Hello from Black Bear Resort!

Hi! We don't have WiFi or cell service here, so I am unable to post a full update, but I wanted to notify our lovely followers to our progress and happenings! We've posted some photos of our adventures on our facebook page: facebook.com/endlessfootpath

We are 48 days into our amazing journey and we are having a blast! Here is a quick update:

Sheila the Mountain Dog (aka Leaflitter) is doing fantastic! She truly loves the trail life. Being in the woods and meeting all the people makes her extraordinarily happy! She tends to sleep a lot when we take breaks and when we stay in a hostel. She is eating 5 cups of food per day, which is just crazy because she used to eat only 2 cups per day. All of her gear is holding up splendidly! Her pack holds about 5 or 6 days of food (about 8 pounds). Her fleece booties from dogbooties.com have kept her feet protected from the snow during the few times that we have hiked in the stuff. I love her dog bowl. It's super durable and able to be stuffed almost anywhere. She ate some people poop at Cherry Gap Shelter and didn't feel too good for about a day, but she's fine now.

Chase (aka The Ramen Shaman) is doing fine. He hurt is knee a little but got a brace for it and it seems fine. His heaviest pack-weight has been 64lbs!!!! out of Hot Springs because we over-resupplied, which is probably why his knee got hurt. Ramen says about the hike so far: "All of the negativity from my previous life, with all of the stress over worrying about everyday decisions and future life decisions, has just melted away once I entered the woods. The amount of positivity you receive from simplifying your life and living on the trail and interacting with these great people has done wonders for my attitude and outlook on life."

Kelley (aka Cheez-it) is kicking ass and taking names (JK but srsly tho)! I haven't had any more injuries, though I did fall on my face coming down Unaka Mountain and skinned my knee. Funnily enough, I was singing "Ooo ee oo ah ah, ting tang walla walla bing BANG" (and I fell). Cheez-it says: "Live simply and simply live! That is a piece of shelter graffiti that has really stuck with me and that I think captures the trail experience. It's been life changing and I think it will continue to be."

Thanks for all of the support, and I promise that I will update more thoroughly once we arrive in Damascus!