Ed and I awoke to some sprinkles and high winds. But the rain was supposed to end quickly, so we secured our tent, ate breakfast and headed out.
The morning was pleasant. It was warm but cloudy, so not too hot. I had several miles of road walking without super-steep hills (yay!), then one mile (1.2 km) in the Caldwell Lake Fishing Area. The trail here was a bit scraggly and overgrown, so I didn’t make great time, but it was just a mile.
Ed met me here and we enjoyed a roadside lunch.
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Striking Out for Belle Valley
The afternoon got more challenging. I hiked through Belle Valley, near our camp at Wolf Run, and then the path wound around Wolf Run Lake. The path was pretty, and relatively easy, until it wasn’t.
Several areas had a lot of blowdowns that you couldn’t easily step over, plus the trail was overgrown a 
little. Normally it wouldn’t have been too bad, but the overgrowth was largely pricker plants, so you had to tread cautiously. The last mile or so was in shaggy grass, which also slowed me down. Oh, well.
I met Ed back on the roads, hoping for an easy few miles to finish the day. Nope. Much of these roads were covered in new, loose and large-ish gravel, which was difficult to navigate. I hiked a few large hills backwards (Ed drove me to the top and I hiked down), and there were a few scary dogs.
All in all, still a good day on the trail.
Snowshoe
Ohio NCT miles today: 17.4 (28 km)
Ohio NCT miles to date: 822.1 (1,323 km)
Total NCT miles to date: 3,669.8 (5,906 km)
Total NCT miles to go: 930.2 (1,497 km)
Most useful gear today: My Prana hiking pants, which protected me from scrub and barbed-wire fencing!
