Hi everyone!

I'm in the process of planning my first trip where I'm in charge, and I need some advice. I've been doing sections of the AT for a few years with my Venturing Crew (~350 miles under my boots) and I'm 20, which means I'm going to "age out" of the crew soon. I've decided it's time for me to transition to being in charge of myself on the trail, but I didn't want to go alone, so I invited my little sister with me (she's 17 and has spent 2 consecutive weeks on the trail with us last summer). We're planning on doing the Standing Indian Loop, since we only have 1 car and there's a lot of information about it online. I've already gotten the Appalachian Trail Guide for the section that Standing Indian is in, because I'm used to the format of this book.

But of course, there's an issue: my mother. She's worried about two women taking a trip on their own. I fully believe I can do it and I've been talking to my crew leader getting his tips about planning, etc (he's been taking groups of children on extended backpacking trips for decades). She just can't get over the idea of us not having a guy hiking with us.

Are there any tips you have about how to stay safe on the trail? Any words of wisdom to help me calm my mom? Also, if you know any extra info about the Standing Indian Loop, let me know! We're looking at probably doing the loop "clockwise" aka nobo.