Along with (figurative) century posts, interstate highways crossed, and National Parks navigated, checking off states is one of the main ways AT thru hikers measure their progress. Some of the associated signs, like the one which greeted me on June 8 upon entrance into Virginia, the state with the greatest mileage, are merely nondescript and functional. This sign is, however, one of the most welcome, since it is only a few miles short of Damascus, VA, the “Friendliest Town on the Trail.”
Others are easy to miss, like the first state line in the trail, which greeted a plumper me on Day 7 of my hike.
Others are filled with irony that is easily lost on the uninitiated. By the time thru hikers reach this sign, they have been bear-bagging for nearly 390 miles, and they have also bagged their second state. The deeper irony is that they have also left NC dozens of times. For roughly 220 miles, the AT closely follows the border of NC and TN, crossing the border dozens of times before the state ridgeline walk ends here.
Signs Of Adventure is a weekly post that comes out on Thursday and features a sign related to adventure from around the world.
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