Due a sixty-mile detour to DC and a bonus day of repose with our friends in Shippensburg, the official halfway mark proved far more elusive than a previous blog post suggested. In case you were worrying, we did in fact make it.
See:
Quite a fancy halfway marker if you ask me.
Shortly after the halfway mark there is a general store famed for hosting the “Half Gallon Challenge” wherein hikers consume a half gallon of ice cream as fast as possible. As you can see, Travis lagged behind my admirable time of 26 minutes. He claims the chocolate chips “interfered” with his ability to consume rapidly.
After the glory of walking 1,090.5 miles wore off, we found ourselves back in rainy PA–only now we were slogging through miles of muddy farmland. On the bright side, we did find this lovely specimen next to a corn field:
That is by far the largest four-leaf clover either of us have ever seen and has traveled with us ever since. We figure the amount of luck bestowed on the finder is proportional to the size of the clover, thus we are extra lucky.
Cases in point:
1. Pennsylvania is a notoriously dry state. Past hikers have had to hike miles off trail just to get water. Lucky us, days of rain to fill the springs and streams!!!
And then we get to ford the river, just like in Oregon Trail. Extra lucky!
2. For hungry hikers in Duncannon, all food options come in epic proportions. Pancakes? 11 inches in diameter. Ice cream? A small gets you a pint of ice cream forced onto a waffle cone. While hikers tend to eat more than an average person, we are not immune to excess-induced malaise. Oh well, extra lucky!
3. Apparently, some people go their entire hike without seeing a venomous snake. Extra luckily, my first such encounter involved not one, not two, but THREE large rattlesnakes sunning themselves most inconveniently on and near the trail. We opted to give them wide berth and bushwhack past the sunny rocks they called home. Extra lucky!
We have not yet decided whether the freakishly large clover accompany us much further. A little moderation would be much appreciated.
Photo miscellany:
Orchid!
Looking down on the Susquehanna on our way out of Duncannon.
Venomous Snake 2.0, the Copperhead.
…We get our fun in when we can? Willett mostly sleeps discreetly in the background.
980.6 miles to Katahdin!
Hops, Fig, and a Duck 
Please do not die of dysentry….
Water was fine in PA until the last section around Palmerton to I think Wind Gap or so.
Love your photos!
Grandpa James comments–Travis’s great grandmother Ruby worked at the lodge at Crawford’s Notch in her youth. We’ve held ornithological meetings there. I’ve been atop Mt. Washington 2 or 3 times. One time there was a foot race in progress along the highway to the top. I was happy that I was not a participant.
The frog you wanted identified is a Gray Treefrog.