The Pinnacle

 Hello! Hope you're enjoying your week! So, about three Fridays ago, I texted my brother to see if he wanted to go hiking. My parents were on the west coast celebrating my nephew's birthday and my brother and I were on the east coast itching to get out into the beautiful fall weather. My brother immediately responded to my text with an emphatic "Yes! Hiking sounds awesome." And thus, an all-day outdoor adventure was planned for the following day. My brother picked me up at 8am that Saturday and we set out on our way to hike part of the Appalachian Trial. We drove the hour and a half to the base of the hiking trail in Pennsylvania. We even stopped for some Starbucks along the way! I had to enjoy one last city-slicker treat before our outdoor adventure! We arrived at the trailhead and strapped on our backpacks loaded with water and snacks and embarked on our 9 mile round-trip journey.

The trail was so rocky! Apparently, the Pennsylvania portion of the Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine, is the rockiest section of the entire trail. I believe it! We were on our hands and knees for a good mile of our trek! 

The trail was super steep at the very beginning and my sense was that the majority of our gain in altitude was achieved in the first one to two miles of our trip! We hit Pulpit Rock and the views were beautiful! Unfortunately, as I was climbing down from the top of Pulpit Rock, my water bottle, which was in the side pocket of my backpack, slipped out and UNDER Pulpit Rock. I could see it ten feet down, but I absolutely could not reach it. I was so disappointed because it had been a graduation gift from my sister when I had graduated from UPenn and I have kept up with it for so long! Oh well, I saw it as my offering to Pulpit Rock. It was upsetting, and I had to do the remaining 7 miles with zero water, but I survived! There are worse things than losing a water bottle under a giant rock. 

The view from Pulpit Rock! 

Atop Pulpit Rock!

The rocky climb to the top.

What is a kitty doing on the Appalachian Trail?!

Almost there...

Getting closer...

We're here!!! 

Such pretty views from the top of the Pinnacle! 

I could stay here all day...

Funny story about reaching to top and realizing you have to make the 4.5 mile trek DOWN the hill. There was a group of young boys hiking and just as my brother and I were arriving at the top of the Pinnacle, these boys were heading back down. One boy remarked "Why can't we just teleport back down to the trailhead?" My sentiments exactly. Props to the hiker who figures that trick out. All in all the hike was awesome. It's so fun to hike back down because one has the feeling of having seen a part of the world that is only accessible to a few individuals. Whenever I go hiking, I always think "Not everyone gets to climb to the top of huge hills and see these beautiful views." I always thank God when I make it to the top. He's given me the legs, lungs, clean air, and wonderful spirit to be able to climb to the top. After making the rocky descent down the hill and meeting some friends along the way, my brother and I made it back to our car. I drove the hour and a half home and the two of us chatted the entire way home about how badly we wanted to do another hike this fall and how we want to make the Pinnacle hike an annual tradition. I'm happy to report that one of my brother's friends took our suggestion and hiked the Pinnacle this past weekend! I love that we can share our enthusiasm with those around us and encourage our friends to explore new trails. Until next time...happy fall! Enjoy the outdoors! :-) xoxo