Slept in since the ATC headquarters visitor center didn't open until 9AM. Had a nice chat with Hippy about the meditative quality of walking. He had a good way of putting it: "it's like doing the laundry in your head".
Found my picture in the 2014 hiker registration book.
Then I registered for this year and took another.
The guys working at the ATC had a long Leave No Trace quiz to get the hang tag. Its the 100th anniversary edition!
Had a bagel and coffee at the local cafe. Finally started to hike around 11. This is a pretty late start.
Overcast day with no views. One or two flowering trees but spring is not in full force yet. Some flowers on the ground in small patches.
For the most part everything is still brown. There is pollen everywhere.
A hiker named Torch passed me and said she was hiking in temps up to 27°C (80°F) with a bugnet just a few days ago. Tonight it could freeze. So I guess spring weather will be erratic.
Felt too good to stop at Rock Run shelters so I pushed on to Dahlgren campground. In this area you are required to camp at a designated shelter or campground. It had an unlabeled water source that was definitely chlorinated based on smell.
Shoes felt a little lose but OK and no pinching or hot spots. Unfortunately the trail was pretty tame today so its an imperfect test.