Monson, ME to Baxter State Park, ME 7/12/2009-7/17/2009

Photos: http://good-times.webshots.com/album/573642399UmLVSS?vhost=good-times

7/12/2009 10 PM – Long Pond Stream Lean-to – 15.1 mi today – 2078.8 mi total

Woke up to the smell of bacon. Good things happen on bacon days. AYCE breakfast was excellent. I had 6 eggs, bacon, and sausage, and 5 pancakes and home fries. Yum. Had to clear some space for it. Bought Aqua Mira and settled up. Hit the trail at 9. Took a picture at the 100-mile wilderness sign. Definitely not carrying 10 days of food. Very pretty walk. Sun was out and it was a beautiful day. Stopped for lunch at little Wilson falls. Really enjoying the 100-mile. Crossed Little and Big Wilson Streams. No problem there. Met Old Spice at Wilson Valley Lean-to. He started March 18. Nice guy. Cruised to Long Pond Stream Lean to and Splinter was there! Clean-shaven, it took me a second to figure it out. He finished June 26 and was coming back to do trail magic. He figured out where I was from my blog with some help from the people at Shaws. He had brought some beer up from his car, so we all drank and reminisced. He had some funny stories from katahdin. After 2 weeks off he wants to be back out here. Wonder what it will be like for me. Went to bed late, drunk, and happy!

7/13/2009 9 PM – Carl A Newhall Shelter – 20.8 miles today – 2099.6 mi total

Woke up at 6:30 and started to pack up. Rained overnight. Said thanks to Splinter as he headed to the car with all the empties and our trash. Hit the trail at 8 and took it slow. Spent a lot of time reflecting on my experience and getting misty eyed. Nice view from Burren Mountain. Couldn’t see Katahdin, though. Cruised along and enjoyed the scenery. 100 mile is very pretty, and we have been lucky with the weather. Stopped for lunch at 3^rd Mtn, and just as we were leaving a huge rain shower hit. Had a little bit of hail too. Didn’t last long. Nice view from Chairback Mtn across to Whitecap. Pretty and easy descent to Pleasant River and an easy ford. Last 6 miles were gradual uphill and I was getting hungry. Shelter was full when we arrived, but EKG sweet-talked some SOBOs to give up their spots. EKG, Panama and I are inside with some section hikers. Old Spice had to tarp out. Felt bad for him. Hope it doesn’t rain. Thinking about big miles tomorrow. Only 2 more pages of guidebook left! End is near. Hoping for a good view of Big K from Whitecap!

7/14/2009 9 PM – Potaywadjo Spring Lean-to – 30.3 mi today – 2129.9 mi total

Woke up at 4:30. That was early. Got on the trail at 5. Wanted to get early start to push big miles. Had a snack at Sidney Tappon Campsite. Had Chariots of Fire stuck in my head. Thought about my XC days. 3 quick drinks and we were on top of White Cap looking out over a valley towards Katahdin. Summit was under clouds. Got a quick picture and moved on as wind was high. Snack break at Logan Brook Lean-to. My stomach was all messed up because I didn’t have my normal breakfast and was snacking all day. Cruised past East Branch Lean-to. Terrain was pretty easy today. Short uphill over Little Boardam Mtn. Afterwards it was super flat. I flew along to Cooper Brook falls lean-to and ate a massive breakfast/lunch. Met a SOBO who had injured herself and taken a month off. Hope to avoid the injury bug these last few days. Panama, EKG, and I flew the last 11 miles in 3.5 hours. Held a 3 mph pace for first time in a long time. Felt good to open up the stride again. Trail wasn’t too muddy, but there were a couple boggy spots. Got to the shelter at 6:30 with plenty of daylight. Bugs were bad so we lit a fire, though they are still buzzing around. Had a nice big dinner and enjoyed the company. Staying with a SOBO tonight. Planning another big day tomorrow, so we will be getting up early again, we’re definitely going out in style. Less than 50 miles to go. On the last page of the guidebook!

7/15/2009 9 PM – Abol Pines Campground – 33.2 mi today- 2163.1 mi total

Woke up at 4:30 again. Felt really stiff. Quietly made breakfast and swore a bunch. Popped 4 Vitamin I. Hit the trail at 5:15. Spring for the shelter was really cool. Water was bubbling out of the ground. Sun coming through the trees at a low angle was pretty. Had a nice view of Katahdin from Pemadumcoak Lake. Cloudy on top, but its getting closer. Trail was a bit muddier than yesterday, but not bad. It would have been really bad a week ago, but the recent nice weather had dried it out a bit. Saw some canoe campers across Namakanta Lake. That would be a fun way to see Maine. Rounded Wadleigh Stream Campsite at 9:15. Passed Panama pitter-pattering like a fat kid at a stream crossing. He was pissed when I just leapt across. Hilarious! Got some water and stuffed myself with snacks. Hit the trail again and had the last real climb before Katahdin. Nesuntabunt Mtn. Was very steep. Called home from the top. Started daydreaming on the downhill, which slowed me, down. Had to really focus to catch up to Panama and EKG. Got to Rainbow Stream Shelter at 1:15 and cooked a dinner for lunch. My legs were aching, but the hot food did wonders. Popped 4 more Ibuprofen, wrote in the shelter log and read some nostalgic entries from other NOBOs. Hit the trail again at 2. After 4 miles, I had Energy GU and Panama had 5-hour energy. Those things really work. Energy drinks and ibuprofen have really helped us on the last stretch through New England. Panama was flying and I did my best to keep up. Trail was pretty muddy and we had to dance from rock to rock. Managed to keep my feet pretty dry. Kept our head down and pounded out the miles. Beautiful view of Katahdin from Rainbow Ledges. Got to Hard Brook Lean-to just before 6. We could smell the finish line, but had to take a brake for sore legs. Saw a couple greenhorn SOBOs at the shelter. Absolutely crushed the last 3 miles and completed the 100 mile wilderness at 7. Took us 82 hours to walk 100 miles. Awesome! That makes today my longest 1-day, 2-day and 3-day stretch. What a bad ass way to finish. Got to the Golden Road at Abol Bridge and met Panama’s dad and brother. They fed us well and we demolished everything on the table. Recounted the day and basked in our success. After dinner, we went across the street to Abol Pines to claim our spots in the shelter. We were all thoroughly exhausted, but happy. Stayed up for a while reminiscing about all the good times at the trail. I’m really going to miss the trail when it’s over. Still living the dream and have 15 miles to go. Onwards!

7/16/2009 8 PM – Katahdin Stream Campground – 9.9 mi today – 2173.1 mi total

Woke up at 5:15 and was starving. Panama shared some trail mix and yogurt covered pretzels. After a while, I realized I wasn’t going tot fall back asleep, so I got up and wrote my journal and had breakfast. Abol Pines is a nice place. Right on the Penobscot River, it’s a peaceful place..until a logging truck blasts by. Took my time packing up and wandered over to the campground store. Ate ½ lb cheeseburger and 3 donuts. Hit the trail at 9 and the bugs were out. Signed in at the information kiosk and the BSP boarder. Didn’t stop long as the bugs were terrible. Took it easy and cruised all day long. Had two stream crossings. Managed to make it across the first one with dry feet, but not the second. Took a nice long break at Big Niagara Falls with Panama and reflected on the trip. Met his dad and brother-in-law near Daicey Pond and chatted for a while. Cruised into Katahdin Stream Campground around 1. Registered and chatted with the Ranger. The Birches were full with trail crew, so we got another lean-to. She also gave us some free firewood because we are cool NOBOs. Set up camp and got a fire going to keep away the mosquitoes. Sat around for a while until Blackgun showed up. He had just climbed Katahdin and was heading into town. He’s flip-flopping so he has to make his way to WV to finish (WV – GA) He lost his entire pack in one of the river crossings in the 100 mile wilderness because the water was so high. Yikes! We got pretty lucky with the water levels. Started to rain so I took a nap. When I woke up Panama’s dad and brother had brought us pizza, pasta, beer and McDonalds. Woo Hoo!! Stuffed ourselves thoroughly. Hung out for the rest of the evening. Great last night on the trail. Heading into town tomorrow to wait for Dad and Rachel. Only 5 miles left!

7/17/2009 6PM - Appalachian Trail Lodge - 0.0 mi today - 2173.1 mi total

Got up early and saw Panama and EKG off to the Hunt Trail. Enjoyed a fire over leftover breakfast pizza and then went to the road to hitch into town. Waited 2 hours for a ride. Bugs were bad. Finally arrived in Millinocket at 10:30. Went to the Appalachian Trail Cafe for breakfast number two. Charming place. Had some really funny AT illustrations on the wall from theartfulhiker.com that brought back many memories of the trail. Checked into the lodge and relaxed for a while. Caught up with my family as they were leaving Rochester and starting the long drive up here. Went to the library in the afternoon. There is a Harley Owners Group bike rally in town this weekend, so I saw the parade this afternoon. There were over 500 bikes. Pretty cool. Panama and EKG arrived around dinner time. Panama's family showered and then hopped in the car on their way to the coastline for the rest of the weekend. Sad to say goodbye. EKG and I went to the Cafe for dinner and another thruhiker, James, completed the Sundae Summit Challenge, which is 14 scoops of ice cream, snickers, M&M's, pie, chocolate sauce, and whipped cream. It was ridiculous. He looked in pain when he finished it. The biker guys were impressed. Afterwards, I retired to the Lodge and watched tv until my family arrived. Glad to see them. Looking forward to tomorrow. Hope the weather is good.