Day 132 to 141 of Reed's AT Adventure

This is the last update of The Peaceful Warriors Adventure. During this section Reed has accomplished what few others has accomlished - the completion of the Appalachian Trail. He now belongs to the 2000 Miler Club a distinction worth recognizing. The last hurdle for the Northbounders is getting through the hundred mile wilderness and not starving. These days it has moderated a little because of a new campsite about 70 miles in which can help hikers restock their dwindling supplies. The journey is over, but the Peaceful Warrior will reside in all of us.

Trail Guide The Peaceful Warrior shows us how to hike the trail, after all he is an expert after hiking over 2000 miles you know


I reached Monson, my final "trail town," on September 1 and stayed the night at Shaw's Boarding Home.  Shaws is one of the better known and most popular hiker havens on the entire trail.  Keith and Pat Shaw certainly enjoy providing a soft bed and a hearty meal for anyone passing through town.  I enjoyed my last big breakfast on my hike here, as Mr. Shaw served me 5 pieces of french toast, 2 pieces of bacon and sausage, 2 eggs, a plate-full of hash browns, and a couple of doughnuts.  (9/2/99 1:40PM)
 
Our web-master extraordinaire, Vance Wheelock (trailname: Short Sleeves) met up with me in Monson on Sept. 2 and joined Anchovy (my uncle Steve) and I for a night on the trail.  The trail north of Monson is better known as the Hundred-Mile Wilderness, and is the most remote section of the entire Appalachian Trail.  Here, Short Sleeves and I enjoy the dire warnings about the Hundred-Mile Wilderness before starting off.  (9/2/99 2:11PM)
 
On September 3, "Uncle" Anchovy, Short Sleeves, and I stopped for a break near Bear Pond Ledge.  Short Sleeves then hiked back south to his car near Monson while Anchovy and I continued north.  (9/3/99 10:45AM)
 

 

Anchovy cooled off and then filtered water at Little Wilson Falls, which is one of the highest waterfalls on the trail with a drop of about 60 feet.  Even in this drought year the water was flowing swiftly and beautifully.  I imagine that in the springtime, the volume of water crashing over the falls must be tremendously impressive.  (9/3/99 11:35AM)
 
(9/03/99 11:40AM)
 
We spent several evenings in shelters with Sly Fox, a thru-hiker whose company Anchovy and I greatly enjoyed.  Ever on the lookout for new hiking skills, Anchovy quickly adopted Sly Fox's pack-hanging method in the shelters, to keep his pack and hear organized and accessible.  Here, Sly Fox and Anchovy discuss a bird seen flying over Barren Ledges.  (9/4/99 8:42AM)
 
Sly Fox and I stand on Barren Ledges, with Lake Onawa and Boarstone Mountain in the background.  (9/4/99 8:44AM)
 

 

On September 4, Sly Fox, Anchovy, and I hiked a grueling four miles from Long Pond Stream Lean-to to Cloud Pond Lean-to.  We had all intended to hike further, but the beauty of the surroudings and the clear, enticing water of Cloud Pond, located high on Barren Mountain, were to attractive to pass by.  We spent a wonderfully relaxing afternoon and evening swiming, napping, reading, talking, and (of course) eating.  A weekend hiker took this picture of Anchovy and I in front of Cloud Pond as we left the next morning.  (9/5/99 7:08AM)
 
The LAST sizable summit before Katahdin!  After bidding "Uncle" Anchovy good-bye at Gulf Hagas, where his truck was parked, I heading into the home stretch alone.  On September 6, I climbed over the last mountain range in the Hundred-Mile Wilderness, a workout which included the peaks of Gulf Hagas, West, Hay, and White Cap Mountains in the span of only 5 miles.  Here, I stand upon White Cap, from which I could see Mt Katahdin 70 miles away.  (9/6/99 10:23AM)
 
I took a break on top of White Cap, enjoyed the view, ate a snack, and tried to dry my sweat-soaked hat.  (9/6/99 10:30AM)
 
Some summits just aren't as spectacular as others.  On top of Little Boardman Mountain (elevation only 2,017 ft.), someone painted this message on a rock to let you know you'd reached the top.  I did have one of my most exciting trail moments here, however.  As I was standing at the summit, a small black bear came around a turn in the trail about 30 yards away from me.  We looked at each other in surprise for about five seconds.  Unfortunately, as soon as I glanced down to see if I could quickly grab my camera, he ran off. Although I saw a bear in North Carolina and four in New Jersey, I had not expected to see one in Maine, since they're notoriously shy of humans up here.  (9/7/99 9:03AM)
 

 

Many hikers now jokingly refer to the Hundred-Mile Wilderness as the Seventy-Mile Wilderness, since a new logging road has now made the White House Landing on Pemadumcook Lake accessible to hikers.  The White House has been open to fishermen, hunters, and snowmobilers for years, but the new road now allows hikers to get from the trail to the shore of Pemadumcook.  There, hikers sound an air horn and the owners of the White House, Bill and Linda, will come across the cove in a boat to pick them up.  On September 8, Sly Fox, Doc, and I had breakfast and lunch at the White House.  While Doc and I then pushed on to Wadleigh Stream Lean-to, Sly Fox decided to enjoy Bill and Linda's hospitality and stay the night.  (9/8/99 1:39PM)
 
Doc demonstrates how comfortable the traditional "baseball bat" lean-to platforms are at Rainbow Stream Lean-to.  Until about 25 years ago, lean-tos in Maine were constructed with a sleeping platform made of small, round logs.  It was customary for the first hikers each spring to cover the platform with freshly-cut fir boughs, which gave sleepers a soft bed of needles for a matress.  This practice obviously had to be stopped as increased numbers of hikers eventually led to the near deforestation of the area around shelters.  While most of these baseball bat shelters have since been replaced by larger, plank-platform shelters, three still remain in Maine: Poplar Ridge, Rainbow Stream, and Hurd Brook. Surprisingly, I found that sleeping on the logs was actually just as comfortable as sleeping on a flat platform.  (9/9/99 11:42AM)
 
I just have to comment that Doc is no dirtier than the average hiker.  He made the interesting fashion decision, however, to wear a white shirt, which tended to "emphasize" that he had spent several months in the woods.  (9/9/99 11:42AM)
 
The Hundred-Mile Wilderness ends at the Abol Bridge Campground and General Store.  As I enjoyed a morning snack at the store, a hummingbird visited a nearby feeder.  (9/10/99 9:41AM)
 

 

I took about a hour and a half break at the Abol Bridge Store, partaking of coffee and doughnuts. During the course of my hike, I realized that thru-hikers have a "moral obligation" to stop at every store, restaurant, and snack shop accessible from the trail.  One might say that this was an important step in my development as a thru-hiker:  realizing that eating at every opportunity was not just a pleasure, it was a responsibility.  (9/10/99 10:00AM)
 
On September 10, Doc and I entered Baxter State Park, home of Mount Katahdin.  I thought this portable sign might be a neat momento of my journey, but I finally decided it was a bit too bulky to take with me. (9/10/99 11:50AM) 
 
I reached the base of Mount Katahdin on September 10 and went to the nearby town of Millinocket to meet up with my family.  We planned to summit the mountain on Sept. 11, but couldn't because heavy rains forced the park to close all trails above treeline.  So, at 7:10 AM on Sunday, Sept. 12, we started out from Katahdin Stream Campground to hike my final 5.2 miles.  Here, The Pit Crew (Mom & Dad), Gung-Ho Billygoat (Katie), and I cross the footbridge over Katahdin Stream.  (9/12/99 7:39AM)
 
We took a break about half-way up the mountain and Mom snapped this picture of me with some of the other peaks in Baxter State Park in the background.  (9/12/99 9:39AM)
 

 

The climb up Mt. Katahdin is, fittingly, the longest, steepest climb of the entire Appalachian Trail.  About half-way up the mountain we crossed above tree-line and began climbing over some tremendous boulders and up some very tricky rock faces.  (9/12/99 9:40AM)
 
A family self-portrait near the Hunt Spur, looking westward.  (9/12/99 10:18AM)
 
The climb from the Hunt Spur to the Gateway (which is the peak at the top of this photo) was along a beautiful ridge, with tremendous views to the south, west, and north.  Gung-Ho Billygoat and The Pit Crew are in the lower right corner of this picture; other hikers are visible further up the trail.  (9/12/99 10:32AM)
 
With the Gateway in the background, the family waves to our viewing public.  Note that the Gateway is not the summit of Mt. Katahdin.  Once we reached the peak in this photo we still had  1 1/2 miles and about 750 vertical feet to climb.  (9/12/99 10:34AM)
 

 

Celebration!  We reached Baxter Peak, the summit of Mt. Katahdin, at 12:10 PM, officially ending my thru-hike.  Naturally, I had come equiped with a Sam Adams, which tasted even more wonderful than usual. In the background you can see the summit sign and another thru-hiker, Can Do Will Do.  (9/12/99 12:13PM)
 
One of the best traditions among thru-hikers is carrying a rock from one end of the trail to another. It is customary for hikers to pick up a small rock on top of Springer Mountain in Georgia when they begin the trek and place it on the cairn atop Mt. Katahdin when they finish.  In the excitement of beginning my hike last April, however, I forgot to pick up a Springer rock.  During my first few weeks of hiking, when I was travelling with a hiker named Lonestar, I mentioned to him my disappointment at having forgotten to get a Springer rock.  In central Virginia, Lonestar decided that he was leaving the trail and going back to his home in New Zealand.  Although I knew many people who decided not to finish their hike (indeed, historically only about 10% of those who begin thru-hikes actually complete them), Lonestar's departure was the most difficult for me.  I was very saddened to lose the companionship of such a wonderful guy and terrific hiking partner.  I was honored, however, when he gave me his Springer rock to carry to Mt. Katahdin.  (9/12/99 12:35PM)
 
Lonestar, this is for you!  Here I place Lonestar's Springer rock, which he carried to Virginia and I carried the rest of the way, on top of Mt. Katahdin's giant summit cairn.  If you want to hear a crazy story highlighting my stupidity, ask me sometime about how I lost the Springer Rock for 45 minutes when I accidentally threw it into the grass beside the Blue Ridge Parkway.  After that, I just knew the rock was destined to make it all the way.  (9/12/99 12:42PM)
 
With my trusty trekking poles in one hand and my motivational Yoda picture in the other, I stand on top of the world.  As you can see, I could not have asked for a more perfect day to finish my hike.  (9/12/99 1:02PM)
 

 

The Pit Crew, The Peaceful Warrior, and Gung-Ho Billygoat celebrate as a family on top of Maine's tallest mountain and the most beautiful peak on the entire Appalachian Trail.  (9/12/99 1:05PM)
 
(9/12/99 1:06PM)
 
We got back to Katahdin Stream Campground, where our car was parked, at 6:10 PM, giving us an 11-hour round-trip hike, including one hour spent on top of the mountain.  This is a view of Mt. Katahdin from the parking area.  Beautiful, huh?  (9/12/99 6:30PM)
 
With the mountain looming in the background, I get silly for the last time as The Peaceful Warrior.  (9/12/99 6:31PM)
 

 

I did so much experimenting and gear-shifting during the trip, that these were the only items that traveled all the way from Georgia to Maine with me: long underwear top and bottom, hat, three small stuff-sacks, camera, watch, knife, lighter, pencil and basic 1st aid supplies, my identification, a section from my milage book, part of my water filter (the other parts were replaced 400 miles into the trip), and, of course, Yoda.  In retrospect, there was only one of these items that I COULD NOT have done without: Yoda.  Thanks, Chris & Juliane, he kept me going!  (9/13/99 3:56PM)