Look What I Just Ate #2

(This was almost two weeks ago, but still worth mentioning...)

Harpers Ferry is considered the psychological half-way point of the trail, but the true half-way point of the trail isn't for another 70 miles after Harpers Ferry, in a PA state park named Pine Grove Furnace.  It is here that hikers can truly celebrate their progress and what better way to do that than by eating a carton of ice cream.

It is a well-known tradition for thru-hikers who make it this far to stop at the state park's general store and pick up a half-gallon of ice cream and attempt to eat it as quickly as possible.  (The store calls the container a half-gallon, but in reality it's only 75% of a half-gallon.  There were a few hikers who went back and got extra ice cream, but I was happy with my fake half-gallon.)  I picked chocolate-chip cookie dough.  I considered getting vanilla because it had fewer calories (only 2000!) and thus would have been easier to consume, but I figured that would get too boring.

From AT 2012

I finished my ice cream and it wasn't too tough, actually.  Another hiker and I timed how long it took us and we both finished in about 37 minutes.  One guy who had passed through before us finished his in 7 minutes.  Another guy had such an appetite for ice cream that after he finished, he went back inside and ate a second "half-gallon".  I had had enough ice cream, but I also figured I ought to eat something else to balance out the sugar - so I went back in and got some fries and a cheeseburger and after some more rest, I was ready to start hiking again.  Yay.