Appalachian Trail thru-hiker Zeke Meddock, trail name Petroglyph, attempts the half-gallon ice cream challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, June 10, 2025.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail often takes 6 months. She did it in 40 days. Tara Dower, 31, leaned on a “pit crew” of friends and fruit gummies to get through the trek.

Anne Sentz, from left, Emily Powell and Franklin Tate, with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, check out a portion of the famed trail in the wake of Hurricane Helene's destruction.

Appalachian Trail thru-hiker Sam Cooper, trail name Pie Top, attempts the half-gallon ice cream challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Mingson Lau/AP ...

Appalachian Trail thru-hiker Sam Cooper, trail name Pie Top, attempts the half-gallon ice cream challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Mingson Lau/AP ...

Appalachian Trail thru-hiker Sam Cooper, trail name Pie Top, attempts the half-gallon ice cream challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Mingson Lau/AP ...

GARDNERS, Pa. (AP) — Sam Cooper had just trekked 7 miles (11 kilometers) through a rain-sodden stretch of the Appalachian Trail when he sat down outside a little country store in Pennsylvania to ...

Appalachian Trail thru-hiker Sam Cooper, trail name Pie Top, attempts the half-gallon ice cream challenge at Pine Grove Furnace State Park in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Mingson Lau/AP ...

GARDNERS, Pa. (AP) — Sam Cooper had just trekked 7 miles (11 kilometers) through a rain-sodden stretch of the Appalachian Trail when he sat down outside a little country store in Pennsylvania to ...