perhaps because their trying to find their in to thru-hike. Most thru-hikers will tell you, "I just decided to do it." A lot of us quit our jobs or just graduated school, retired from a long career or left the military, realized that they had some kind of break in their life and now was the time. Unless they were in the "I just retired from a long career," category most thru-hikers hadn't planned for a long time on hiking. Most bought their gear within the last six months and decided to go! If you're thinking about it, start with a section and go.
Anyway, in talking to those section hikers I noticed something: the more negative you are the worse it will be. I know I started off pretty negative. I used to beat myself up, complain, lament having to do camp chores, think about big climbs as if they were Everest, hate getting up in the morning. But I started to realize: the less you complain the easier it is. If you complain about it, your camp chores will take 1-2 hours. If you just buckle down and do it, usually you're done in 30-60 minutes. Same with hills: if you stand there and think about how hard it is and stop every few steps and ho and hum about it the hill will take twice as long and it will suck because you made it suck. If you just buckled down and do it, 'No Stoppy 'til the Toppy' style (as Miles likes to say), the climb was suddenly not so bad and much quicker.
I noticed this so starkly on this night because one of the section hikers complained about how hard and long his day was. He had hiked 12 miles, along with the other sectioners, and was the last one to camp at 7pm. He complained that his knees hurt and that it took him so much longer than everyone else. That the day was mostly downhill but it felt so long and hard no matter how many breaks he took. He started talking about their plan for the next day.
They had planned 13 miles, mostly uphill, and the guidebook definitely made it look worse than it was. He said, "Tomorrow is going to be so hard for me. All uphill. 13 miles. It's going to be really difficult. I'm gonna get to camp at, like, 9pm. I'm gonna be the last one again." His negativity was infectious. His friends knew they could do it they all expressed in some way, but they also admitted that it would probably not be so bad. He kept complaining until they went to bed. He kept comparing himself to the thru-hikers. Noting that their pack weights were lighter, that their bodies were stronger, that they were younger.
I thought, Wow have I been this negative? Was I like this before? I mean, I know I have been this negative, but was I always like that? I realized how awful it must be to wake up, think your day is going to be awful, actualize your awful day, and feel terrible all the time. That used to be me! Telling yourself your day is going to be bad will, most certainly, create a bad day. But if you tell yourself in the morning, Today is gonna be great. I might encounter some challenges but as long as I keep going I will get there. All I have to do is start. Your day will be so much better.
Not to mention, comparing yourself to other hikers doesn't help you AT ALL. Sure, their pack might be lighter. Yeah, maybe their bodies are stronger. Absolutely, they might have more experience. It doesn't matter though! It has nothing to do with you. And what you don't see is their struggles and their demons. EVERYONE HAS THEIR STRUGGLES. Everyone has multiple struggles, honestly! Comparing yourself will get you nowhere. Just focus on you, your struggle, and how you can make it to Katahdin (or your car in the parking lot 30 miles away in a weekend).
Sure it's hard. When your heart is pounding in your chest, your sweat is dripping down your face in streams, you have salt in your eyes, your legs are burning, your backpack straps are digging into your shoulders; all you can think about is suck. But when you get to the top (usually 0.5-5 miles later) the relief is incredible. You recover in 60-90 seconds and everything is fine. You almost forget how hard it was.
This interaction just really made me notice how much negativity can impact you out here. And it got me thinking how does being negative impact me in my daily life at home? I also started evaluating some of my relationships, how negative people might be impacting my life.
We went to bed in Miles' tent on the hill next to the shelter. Which Way and Next Step shared their tent near ours on the hillside as well.