Through grinding uphills and knee-clattering downhills, the constant of the Trail is friendship. Every chance encounter with fellow thruhikers is a joy. Even when they’re new faces, you know that anyone 600 miles in is the same kind of crazy as you. We’ve been lucky enough to have kept up with Burnout and Scout these last several hundred miles. Hanger, Yogi, Stardust, Hobbit, Giggles & Gruff: we miss you nerds. Leave us Trail Log love. Honeybuns near the start of Thomas Jefferson National Forest. Scout is a gnome. Honeybuns approaches the woods off of a bald. A late evening scramble to Thomas Knob. Honeybuns on the windswept plains of Rohan — I mean: Grayson Highlands. A rock formation called “Fat Man’s Squeeze” or something else offensive. We pretended the Grayson ponies hung out in there. (They didn’t.) Camping by the deceptively named Dismal Falls. Karibu brought a homemade Settlers of Catan, which was promptly rebranded Hikers of Katahdin. Bonfire after Catan.