Having a Cabin next to a modern bathroom is not necessary. As soon as I stepped out of the cabin into the cold night air, there was no way I could wait the extra 50’ to make it to the bathroom. I just hoped that I didn’t leave so big of a wet spot on the doorstep that everyone noticed it in the morning. I felt most sorry for GCN who chose the bunk by the door with his head towards it to help mitigate his snoring for the rest of us. Every time I got up, he got a burst of cold air in his face.
Chip was the first up and out. I thought he went to the bathroom until he came back with a cup of coffee. As soon as he got back in the cabin, I knew everyone was awake so I was the first to say “Happy Birthday, Sassy!” This Birthday changes a lot of things for us. First, unlike mine which brought me to 55 meaning 4 out of 5 of us were the same age, Sassy has now turned 56 leaving only 3 of us behind who barely qualify for the senior specials at certain restaurants. Second, unlike my birthday which didn’t significantly alter the average age of our group, Sassy’s extra year combined with Bear’s extra years now means the average age of our tramily, when we summit Katahdin will be 56 (yes, Bear has that many extra years to distribute). Thirdly, the “Happy Birthday” wish was not necessary which we only discovered when Sassy was packing up and couldn’t find her underwear. How they pulled that one off with 3 other people in the cabin can only mean it was quiet and short in duration. Whatever makes her happy.
We all decided to forgo making our own instant coffee for some fresh brewed Green Mountain from the store. We headed up and got coffee as well as a very nutritious breakfast of Crispy Cream Bear Claws. The bad part was these were only the 560 calorie versions for those dieting, non-hiker type of people. I prefer the 720 calorie version when available. Sadly, the ice cream side of the store has been closed down for over a week. What idiot thought hikers wouldn’t want ice cream just because it’s 35 deg F out?
We started the day with a rare road walk. I’ll bet we haven’t walked a total of 20 miles of road on the entire trail. This is amazing when you consider that almost 1/3 of the Trail was on road when Earl Shaffer allegedly was the first thru-hiker after WWII. We walked along the Golden Road (sadly, there was a light shower in the air which made me feel dirty, I’m thinking I also felt a little Presidential in retrospect) for a little over half a mile before entering Baxter State Park. If one chooses to follow the road, which is cheating by any definition, he will reach Katahdin Stream Campground in just under 5 miles. We are not cheaters. One day everyone will thank me for hiking the extra 5 miles and maintaining our purity. To my surprise, today was that day.
Over the course of the day, we will gain just a little over 500’ in 10 miles. This is not even a noticeable climb. Bear and Sassy are in such good shape that they can’t even detect a climb of less than 2000’ per mile. Chip, being a Norris, doesn’t even believe that climbs exist on the Appalachian Trail. He’s constantly making fun of his younger brother and refers to him as “Hollywood.” They just haven’t forgiven him for the whole “Texas Ranger” thing.
Baxter State Park does have a special feel to it unlike any place else along the trail. Perceval Baxter donated this land to the people of Maine so they will always have a preserved wilderness space that is to remain in a virtually, untouched state. There are to be no permanent structures or roads on the land. There is no plumbing or electricity in the park, nor cell signals. The park, although called a state park, is not a part of Maine’s State Park system. He set up an endowment for its separate management and was very specific about his desires for the maintenance of the woods in a pristine state. I was prepared to be turned off by the park because of its rules, but was thankful for them. I did feel like I was entering a special place.
October in Maine is wonderful. October in Baxter is perfect. Yes, it was cold. Yes, it was drizzling. Yes, it was cloudy. Yes, it was colorful. Yes, it was mystical. Yes, it was wet. And, yes, it was mooseless.
Baxter was filled with colorful forest sections. Every turn, rise, or stream crossing led to another type of woods dominated by another color of foliage. Bunny was in heaven as we strolled along the Penobscot River for the first couple of miles until we reached the western side of Baxter and turned and started following the Nesowadnehunk Stream (hence forth shall be known as the Wad).
Several side streams feed into the Wad which we had to cross. Normally, I’m the sure footed one so I try to cross first and have my camera ready as everyone else crosses. It’s been my goal to catch someone in the act of falling. Finally my efforts paid off and someone did slip off a rock and go in. Karma can be a bitch because it was me. Bunny was “Johnny on the spot” and got pictures of me. While I was trying to extract myself, I managed to slip and snap one of my hiking poles. This was a carbon graphite set of poles I have been using since Damascus, VA. The break was in the upper section which allowed me to shorten the pole to the length that Bunny uses so we could switch poles and continue on.
As we continued along the Wad, we had numerous water falls to our left. We stopped for lunch as a group adjacent to Big Niagara Falls. We were excited but ready for a break. I guess you could say we had shot our Wad and were in need of a short smoke break. It was so loud sitting next to the falls that we could barely hear each other. When another couple out dayhiking stopped to talk to us, we moved back a bit in order to chat a while. They were from Colorado and were RVing around the northeast for a fall vacation.
Even with my fall and broken pole, I still had a very enjoyable day. The sky had remained cloudy all day but at least the mist had stopped. As we got near Daicey Pond, we ran across some bulletin boards that the park maintains for posting of rules and weather reports. We got the bad news that the weather was not going to be on our side tomorrow. It doesn’t really matter because, barring severe storms, we will finish the trail tomorrow when we reach the summit of Katahdin.
There were just 2 easy miles left to get to Katahdin Stream Campground. We already had a reservation for a site, so we headed straight there to set up and see if Peter had arrived yet. We were hoping he would already be there so we could talk him into taking us into Millinocket for supper to celebrate Sassy’s birthday. He wasn’t there, so we set up camp and checked in with the ranger.
Everyone else settled in for naps but I was too excited. I headed back up to the ranger station to try to find Peter and see if the ranger had shown up so we could apply for our permits to summit tomorrow. I ran into The General and the Aussie who were just coming down from the mountain. They had shot straight up here from Whitehouse Landing to finish a day ahead of us (today). They were visibly shaken. The General was white. He told me this was a terrible experience and said “do not underestimate Katahdin. This is the hardest day of the entire trail.” He then showed me a short video of their time on top. It did look miserable.
When the ranger showed up, I started the process for Bunny and me, then I went back to let everyone know that the ranger was here. I went back up just as the ranger had found a wallet. Bunny and I said it looked like GCN’s wallet so I ran back to camp to check on him. I met Bear standing in the trail looking worried. Apparently it was GCN’s wallet. He had torn apart everything he owned looking for it. He was now in the privy with a “nervous stomach” experiencing rapid weight loss. We finally have got a new phrase to indicate when we need to use the privy—“I lost my wallet!” Enough said.
Peter showed up a little after 5. When Bunny and I asked about going into town, he said it just wouldn’t be possible tonight because of the time to get there—almost an hour and a half. I quietly broke the news to Bear. Marcia had sent cupcakes, guacamole, and chips for us to have tonight, so we celebrated Sassy’s birthday in camp.
Peter was a bit bewildered when we all turned in for the night a little after 6. It was dark and we had eaten, what else is there to do? Peter is coming straight from civilization and, usually has a bit of insomnia any way, so he was no where near ready for sleep. I got up for my first time after a couple of hours of sleeping and I noticed a glow coming from his tent. Here it was almost 9 and he was still awake reading. City boy!
EFG