Today started and ended rough. I had an awful stomach ache this morning and had to lay in my tent extra long. I'm starting to think it's the mountain house meals. They go right through me. I had a beef stew last night and it made me feel awful which sucks because I have so many of them. I'm not sure what's going on. Overall, today was incredibly hard. There were so many ups and downs and we averaged an excruciatingly slow pace despite getting an early start at 7:30. We only took a few breaks but just continued to struggle.

There were so many balds to climb today and on the summits it smelled sweet like honey and grapes. I stopped and took some deep breaths to take it in. I met up with Sarah a few times and talked a lot. I enjoy continuing to get to know her. Later in the day, Aidan, Sarah, and I hiked together during a thunder storm and talked about what we want in our lives after the trail. We talked about all the foods we'd want to eat, where we wanted to live, etc. We had some good laughs. When we arrived at the shelter I got extremely sick, as is usual lately, and had to lay in my tent for the night.

I'm still loving every minute of being out here despite any bad weather or how sick I feel. It's the best. So much freedom and happiness. I never want to live a normal life again.

Today was a mediocre day into Bland, VA. We hiked only a short bit and then came into town. We were so exhausted and all needed a zero. We got a ride from Aidan's dad who brought us into Wytheville where we stayed at a motel. We're all sharing a room. I'm still wrestling with my feelings toward Sarah, but nothing I can do at this point. Today also marks the longest day without laundry or a shower.

Today we hung out all day, watched movies, and did our laundry. Sarah talked with me today and told me that she was also confused about her feelings toward me, which just confused me more. We agreed to just try to be friends still. The trail is a really weird place to meet someone since you spend so much time around them and experience all the highs and lows together.

Today we took a nero to wait out some an approaching thunderstorm shortly after Bland. We set up our tents, waited, and the rain never came. I felt pretty anxious that we barely hiked. We had a nice night hanging by the fire, massaging each other's feet, and relaxing. Though it was an enjoyable night, I'm starting to feel like I should break free from this group because I would like to make better mileage and catch up with the rest of our trail family.