Halfway! 1090.5 Miles to Go!

Brandon arrived at the AT half-way marker on Saturday, July 2nd. It is tradition that once a thru-hiker passes the half way point that they stop at the Pine Grove General Store (the nearest covenience store) to take part in the "half gallon challenge" --- eating a half gallon of ice cream in a single sitting. And of course, Brandon was up for the challenge! His flavor of choice was neopolitan. Out of curiosity, I googled Hershey's neopolitan ice cream to get the nutritional information. According to Hershey's web site, a 1/2 cup serving contains 150 calories and 9 grams of fat. With a half gallon containing 16 1/2 cup servings, that brings the amount that Brandon consumed to a whopping 2,400 calories and 144 grams of fat!!! He said it took him an hour and a half to finish, but finish he did and earned his wooden spoon momento for the accomplishment!

Brandon has been putting in some serious miles over the last two weeks (almost 400 to be exact!). Arriving in Harpers Ferry, VA on June 28th, he was able to meet up with Scrub, a hiking buddy he had met on the trail before coming home. Brandon was really glad to be reunited with a familiar friend and he and Scrub continued to rack up the mileage this past week arriving in Duncannon, PA earlier today. They were enjoying one of Brandon's favorite "in town" meals (pizza) when I spoke with him and were planning to take a shuttle into Harrisburg, PA to watch a fireworks show later this evening. He seems excited to finally be able to put in more miles each day, even though his feet are starting to hurt a little more. A thousand miles is a LONG way to walk --- and Brandon gets to do it all over again! Only 1090.5 miles left to go to Katahdin, MA!

Check out pictures from Pennsylvania and Brandon's Half Gallon Challenge!