50% complete!

That's 50% complete on bagging the high points in each state.  25 down...25 to go (or perhaps only 24 to go if we skip Denali in Alaska, which is a good possibility).

#23 - Maryland - Backbone Mountain - 3,360 feet - an easy 2 mile round-trip hike up an old logging road

#24 - Pennsylvania - Mount Davis - 3,213 feet - another easy 2 mile round-trip hike through the beautiful woods

the geological marker is on top of this rock

looking down at the high point from the lookout tower

#25 - West Virginia - Spruce Knob - 4,861 feet - only a 900ft. hike from the parking lot so we then added a 10 mile hike on the nearby Huckleberry Trail to make it a little more difficult.

I feel slightly (just slightly!) guilty about these easy ones but we deserve it after many difficult high points out west and several more to come.

Shenandoah National Park - We took a quick trip and a quick hike in this beautiful National Park.  A place we definitely want to spend more time at in the future.  So many trails, overlooks and waterfalls.  Skyline Drive runs right through the park.

AT thru-hiker - "PA System" - he's from Mt. Holly Springs, PA - small world!

PA here we come!

Til next time...Happy Trails!

North Carolina

North Carolina has some beautiful State and County Parks.  We really enjoyed the hiking in these parks.  Great variety in about an hour drive from the campground.

Bakers Mountain Park - While this is a small park the trails are immaculate and very well marked.  Don't let the size fool you as the trails are steep but lead to a nice overlook.  The wildflowers are in season so we've been enjoying these and seeing a few new ones along the way.

Toadshade Trillium

South Mountain State Park - This is definitely a park we'll return to as there are miles and miles of trails.

small stream crossing - the feet didn't get too wet! 

Stone Mountain State Park - We hiked on almost every main trail in the park to make a 9.5 mile loop.  What great variety from waterfalls to ridge hiking to the stone mountain!  Another beautiful day!

Linville Falls - This is off the BlueRidge Parkway.  Great little hike to see the falls.

Asheville - a visit with Kelly "Hess".  When I worked at GKH I got to know Kelly.  She has since moved to NC, married Chris Weaver and they have 2 beautiful little girls, McKenzie and Alexis.  The last time we saw them was at their wedding years ago.  It's always fun to see familiar faces in different states.  Thanks for having us, Kelly!  It was great to see you and Chris and to meet the precious little girls.

Antonio Andrade - Tony is a friend of Tom's from the Mount Carmel area.  Tom saw on Facebook that he'd be playing in a town not far from us so we took the trip and surprised him.  Tony decided to surprise Tom when another high school friend showed up, Mike Yonkovig.  An unplanned reunion in NC.  And to add to the small world side of things, Mike had a friend with him that lived in Pottstown (the area where I grew up) across the street from my uncle and knew my dad and rest of the family.  We love these kind of happenings along the way!  Great show, Tony!

We are in Winchester, VA for a few more days and then work our way back to PA May 1.  Looking forward to seeing our family and friends back "home"!

Til next time...Happy Trails!