Cross Country Hiker Training on the A.T.

The Evening Sun ("serving the greater Hanover and Gettysburg [PA] areas") has a Steve Marroni article that was published on 23 December 2007 and titled "Man to hug a million 'for humanity'."

The article describes how area resident Josh Howell intends to hug a million people as he hikes across the country and back on the American Discovery Trail during a 9 month hike starting in Delaware on 1 March. It's to raise money for the Alzheimer's Association, and the article tells how is mother was stricken with an early onset of the disease.

Anyway, we also read here how Howell has been physically fit and active. And that

"Getting ready to for his cross-country hike is a full-time job. He hikes as much as he can, hitting local areas of the Appalachian Trail with a 40-pound pack. He calls ahead, setting up Hug-a-Thons and events for his stops along the way."

So if a hiker in southern Pennsylvania wants to hug you in the next couple months, it could be for a good cause.