Lessons and Morals

When someone tells you something on the trail.....don't believe it. Just wait and see for yourself how it is. For example:
"New York and New Jersey sucked! They were so rocky and nasty."

My experience: New York and New Jersey have been awesome and I've loved most of both states. They've had awesome views and awesome trails.

Moral: Don't listen to lying Northbound Thru-Hikers.

Thank You

Today I had to say goodbye to two new and amazing friends. Landon's brother, Taylor, and one of his good friends, Amy Stafford, joined us hiking for the past three days. Needless to say we all had a blast together just chilling in the woods and hiking through New York. It was nice to have people to talk to that didn't just talk about hiking. We had stimulating conversations and just an all around good time. I've found that the woods are a very good place to get to know some one very quickly and that's exactly what happened with Taylor and Amy. Though they may not read this blog I have to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming out into the woods and making a thru-hiker very happy. You all are amazing.
On a more technical note, Landon and I have done 800 miles on the trail as of tomorrow and tomorrow will be our two month mark out here. It feels like so much longer than two months and these next 2 months and some change will absolutely fly by for us. I am also constantly counting down the days until I see mom and dad in PA. Though I'm having surgery to fix my toe :/ it will be great to see them right around the halfway mark.
I'm sorry there aren't more pictures, but there has been literally nothing to take pictures of recently, but that doesn't mean I haven't taken a few.

My restlessness intensifies every minute I'm in town. My yearning for the trail never seems to go away. It is now setting in that the only place that I truly feel alive and at peace is deep in the woods. The nights are calm and cool and the mornings are filled with beautiful sights, sounds and smells of a fresh new day on this earth. The presence of the Lord truly shines in the beauty of the forest especially in the cooling breeze on a hot day, or the clearing of the trees revealing a picturesque landscape. The payoff after a long day of walking always outweighs the pain and energy put into those grueling 25 miles. The knowledge of my what my body needs and the better understanding of it are things that I will never be able to forget. Knowing that I can push out those last 5 miles or knowing that I can make it up this hill because, "No mountain lasts forever" truly amaze me once completed. I never in my wildest dreams thought I'd be able to push myself as far as I have already without breaking down. Knowing this truly does propel me forward for the rest of my hike along with the relentless support from friends and family emotionally walking every step of the way with me. Without that support, I know that I would have quit a long time ago. Without that support, my dream of a thru-hike would have been finished before it even started. Thank you do much for what you do to help me out in my journey. I may not even know you, but you have no idea how much I appreciate you.

The Grind of Things

Hello everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in a while. To be honest there hasnt been much to post about and it's been raining almost every day for at least a little while. Yesterday Landon and I left Dalton, Massachusetts where we zeroed after going through Vermont in 7 days. We stayed at a place called the Birdcage. It's a free hostel that is run by a man named Rob Bird. Rob is on of the most selfless trail angels I have met on my journey so far. He took care of us like we were his own children and made sure that we had everything we needed. He is truly a gift to hikers. We stayed at a cabin last night where we are getting blueberry pancakes before we leave. Landon's parents are going to meet us in 2 days and were gong to zero at his house in Connecticut before continuing our journey further south. Well it's time for pancakes. Here are my pictures
Well the pancakes were amazing as expected!
Day 52
I am at Landon's house in Farmington, CT taking a zero. As an extra bonus the Olympics are on and I am permanently fixed to the tv. Sorry there haven't been more pictures of the trail. It has literally been a green tunnel with very limited views. We did however walk through some cow pastures and corn fields within the past few days. It's been pretty cool! We walked past the monument where Shay's rebellion happened. That was also pretty interesting. The amount of American history that we've encountered so far is very cool. Well physically I am doing fine. My toe is bothering me, but it isn't enough yet to stop me! I'll be having surgery in Pennsylvania when Mom and Dad come up to visit me. The recovery shouldn't be more than 3-4 days and then I'll be back on the trail.

Breakfast

My First Marathon

Be proud. Be very proud. Gregory Robert Simpson did a total of 28 miles today to get into town and to catch up to someone he could hike with. I am very tired tonight, but my legs feel good. They aren't sore(yet...) and my mental status has brightened up compared to the last couple days. I'm back to enjoying the trail :) well goodnight y'all. No pictures today cause my phone was almost dead all day.

Empty Shelter

Day 44
Looks like I'll be spending the night by myself in this shelter. It'll be the first time since being on the trail. I'm fine with it. It's nice and peaceful at this shelter and because of a 25 mile day today I'm pretty wiped. I am very excited because I crossed the 500 mile mark today. A little milestone, but one nonetheless. That means I'm about a 1/4 of the way done with the trail. Time flies when you hike every day haha. Tomorrow is another long day into town. 24.6 to be exact :/ but it will be nice to sit down at a restaurant and unwind a bit. I'll be in Dalton, Massachusetts in 5 days where I'll either zero or nero. It's 6 right now and I'm gonna start getting ready for bed. Another 5:30 wake up tomorrow. Goodnight.