Frequently Asked Questions about thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail

What direction did I hike?

Northbound

Did I do the approach trail?

Yes. You are about to hike 2,170+ miles....hike the other eight. You won't regret it.

When did I start?

March 2, 2009. I had intended on starting on March 1st, but a bad snow storm blew through on the first. I waited the storm out at Amicalola Fall Lodge.

How much did I carry?

The weight of my pack varied. The most I every carried was around 36 lbs. coming out of Damascus, VA, but the average weight was somewhere around 30 lbs. You can find more information about what I carried here.

What Guidebook/Maps did I use?

I used AWOL's AT  Guide. I loved the daily mileage breakdown and the profile views of the trail section I was hiking. I also really loved the perforated pages that I could tear out. I would tear out the pages I was hiking that day and carry them in my side pocket for easy access. It did a good job at covering town resupplies and overnight stays (hotels, hostels) as well. The trail is so well marked that I personally don't see a need to carry additional maps. 

What did I eat?

In short, a lot of freeze dried foods and protein bars. I'm vegetarian and I had no problem eating along the trail. Below are a list of some of the foods I would eat for a given meal. The amount of food I ate changed along the way. Surprisingly, I had no appetite at the beginning of my hike and I had to force myself to eat, however, this didn't last long (thank goodness!). I went from being able to eat only half a Lipton rice meal or box of Velveta mac and cheese to devouring the entire portion and still being hungry. By the time I reached Maine, I was dipping everything in peanut butter because I was hungry all the time and I was hoping the fat in the peanut butter would help slow digestion and keep me fuller longer.

Breakfast
Pop Tarts mostly, but I also ate cereal, honey buns, and bagels. Lots of hikers also drank carnation instant breakfasts and added protein mix to them. I tried this but the carnation mix didn't agree with my stomach.

Lunch
Bagels or wraps with peanut butter and jelly; refried beans and cheese on a wrap, cheese and crackers

Dinner
Pasta (angel hair or vermicelli if available - think cook time and fuel usage!) with pasta sauce; Lipton rice meals; Mac and Cheese

Snacks
Protein Bars (Cliff Bars mostly); granola bars, trail mix; dried fruit
One of my favorite things to do was pack out an apple or two along with a Coke and save it until I had been back on trail for 2 or 3 days. Eating this in between town stops was such a treat!

Desserts
Candy bars; Jelly beans; Sour Patch Kids
I'd also pack out wine occasionally (after pouring in into a Gatorade bottle of course!)

Resupply: Town or Mail Drops?

I did both, but recommend resupplying in town over mail drops with a few exceptions. I had originally planned on doing all mail drops but quickly learned that my tastes changed dramatically on the trail. What I thought I would want along the trail was not really what I wanted to eat after a long day of hiking. If you are planning on mail drops, I highly recommend trying out your food ahead of time. Go for a long hike or go exercise and come home at eat a meal.

Places I would mail drop to:

Atkins, VA. I resupplied at a gas station here. Although I made it work it was an experience I would choose not to repeat. At the time of this post, hikers are able to send mail drops to the Relax Inn, which was right next to the convenient store but double check this with the current years data book.

In Rangely, ME there is an IGA to resupply at. Here I bought enough food to put together a mail drop for myself and sent it to the Northern Outdoor Center in Caratunk. ME. Honestly, there are plenty of other places along the trail that I should have done this, unfortunately those places are eluding me at the moment. What I recommend is looking ahead when you're in a town with a good resupply point. What does your next resupply point look like? Is it a grocery store? A convenient store? Hostel? If it's not a grocery store I would recommend buying enough food at the good resupply point and doing a mail drop to yourself. This way you know you're getting a decent resupply.

When did I trade out winter/summer gear?

I sent home a pair of long johns, a long sleeve shirt, and my light weight fleece in Damascus, VA but I kept my winter bag (Western Mountainer Versalite 10 degree bag). I actually never switched out my winter bag for my summer bag because I had such a mild summer and I tend to sleep very cold. There was about 2-3 weeks that I was sticky and hot at night, but over all I was very happy with my decision. I do recommend hanging on to at least your winter bag until Pearisburg, VA. I remember the nights still getting pretty cold, even the night out of Pearisburg was chilly. I also carried my MontBell Thermwrap jacket the entire way. This came in handy on those chilly nights. Since I kept my bag and my jacket I didn't need to get a mail drop of winter gear sent back to me, but if I had needed it I would have gotten it sent to Glenncliff, NH before entering the Whites.

How many pairs of shoes did you go through?

Four (Keens, Montrail Hardrocks, and Vasque Trail Runners). only buy the pair you are starting with
and be sure to buy them big enough. Expect your feet to swell when you hike. You'll want your shoes to have enough room to accommodate swelling and you'll want enough room in the toes of your shoes that your toes aren't jamming into the foot of the shoe while walking down hill.

I bought my shoes at outfitters along/near the trail as I hiked. This is an approach that I highly recommend if this is your first time thru-hiking. I went from wearing a size 9.5 to a size 11.0. My feet flattened out and swelled a lot.

Did you have any issues with bears? 

I did not have any issues with bears, although I had one heart-stopping encounter in Shenandoah National Park. In Georgia and North Carolina there were signs posted about high bear activity near some of the shelters. Take these signs seriously! Don't cook in your tent, and hang your food. Although I did not have any issues a few people did get there packs stolen by bears. Be bear smart.


What was the most surprising wildlife encounter?

I saw a HUGE coyote in Vermont one morning. Scared the snot out of me.


Did I hitch-hike?

Yes (Sorry mom and dad). I hitch hiked a lot, but always in the bed of someones truck.

Did you have any creepy encounters with people on the trail?

No, but I also used a lot of common sense while I was hiking. The biggest rule of thumb was not to camp within a mile of ANY road; go further when at all possible.  After being out on the trail for awhile you will have no problems picking out thru-hikers from day-hikers and hikers from weird people. If something doesn't feel right trust your gut and move on.


How much did you spend?

I spent approximately $6,000. The break down essentially covered approximately $2500 in gear and  $500/month on the trail (it took me 6.5 months). You'll want some extra money left over to travel back home. If you are not on a hard deadline I recommend trying to save an additional month of expenses. Unexpected events will happen all the time; your gear will break, the weather will be awful, you may get sick. All of these things may cause your hike to expend for a longer period of time then you originally planned. Its better to have to much money saved then having to end your hike short of your goal because you ran out of money.

Did you train for the hike?

A little, but not enough. Thru-hiking is tough on your body and while many argue that the only way to prepare your body for a thru-hike is to thru-hike, I disagree. The fitter and healthier you are before starting your hike the easier time you will have adjusting to trail life. I highly recommend getting in the gym to strength train 2-3 times a week and work on your endurance. If you are lucky enough to already live in the mountains, take your pack out on as many day hikes as you can. You'll be thankful you did later.

Returning Home

Despite our late night both Grom and I were unable to sleep in. Like clockwork we were up at 6am, and my legs were itching to move. Little did they know they would be jailed up in a car all day. Eventually we made our way to the Boston airport thanks to Twix and we picked up our rental car. By 9am our journey began, our very long, long journey. Grommet had to make it to North Carolina to be at her job the next morning. The drive should have been 14 hours. The drive was actually 18 hours thanks to a flaming car on some toll road in New York. Fun times. Still, we made it to North Carolina and Grom made it to her job on time.

I took that Monday to recover and catch up on some seep before finishing my journey home to my parents house the following day. My car ride home was almost as adventurous. I downloaded directions from google maps and didn't bother to double check them before leaving North Carolina. Big mistake. I drove 60 miles out of my way, fantastic. Still yet again I arrived at my parents before midnight and was welcomed with huge smiles and big hugs. It was really great to see both my mom and dad after being away for so long.

I spent the next two days with my parents, taking time to catchup on the past 6 1/2 month of my life and theirs. On Wednesday, they took me their favorite Chinese restaurant in Tampa (P.F. Chang's). Fabulous. Get those images of the all you can eat Chinese buffets out of your head peeps, this place is fine dining at its oriental best. If you're ever in Tampa check it out.

On Thursday my mom planned a day of pampering for the both of us. After breakfast we headed down to the spa for manicures and pedicures. I laughed when she told me because I was immediately reminded of a conversation myself and the divas had somewhere in New York about getting a pedicure by a small Vietnamese women. "No help for you" we joked about our calloused, dirty feet. Yet there I was soaking my feet in some kind of mineral bath, relaxing in a massage chair as this little Vietnamese woman worked her wonders. The callouses are still there, but my toes are clean and pretty :)

After our manicures and pedicures we headed off to do the next obvious pampering event; getting ourselves stabbed a million times with a needle. Yep that's right, my mom and I went and got tattoos together. Never in a million years would I have thought that this is what I would be doing when returning home from the trail. And not only was I getting a tattoo with my mom but she helped me design mine. I would have thought that it was all a dream but the million needle stabs in my arm were way to realistic.


Once I was newly decorated and clean it was time to pack up the car and head back to Gainesville. I couldn't wait to see Jasmine, my 7 year old cocker spaniel. As I approached the back door I could hear her familar bark. It took me a minute to get the door unlocked but soon enough she was darting out the back door, tail wagging. Oh how I missed her! For the next few hours I spent the evening with her and my cat, Grey-Grey (who made it very clear that she was unhappy about my long departure). Its hard to believe I'm actually siting in my house. I still haven't comprehended that I won't be hiking anymore. I'm not sure if I ever will.

Today's Video's:

• Traffic Jam
  

What Did I Carry?

My gear list constantly evolved throughout my hike. The list below is what I ended with.  I did not go through the pain-staking process of weighing each item. I had a general rule of thumb; if the item weighed more then 2lbs., then I needed to seriously reconsider its existence within my pack. In the end I weighed my entire pack. My pack weight varied throughout the hike depending on how much food, water...and wine I was carrying, but it ranged between 25-35 lbs, with an average of around 30 lbs. I also refused to sacrifice comfort for weight (within reason). For example, a frameless light-weight backpack like a granite gear or a go-lite pinnacle certainly weighed less then my Osprey Aerial 65, however, the Aerial carried the weight much more efficiently and comfortably.

The Big Four

Backpack:  Osprey Aerial 65
Pack Liner: Contractor Bag
Tent: Big Agnes Seedhouse UL2
Ground Cloth: Tyvek
Sleeping Pad: Thermorest Prolite Plus (Women's)
Sleeping Bag: Western Mountainaring Versalite (10 deg) - I sleep cold and took this the entire way

Winter Clothes

2 pairs REI long thermal underwear
1 Long sleeve, REI dry wick shirt
1 Mont Bell Thermawrap Jacket
1 Cabella's Lightweight Fleece
1 pair Colombia Titanium Fleece lined pants
1 REI fleece lined beanie
1 pair of black diamond gloves

Summer Clothes

(Note: I also carried summer clothes during winter)
1 pair New Balance Running Shorts
2 short sleeve dry wick shirt
3 pairs smart wool socks
2 pairs patagonia underwear
1 sports bra
1 pair REI gators

Shoes

Keens (Started with these)
Vasque Trail Runners
Montrail Hardrocks
Crocs (Camp-Shoes)

Rain Gear

Go-Lite Rain Pants
Marmont Precip
Sea to Summit Pack Cover

Kitchen

MRS Kettle Pot
Pocket Rocket
Canister Fuel
Titanium Spork
Cleaning: small piece of a towel, camp soap, and scrubby pad 
2 Stuff Sacks - one for kitchen supplies, 1 for food
lighter

Bathroom

Stuff Sack
Travel size toothbrush
Travel size tooth paste
Wet-wipes
Handkerchief (Pee-Rag)
Travel size shampoo and condition
Razor
Hair Comb 
Extra Hair-Tie

First-Aid

Stuff Sack
Variety of Pain meds (vitamin I, tylenol, aleve)
Band-aids (about 2-3)
Mole-skin 
Benedryl
Athletic Tape

Miscellanous

Trekking Poles
iTouch (music and jounaling) and charger
Cell Phone and charger
Headlamp
Camera (Sony cybershot) and charger
Extra batteries for headlamp
Buff
Bear Rope
Carabeaner
Duct Tape 
Water bottles were empty Gatorade bottles
Aquamiria
Watch (cheap one from Wal-mart)

Day 202 - I Made It

Day 202
Saturday 9/19/09

Weather:
Light rain in the early morning, high winds (gusts 50-55 mph), ice and snow

Today's Hike:
Birches Campsite to Katadhin (Baxter Peak) and back - 10.4 miles

If I had to sum up my final day on the AT in a single word I think it just might have to be "insanity". Grommet and I were both up at 4am. Actually I never really slept. I just laid in my sleeping bag all night listening to the wind howl and praying to the weather gods that today would still be a beautiful day. It wasn't until 4am that I actually sat up and packed my bag. After packing up we made our way back to the ranger station to get water and make breakfast. This morning it was oatmeal and coffee, a first for me (well the oatmeal anyway). The wind was still howling and in the midst of boiling water the sky started to spit on us. Are you freakin' kidding me? Really? Today it's gonna rain? Of all the days days it was gonna rain today? No, no, no, no, no. This would only be temporary. It had to be. We at breakfast and drank our coffee under the shelter of the ranger stations front porch. We didn't say much but we were both thinking the same thing; this sucks.

After breakfast we made our way down to the trailhead and signed in at the base of the mountain. We were the first two on the trail that day. No one else was ambitious enough to start before 5:30am. At least we had motivation on our side. After registering we continued up the mountian. The first 2 - 2.5 miles were pretty easy going. The rain let up and the sky remained overcast but the high winds kept the clouds moving quickly. We were hoping they were moving away from the mountain and lending way to clear blue skies.

Somewhere around mile 2.5 we reached treeline where we were presented with enormous boulders. Holy cow...we had to climb those...for like a mile...straight up......and it was windy....really, really, really windy. Good times lay ahead. We packed away our trekking poles and began our rock climbing ascent toward Baxter Peak. The wind was insane, very remenscent of my first wind storm over Max Patch. Not so strong that I couldn't move (like the wind storm over the humps) but strong enough to knock you around a little. I could totally handle this. Then came mile three on our ascent; three miles down two to go. It was around this point that ice began appearing between boulders, then as we continued to move up in the windy, bouldery terrain the ice between the boulders spread to being on the boulders. Great. Then the ice on the boulders gave way to snow and ice covered boulders. Freakin' fantastic. We took shelter behind a boulder and took a minute to add another layer of clothes. It was then that Grom and I also had a fairly serious come to jesus meeting with the current situation. Keep going up or turn around and go back? This was nothing we haven't been through before, but it wasn't ideal either. If it started to rain, sleet, or snow we would be in trouble. But this was it. This was our one shot at summitting. We had to leave town that night. It was now or not at all. The clouds were moving fast. The forecast called for the skies to clear up as the day progressed. We were going up.

The last two miles were slow going as we fought against the wind and maintained careful footing up and over the icey rocks. As we neared the summit of Katadhin, the sun was fighting to shine through. We could see the clouds parting way. It was clearing up, but the winds weren't dying down. Still, something was better then nothing. Ahead of me I could see the summit sign. It was covered in snow and ice. We would be the first to summit that day. We reached the top around 10am and sat down. We had the mountain to ourselves. Grom looked at me and asked if I thought we were "badassess" for continuing our summit. I replied that I thought we were "dumbassess." We both laughed. At that moment the sun came out and the clouds behind us parted offering a clear view of the Knifes Edge and surrounding mountains. Incredible.


We took only a few moments at the summit. The winds were still to high, and sitting still for to long was cold and uncomfortable. We stayed long enough to take our pictures and enjoy a sunlit view of what at the moment felt like it could be the top of the world.




Our hike down the mountain was incredible. The winds were still ridicuously high but the views were amazing. The sky had completely cleared up and we had nearly 360 views the entire way down. Absolutely breathtaking.


When we reached the bottom, Grommet's friend Twix (SOBO 2007) was there to pick us up. We hopped into her car along with Hobbit, Nickers, and Shark who had just completed their slackpack from abol bridge to the birches and headed into Millinocket for food and showers. We at lunch/dinner at the AT Cafe. Round one for me was a veggie Burger and french friens and round two was the Cafe's famous 14 scoop Sunday. Ok, so I didn't eat the whole sunday by myself, I shared it with Grom and Twix, but still, thats like eatting almost a 5 scoop sunday all to myself. Yummy! We also added our signatures to the 2009 ceiling tiles while we were there and had fun checking out who else had finished their through hike at the Cafe.




After eatting we headed over to the AT Lodge for a quick shower. By 7pm we were on our way to Boston, MA. By midnight we were at Twix's apartment and by 12:30am I was out like a light. What a day.

Today's Video's:

• Registering to Climb Katadhin
• Three Miles to the Summit
• Boulder Climbing Up Baxter Peak
  
• Table Lands of Katahdin
• Grommet Describes the Sunday Challenge
• Grommet Defines a Bar
  

Day 201

Day 201
Friday 9/18/09

Weather:
Overcast with some light rain throughout the morning and early afternoon.

Today's Hike:
Rainbow Springs Campsite to Katadhin Stream Campground (The Birches) - 21.1 miles

Today was a day full of mixed emotions. We woke up and packed early along with Nickers, Hobbit, Shark, and Stats. They set off a few minutes before us and we knew it would most likely be our final good-bye. Grom and I were the last to leave camp; by 7:15 we were headed north. We reached the northern end of the 100 mile Wilderness shortly before lunch and stopped briefly for a video break. It's funny how scary the thought of the 100 miles Wilderness was to me a year ago, yet the past 5.5 days seem like a crazy blur of laughter, sweat, and a few tears, but definitely no fear. A true testament to understanding that thinking about what a thru-hike will be like and what it actually will be like will be two entirely different scenarios.

We stopped at Abol bridge for a quick resuppy. We stayed at the campground during the heaviest rain for the day and ate lunch with Dave, a Baxter State Park Ridge Runner. As we crossed from Abol bridge into the park we were greeted with an army of mosquito's. What the heck? We've gone days without a bug in sight and all of the sudden we were in the middle of a battle field. Luckily Grommet still had some bug spray and we quickly rubbed deet all over our bodies. Bring on the cancer...blast off the bugs.

From the park entrance to the Birches campground was nine easy miles. Still, we seemed to drag it out. We had 2 river crossings. It was probably only appropriate that I slipped on a rock at the very edge of the last river crossing. I came down on my knee and my left foot was soaked. I hate river crossings.

By 7pm we had officially made it. I am sleeping here at the base of Katadhin. This is really it. This was my last full day hiking. This will be my last night sleeping in my tent which means my last night in the woods. Tonight's pasta will be my last trail dinner. I don't want it to end. This, for a lack of better words, totally sucks.

Today's Video's:

• Exiting the 100 Mile Wilderness
• Getting ready for Katadhin
  

Day 200

Day 200
Thursday 9/17/09

Weather:
Overcast with some light rain.

Today's Hike:
Potaywadjo Spring Lean-To to Rainbow Springs Campsite - 22.0 miles

So much for today being as easy as yesterday. Can we say roots? Roots, roots, roots. That's all there was; roots. I could barely see the ground. Roots equals tedious which equals draining. Ugh! If I never have to walk through roots again it just may be to soon.

On an upside I saw Katadhin twice today and shes still as massive and beautiful as she appeared to be from the top of White Cap. The first siting was this morning from Pemadumcook Lake and the second was this afternoon from the viewpoint of Nesundabunt Mountain. Even when I see her I still can't believe it. I'm not sure if I'll ever really comprehend what it is I've been doing out here.

Grom and I stopped at Wadleigh Lean-To for lunch today where we met up with Nickers, Hobbit, Shark, and Stats. Nickers and Hobbit have officially dubed Grom and I as the Paparazzi Team. We can go with that :) Although it should be made clear that Grom is the queen of paparazzi's. Think of me as the paparazzi apprentice...learning from the master of the trade :)

It was a late night into camp tonight, we night hiked the last 4.0 miles. Luckily we were joined by a rather large deer and serenaded by loons. Who gets to have that on their nightly exercise? Man, I'm really gonna miss trail life :)

Today's Video's:

• Jumar eatting peanut butter
• Beach Walk
  

Day 199

Day 199
Wednesday 9/16/09

Weather:
Overcast with some light morning rain.

Today's Hike: Logon Brook Lean-To to Potaywadjo Spring Lean-To - 23.1 miles

Wow, today was my biggest mile day on the trail ever and we made it in record timing. I haven't felt this accomplished in weeks! We got an early start this very cold morning (it was in the upper 30's) and started making headway along mostly flat terrain. We only had to climb a single mountain today, boardman, which wasn't much of a climb at all. The sky started spitting on us as we were nearing the summit, but it didn't last long.

We knocked out the first 11.7 miles by lunch and took a break at Cooper Falls Lean-To. This place was beautiful. There was a nice cascading waterfall with a large swimming hole in front of the shelter. To bad it was so cold....would have been an awesome swimming spot.

The afternoon was completely flat with little maneuvering around rocks and roots. What a treat! We took our next break at Antlers Campsite where apparently LL Bean shoots some of their ads at. I can see why, this campsite was gorgeous! The site itself sits on the edge of Jo-Mary Lake. Tonight the water was completely calm, like glass. This place was the essence of serenity.

We made it to our final destination by 7pm. For the first time in what feels like forever we weren't night hiking into camps. This equates to early shut-eye. Score! Tomorrow will be another long day; 22 miles. I hope the terrain will be as easy as it was today......

Today's Video's:

• Hiking over bog logs
  

Day 198

Day 198
Tuesday 9/15/09

Weather:
Overcast.
Some drizzle on and off in the morning. No heavy rain.

Today's Hike: Chairback Gap Lean-To to Logon Brook Lean-To - 17.1 miles

Today was proof that when you take me out of my routine I completely loose it....and my stuff. After waking up at 5:30am we made our way down chairback mountain. When we reached the stream (a shallow ford) it started to drizzle. I put down my pack to prep it for rain. When I went to grab my iPod to put it away it was no longer in the side pocket. Sh$t! Are you kidding me?!!? It's not even my iPod! Ugh!! "It's just a thing, it's just a thing, it's just a thing" I chanted to myself over and over and over again. Just one more material thing that I will have lost on this trip. Really, I was OK with losing it, I was less OK knowing that despite the heads up that I gave to Bill when he lent me the iPod that something like this was possible I was feeling incredibly guilty and irresponsible. How did I not notice that it fell out of my pack? How did I not hear it? Grommet offered to back track to see if we could find it, but without knowing where exactly it fell out it would take way to long to find. Plus it was starting to rain so by the time we found it it would be wet and ruined anyway. No point in turning around and searching for it. Time to suck up my loses and hike on.

After eating a morning snack we started the 5 mile climb up to Carl A. Newhall Lean-To for lunch. For the first time since Grommet and I have been hiking alone together she took off in front of me and I followed about ten minutes behind. The hike up to the lean to was nice and gradual and I was stopping occasionally to take pictures that captured the essence of the trail in Maine; roots, lots and lots of roots. Around 12:30 I knew I was close to the shelter, I reached down to grab my camera to take anther picture of a nearby lake. It wasn't there. The camera was gone. "Are you kidding me?!!?" I literally screamed out load. I quickly checked my side pockets thinking that I may have brainlessly stuffed it there. Nope, not there. Instead I had brainlessly dropped it somewhere within the last mile and a half. How did I not hear it hit the ground? Is this really happening again???? I needed to go find it but Grommet would have no idea what was going on. I knew she would worry when I didn't show up but I also knew it would be pointless to continue forward only to have to walk back again to go find it. I decided to drop my pack and leave her a note. At 12:37pm I started running down the trail, I reached the scene of the incident by 12:59 which was a good mile or more. It took another 23 minutes to get back to my pack. I had half expected to see Grom reaching my pack and the note I left about the time that I arrived back but there wasn't any sign of her. I threw my packed on and plugged forward. Sure enough, I wasn't even 5 minutes down the trail before I caught site of Grommet running Southbound worried as hell that I had taken a plunge and was lying hurt somewhere. It took another 5 minutes to reach the shelter. It was nearly 2pm and neither one of us had eaten lunch yet. We were completely famished.

We sat at the lean-to for lunch and just as we were packing up to leave Stats walked up with the biggest grin on his face, looks at me and says he had something that belonged to me. No way!!!! He had my iPod. I couldn't believe it. He even found it before the rain started and had it wrapped up in a ziplock bag for me. Unbelievable. Stats - you're my trail hero!!!!! (I still owe you a beer man!) I had also been feeling guilty as sin for wasting an hour of our day because I had dropped my camera. However, if I hadn't we never would have seen Stats that day to get my iPod back. Guess everything worked out the way it should have. Lesson learned. Check, double check and double check again.

Our afternoon was spent climbing up and down our last mountain range...ever. So weird. This range was a series of four mountains; Gulf Hagas Mountain, West Peak, Hay Mountain, and White Cap Mountain. We reached the summit of White Cap at sunset and made our way over to the view point. Here we were presented with our first view of Katadhin (Baxter Peak). Incredible. The moment was completely surreal. There I was standing on top of the last mountain range I would climb across on this trip, staring at what I've been working toward for months. The sky behind her was shades of blues, purples, and pinks. She was massive. I couldn't believe my eyes.

The light in the sky begin to fade quickly as we made our decent, so keeping with our routine we descended White Cap in the dark. Bad ass. We made it to Logon Brook Lean-To by 8pm, cooked dinner, and called it a night.

Day 197

Day 197
Monday 9/14/09

Weather:
Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike:
Long Pond Tote Rd. to Chairback Lean-To - 11.8 miles

This morning we returned to the bear baited road of many lakes and braved what would most likely be our deepest ford(s) of the day. It was somewhere around 40 degrees and when I stepped into the water my toes went numb. Not exactly how I would like to start the morning, but if that muddy water didn't wake my butt up, I'm not sure what would have.

Today we climbed over most of the chairback range, a rocky mess of semi-PUD's (pointless ups and downs). I say semi since our first climb over Barren Mountain afforded spectacular views from the ledges and there were actually views from the other mountains, but you had to fight to see most of them through the trees. In between our steep climbs we crossed the fourth mountain bog which was filled with pitcher plants. Way to cool!

The rocks and steep downs made the day slow going, much slower then anticipated. By 6pm we had only reached the Chairback Lean-To which was a few miles short of where we really wanted to be. We quickly regrouped and assessed the situation and came up with a plan for the rest of the week that would allow us to stop at the lean-to for the night. This unanticipated stop at the lean-to was actually a nice surprise. We had the whole place (lean-to and tenting areas) to ourselves. The lean-to had just been renovated with the help of some fellow thru-hike friends. It looked incredible. Good work guys! In addition to the benefit of having the area to ourselves the sky started to spit on us around 7pm. We had made it into the tent just in time. Glad not to be hiking down chairback in wetness. Isn't it nice how everything seems to fall into place? Love trail life :)

Today's Video's:

• Fording the bear baited road of lakes
  

Day 196

Day 196
Sunday 9/13/09

Weather:
Overcast
Occasional drizzle, but no heavy consistent rain.

Today's Hike:
ME/15 (Monson, ME) to Long Pond Tote Rd. - 14.2 miles

When we woke up this morning the sun was shining. It was going to be a beautiful day to start our trek through the 100 Mile Wilderness. We got dressed and headed down for breakfast. As we sat in the kitchen drinking a dozen cups of coffee we examined the AT map hanging on the way behind us. Its still hard to comprehend that we've made it this far. Amicalola Falls seems so close yet so far away. As we took a hike down memory lane everything really started to hit me. This was our last town stop, our last resupply, the last time we would see some of our friends whom we had spent nearly the last six months of our lives with. The only thought that came to mind was "this sucks". A zero day would be nice, not because we needed one (we didn't) but because it would allow us to extend our time with our friends whom had been such a big part of our hike. Still, a zero day was impossible given the tight schedule, and again the only thought that came to mind was "this sucks."

Soon, Billy Hoot, Nutmeg, and Ink joined us for the famous Shaws breakfast. Shaws breakfast is famous for two maine (LOL) reasons. First, the breakfast is just plain yummy. Second, the way you order your breakfast rocks. Basically the crew cooks up pancakes or french toast (depending n the day), eggs (cooked to order), sausage, bacon, and potato's. You order by number with your number corresponding to how much you want to eat. I started off with a number 1 which means I got (1) pancake, (1) order of potatoes and (1) egg. After you finish your first round you can keep going until your full. Awesome. I ended up going back for a number (2) of eggs and potato's. As we ate we enjoyed some of our last moments with our trail friends.

After finishing breakfast, I left Grommet and went to our room to pack. It was getting late and we still had to sort through our maildrop and get our bags together. As I was in the process of putting my food bag together Grom came running into the room, and with a huge smile on her face informs me that we were going to slackpack the first 15 miles of the Wilderness. I was excited and confused all at the same time (nothing new right?). Bascally this meant that we could still hike today AND see our friends again tonight. YES! After quickly giving me the details we got or day packs ready and headed out the door with Kanga.

The slackpack was typical, however the exit to the road was anything but. Since we were slackpacking in a Wilderness we would have to hike an extra 1.7 miles to a road t get picked up. Kanga informed us that this road went through an area that was currently being bear baited. Oh hurray for us (sense the sarcasm?), and we had also learned from Carhop that at least a mile of the road was impassible by car due to flooding. Double hurray hurray for us. He wasn't kidding. We reached the road of many lakes before sunset. AS we quickly stopped to put on our crocs we heard a large crash in the water in front of us. We couldn't see anything through the woods, but whatever it was (bear or moose) was huge and close. We needed to get the heck out of their. loudly. We threw our packs back on and continued to talk loudly to each other until we reached the car. Crisis averted.

We arrived back to Shaws and cooked a pasta dinner while hanging out with Kanga for awhile. After eating we took our last shower until we summit (for real this time) and headed off to bed. What a day.

Today's Video's:

• Entering the 100 Mile Wilderness
• A Railroad in the "Wilderness"
  
• Fording the Big Wilson
  

Day 195

Day 195
Saturday 9/12/09

Weather:
Overcast.
Small afternoon drizzle.

Today's Hike: Moxie Bald Lean-To to ME 15/Monson, ME - 17.9 miles

I woke up at 5:45 am to the most beautiful sunrise over Moxie Pond. It was incredible to sit up in the tent and turn around to see the world waking up with me. This spot definitely takes the prize for the best tenting site along the trail. After taking sunrise pictures for almost an hour Grommet and I got ready and were headed north by 7am; a little later then we had wanted, but well worth the delay.

The hike into Monson was easy and included our first ford in Maine over the West Branch of Piscataquis River. As we approached the river we looked as if we may have been able to rock hop across. As we made our way out there we came to about half way and I quickly realized that rock hopping was not an option. The gaps between rocks were to large. Luckily there was a river bank about 10 yards behind me that I quickly made my way over to so that I could change into my crocs. Meanwhile, Grom was still insistent on trying to make her way across w/p taking off her shoes. Unfortunately for her she lost the battle when she slipped on a rock and her foot took a plunge into the water. She finished her ford in her shoes. Sucks for her.

The remainder of the day went by fairly quickly. We made it to ME 15 by 5pm and called Shaws for a ride into town. We were standing in our room within 20 minutes. The hiker feed hosted by Whiteblaze was going on at the baseball field in town, but we heard that dinner was BBQ chicken. Sorry, no dead bird carcasses for me. So instead Grom and I headed down to the Lake Shore Pub. After dinner we headed back to Shaws and took our last shower for the entire trip....weird. Also strolling into Shaws that evening were Billy Hoot and Nutmeg, Ink, and Whispy. Awesome to see friends at our last town stop before our summit; also very weird.....

Looking forward to the famous Shaws breakfast tomorrow morning.....yum :)

Today's Video's:

• Katchup Crossing the River
• Grommet Hops the Stream
  
• Do you have your Tickets yet? (aka Katchup has lost her mind)

Day 194

Day 194
Friday 9/11/09

Weather:
Sunny, no rain.
Low upper 30's, High lower 70's.

Today's Hike: US 201/Caratunk, ME to Moxie Bald Lean To - 18.8 miles

We are officially back to bad ass status. After a day off the trail we were both feeling great. Today was our longest mile day since our 21 mile slackpack through the Whites and we made great timing. Still, in true Katchup/Grommet fashion we came down our last mountain, Moxie Bald, in the dark. As our summer is turning to fall before our eyes we have also been losing daylight. It use to be sunny until 8:30pm, now we're barely pushing to have enough light after 7:15pm. So, to help we're going to try and start getting up between 5:00 -5:30am and be on the trail by 6:30am in order to get the most out of day light. Tomorrow will be the first dry run.

Tonight we're tenting on Moxie Pond. It's incredible. I can step out of my tent and put my foot in the water. Right now the Loons are calling as I get warmed up for bed. The sunrise over the pond in the morning should be breath taking. I can't wait.

Tomorrow we'll be in Monson, our last town stop until we summit Katadhin. So hard to believe. There is going to be a hiker feed going on there. I hope they have good vegetarian food.

Day 193

Day 13
Thursday 9/10/09

Weather: sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Northern Outdoor Center -0.0 miles

This morning we went over to the girls cabin for omelet's and coffee. By 8:30am I was crashing and felt awful. I went back to the room and laid down until 10:30am. Finally, I forced myself up so I could get packed before checkout time. I was feeling better, but certainly not a 100% better.

Grom was also feeling awful and by 11am she was on the verge of a full blown migrane. Hiking in the heat of the day over Pleasant Pond Mtn. (an 1100 ft. climb) was not even feasible. By noon, Grom was only getting worse so we got a room again for the night.

It's 37 miles between Caratunk and Monson. We had planned to hike the miles in 2.5 days. Now, we will hike the miles in 2 days in order to stay on track. Tomorrow will he tough but the hike into Monson will be easier but longer (20 miles.... maybe). Better to hike when we're feeling good then feeling awful.

Just another day in hiker paradise.

Today's Video:

• Loon
  

Day 192

Day 192
Wednesday 9/9/9

Weather: Sunny, no rain.

Today's Hike -Carrying Place Stream to US 201/Caratunk, ME - 7.1 miles

We were hiking by 7:25am this morning and made it to the Kennebec River by 10:20am, 40 minutes before the last morning shuttle. Our ferry guide was David who had been doing the job for years. As we loaded the canoe he said that Grom and I would have to fight it out over who paddles and who rode. I looked at Grom and quickly informed her she was paddling then hopped in the canoe smiling. Not to bad of a fight, definitely will not lead to self destruction.

Once we were over the river it was a five minute walk to the road. By 11:30 we were at the Northern Outdoor Center getting a room for the night and gearing up for a hot lunch complete with their own Mico-brewed beer.

Later that night Billy Hoot, Nutmeg, Ink, and Holms showed up, and we hung out with them for the evening. By 9pm it was hiker midnight and I crashed. Guess I'll never be a night owl.

Today's Video's:

• Aqua Balzig the Kennenbec River?
  

Day 191

Day 191
Tuesday 9/8/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: East Flagstaff Rd. to Carrying Place Stream - 12.5 miles

This morning Grommet and I decided to go with Circuit Rider to pick up Billy Hoot and Nutmeg. We couldn't wait to hear about their newest adventure. As we drove up to the outlet we quickly concluded that they really were on an adventure given they weren't there. So.... What happens now? After a few minutes Grom checked her voicemail to find a message from the girls. They got off at the AT trailhead. Sweet. So we drove back around the bend to find them patiently waiting. We helped get the canoe on top of the jeep and Circuit Rider made his way back into town. By now it was 11am, and we were way beyond a late start. Oh well, the laughter of the mornings events were well worth it.

Today's terrain was pretty easy compared to what we have been doing. When I say easy it means we didn't have any breath stealing climbs or knee breaking decents. Rather the terrain was rolling and "flat". We did however have to work our way over an endless maze of slippery roots and rocks. Not easy. Rather then being physically challenging it becomes mentally challenging and tideous because you're so focused on your footing.

We stopped at West Carry Pond for a break and were surprised to find trail magic; fresh baked brownies and candy. Awesome! We took some time to break at the pond and soak our feet/knees. We also decided we didn't want to night hike so we would just hike until nightfall and setup camp. Regardless of where we ended up we would still make it to Caratunk the next day which was all that mattered.

Camp wound up being about 7 miles before the Kennebec River which means we need to be up and out early to catch the early ferry service. The ferry service is a guy in a canoe that shuttles you across the river. A few years ago a hiker drowned trying to ford the river. Since then the MATC has provided a ferry service.

I remember seeing pictures of hikers being shuttled across the river before I started the hike. It's so hard to believe that I've now hiked 2,027 miles to be shuttled across the Kennebec. As I near Katahdin everyday seems more and more surreal. My body knows I have hiked over 2,000 miles but I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to comprehend what I have and will accomplished. Incredible.

Today's Video's:

• Picking up Billyhoot & Nutmeg Part I
• Picking up Billyhoot & Nutmeg Part II
• Katchup has Rules
• Loading the Canoe
  

Day 190

Day 190
Monday 9/7/08

Weather:
30's in the morning.
High around 65 degrees.
Sunny, no rain.

Today's Hike: Stratton to East Flagstaff Rd. - 16.7 miles

After eating breakfast this morning, Billy Hoot and Nutmeg began to figure out how they could canoe past the Bigelow's instead of hiking over them. During their conversation Grommet and I figured out that we could slackpack 17 miles over the entire Bigelow range. So at 9:30am the girls got ready for their canoe trip and Grom and I were putting our days packs together. By 10am we were at the trailhead.

The day was beautiful, sunny and cool. We made good timing and I was repeatedly thankful for not carrying a full pack.

At lunch we stopped at a viewpoint where we could see the Bigelows. Holms and Watson were also their enjoying lunch. Watson is a huge hound dog. For lunch, Grommet had packed out left over pizza. I pulled the pizza out and laid it on the rock beside me then reached over to grab my camera when Watson came out running out of nowhere and promptly inhaled a piece of pizza. Ahhhhh! Well, thank goodness we also had the fixings for PB&J's. Inc., who was also there for lunch was listing off the "only" foods that Watson liked to eat. Pizza did not make his list, so I was sure to add it.

After lunch we made our way over the Bigelows's, our last huge mountain range for a few days. The summits on the East Peak and Avery Peak were incredible. We could see Flagstaff Lake to our right, another stream to our left and beautiful mountains all around us.

We made it to the road a little after 8pm and called the hostel to come pick us up. When we got back we cooked veggie faijitas for dinner and took a second shower. It was lights out by 11pm; way way past hiker midnight.

Today's Video's:

• Nutmeg on Aqua Blazing the Bigelows
  
• Where are we - Avery Peak
• Hiking up the Bigelows
  

Day 189

Day 189
Sunday 9/6/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Carrabassett River to Stratton, ME - 8.4

It was freezing this morning when we woke up, and neither one of us wanted to transplant ourselves from the warmth of our sleeping bags into the cold air. So we didn't. We didn't leave camp until 10:30am.

We made our way to Stratton by 4pm, and met back up with Billy Hoot and Nutmeg. Grommet and I had no intention on staying in town, but when Nutmeg offered to share their room with us we both didn't hesitate to call it a day. We dropped our packs and went over to Fotters to resupply us to Caratunk then made our way to dinner.

Tomorrow we go over the Bigelows, and the weather is going to be great. This means we'll have miles of open ridgeline views of this beautiful state. I can't wait!

Day 188

Day 188
Saturday 9/5/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain.

Today's Hike: Reddington Campsite to Carrabassett River - 15.7 miles

Five minutes out of camp today I turned my ankel and came crashing down on my right knee. I've fallen a lot, but this was the most painful fall ever. I had shooting pains from my foot to my upper thigh. Grommet quickly brought me some aleve and insisted that I lighten my pack weight in order to reduce the strain on my knees which were already swelling. Lightening my pack weight would mean she would have to carry some of my stuff. I was NOT ok with that. I sat there for awhile and argued with Grommet about this but lost. She took her food bag out of her pack put it in mine then gave me her pack to carry. Errrrrr. On the upside I have discovered how much I don't like her pack, which I had been interested in.

An hour later we were on the summit of Saddleback Jr., where Grom tried to argue that I shouldn't carry a pack at all going downhill since it was so steep. I drew the line, and made it down with the pack fine.

We ate lunch at Oberton Stream with Early Bear and Lil' Dipper,then continued northward. We still had 10 miles to go.

The afternoon was long. Our day ended with coming down Sugarloaf Mountain in the dark. I don't recommend it. It sucked. Nothing but huge oversized boulders on a 45 degree slope downward. We crossed the Carrabasset River by 9pm and met back up with Lil' Dipper, Early Bear, Rock Lobster, and Walkabout for the evening.

Day 187

Day 187
Friday 9/4/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Rangely, ME to Reddington Campsite - 8.1 miles

I hiked over Saddleback and the horn today. Incredible!!!!! The views were spectacular. Had we hiked out of Rangely last night we would have camped up there. Oh well. Maybe next thru-hike???







We didn't quite make our intended destination today, big surprise. We stopped into Reddington campsite to get water and Grom ran into an old friend from grad school who was doing a southbound hike. She had no idea he was out here. Small world right? So we cut the dat short so Grom could play catchup. Billy Hoot, Nutmeg, Lil' Dipper, and Early Bear also showed up to join the party. Good times.

 

Today's Video's:

• Saddleback Mtn.

Day 186

Day 186
Thursday 9/3/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Little Swift River Campsite to Rangely, ME - 4.8 miles

The plan was to hike into town and walk out. Rangely is expensive and Stratton is not. Therefore we would hike to Stratton and take a shower, do laundry etc. However, we arrived at noon and met back up with Billy Hoot and Nutmeg who told us about their blue-blaze trip from hell, and then informed us that they had a room over at the Saddleback Motor Inn and we were welcome to share. So share we did. But first, we ate lunch and started our chores. We met a wonderful trail angel who shuttled us around tow, and even stopped with us for ice cream. Yum :)

Tonight at dinner we met back up with Early Bear and Little Dipper which was a nice surprise. I haven't seen them since before the Whites (Glencliff, NH). Lil' Dipper also needs to summit on the 19th so we will hopefully be seeing alot of them over the rest of the death march to Katadhin.

Day 185

Day 185
Wednesday 9/2/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Bemis Trail to Little Swift River Campsite - 15.6 miles

Happy Six Month anniversary to me!!!!!!! Wow, I've been doing this for six months, incredible and completely uncomprehendible. To think that 6 months ago I stepped out into a freshly snow covered forest at 7am and walked 10 miles to Stover Creek shelter where I would experience the coldest night of my life; it feels like a life time ago. It also brings to mund that I am definitely taking my sweet time finishing this hike. I'm blaming it on all the rain I've had to hike through.

Today it was time for some serious hiking, 15.6 miles. I don't think I've hiked this far in weeks. I feel great. I saw 3 snakes today, sweet! Tomorrow Grom and I will hike into Rangely to resupply. Currently, the plan is to hike out......we'll see what happens.

Today's Video:

• Loon's
  

Day 184

Day 184
Tuesday 9/1/09

Weather: Sunny, no rain

Today's Hike: Southarm to Bemis Stream Trail - 6.0 miles

This morning we were packed and ready to go by 8am and went with the girls (Nitmeg and Billy Hoot), Ink, Blacklist, and Whispy into Andover (for the 4th day in a row) to eat breakfast at the general store. Breakfast was incredible, but it literally took half the day to get there, eat, and get back to the trail. When we arrived back to the trailhead around noon, we were greeted with trail magic from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, the local trail maintainer and former thru-hiker. So at noon, all of us were pounding back the beers and snickers bars that he left for us.

Somewhere around 1pm Grom and I started hiking up Ol' Blue Mtn., and reached the summit within an hour. There we re-met Nick and Blue who were doing a flip-flop hike (GA to Harpers Ferry then Katadhin to Harpers Ferry). We ate lunch with him and chilled for about an hour before making our way down the mountain.



We hiked until nightfall, and found a sweet stealth site near the Bemis trailhead. Grom made a small fire and we ate the rest of what was in our food bags. I think I ate to much....feelin' kinda sick. Oppss....guess my eyes were bigger then my stomach.

Today's Video's:

• Getting Back to the Trail Part I
• Getting Back to the Trail Part II
• View from Old Blue Mtn.