It's time to dust off the blog and add a new post. It's been a few weeks, I know. But blogs are like journals--it's always easier not to write. But if the desire is there the writing gets done sooner or later. Desire is very important. Let's see...my last post was all about things. The day after I wrote that post, I went backpacking with my friend Travis. It felt good to break away from the gravity of my things and possessions. We drove up to south central Pennsylvania and set out walking on the Appalachian Trail.
The photo above is of our first camp. I took the photo on Saturday morning. Travis was preparing to boil water for our morning oatmeal.
Our packs were fairly light, which was part of the adventure. It turns out that a person doesn't really need that many things to live in the outdoors. Although colder weather means we have to carry more insulation.
We packed light and walked with the gusto that comes from carrying a light pack. Travis and I have been reading Ray Jardine's ultralight backpacking books: The Pacific Crest Trail Hiker's Handbook and Beyond Backpacking. Ray and his wife Jenny have done an awesome amount of ultralight adventuring. And Ray's backpacking books (which are sadly out of print right now) are helpful, logical, and well written.
This is Travis's alcohol-burning stove. The stove by itself only weighs 1.1 ounces. 
We hiked north along the AT.
We explored some ATV trails.
The ATV trails took us up to a ridge where found this pyramid shaped rock.
Later we climbed on top of this larger ridge which gave us some of the widest views of the entire hike.
The next day we woke up and enjoyed the warmth of the sun.
A small stream flowed by our camp. And the morning sunlight guided me in exploring the small plants that were down beside the stream.
Eventually we walked back on the AT and headed south.
Here we are back at Travis's car, getting ready to drive home.
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