It was sweet to have a shelter to ourselves. We celebrated by taking our clothes off and going to bed early. We set our alarm for 6 since no one else was around. I even tried to get Bunny to turn the sound on, but she wouldn’t let go that much. We were on the trail by 7:30.
We ran across a Sobo trail runner not too long after we started. In a weird twist of events, Bunny and I were walking and talking with each other and didn’t hear when the stealth runner came back up behind us. We actually ran him off of the trail because we didn’t know he was there. Larry asked us if we wanted some granola bars knowing that a hiker never turns down food. He said he’d meet us at the parking lot in 5 minutes.
Larry walked with us for a while and told us about another trail runner, Harvey Lewis who is trying to set a new assisted speed record. Let me start off by saying I have no problem sharing the trail with runners. I have a problem with all the attention they get from the press over setting records. I have a bigger problem when they are assholes that violate the rules of the trail and celebrate on Katahdin and put the northern terminus in jeopardy for who the trail was meant for—hikers.
We could go a hell of a lot faster if we skipped every overlook and side trail; had someone meeting us at every road crossing to give us food and water; had a van with a bed picking us up every night so we didn’t have to set up camp, filter water, or cook food; didn’t have to carry a pack with everything we need to go the distance; and had a trail assistant to wipe our asses every time we crap. We are HIKING the trail, not passing it in a blur. The ATC needs to disavow these trail runners because they are creating problems for all the hikers who spend months using the trail for what it was intended to be—a conduit to get in touch with nature. If you want to run 2200 miles, use the roads and get out of the woods; they’re not interested in the nature experience at all.
When I heard Harvey was running the trail, I immediately thought of my father-in-law’s brother, Harvey who has just lost his wife. I admired him for taking up trail running at 85. This is beyond admirable and inspirational. But then I found out it was some other potential jerk and I got a bit irritated. Our Harvey would not be a jerk, would be respectful, and wouldn’t run hikers off the trail. I hope the Harvey running the trail will be the same, but I don’t have faith in people out for glory instead of love of the trail.
We came upon Fisher overlook, one of several overlooks today, but special because of Alice, Paul, and Marsha. We have Paul encounters almost daily when there are unexplained farts in the night (and Bunny won’t claim them). Paul and Marsha are Alice’s deceased brother and sister that we have dedicated our hike to. They have been with us since the NOC in NC, but they stuck around on the ridge at their overlook for a while this morning.
Not very far after Fisher Overlook, we ran into more trail angels. Lone Eagle and his grandson, JJ, were rolling rocks from above the hill down to the trail. I asked them if they were the ones responsible for all the rocks in the trail. After a few minutes of quick thinking, they came up with a semi-plausible excuse that they were rolling the rocks down to the trail to build a retaining wall for a section that was getting washed out. We thanked them for all they do for the trail, but also said we’ll be watching to make sure no rocks stay on the trail after their work is done. I am bound and determined to find out where these rocks are coming from.
We stopped at the 501 Shelter and finally got a chipmunk picture. This is a spacious, enclosed shelter for 12 hikers. There are chipmunks everywhere and not at all afraid of people. Snow Angel told us she stopped there ahead of us and found two of them locked in a trash can. She took the can outside and set them free. She also got her first chipmunk photo as a reward.
Today was another milestone for us. We passed the 1200 mile mark of the trail. For the first time since we started, we have less than 1000 to go…only 990 more trail miles to the summit of Katahdin. Right after this point in the trail, we came to a campground which we knew had a swimming hole and rope swing below it. How did we know? Chad the Dad sent us a video of him swinging off the rope last week. I checked the swing out; the rope is strong, but if you release too early or too late, you could end up landing on rocks in less than 4’ of water. I think Shay needs to return to the trail to keep an eye on her dad.
We had a quick 3.7 mile section of trail, all downhill to the road crossing where we will call a shuttle to Rock ‘n Sole. As soon as we got to the road, a pickup pulled up to take another hiker to the hostel. Not only did we not have to call, we had no waiting. The minute we threw our packs in the truck and climbed in, the rain started. We had arrived with perfect timing.
Trashy is the name of our trailer which we will spend the next two nights in. We got our showers and headed to the lounge to unwind a bit before supper. The lounge is a stream running through the property where we can set lawn chairs in the middle. It’s ideal for soaking our feet after a hard day of hiking.
We had dinner with Snow Angel, Nightengale, and Slip n Slide on the porch. I thought this was a man’s world on the AT but here I was with 4 sassy women. I could barely get a word in all night. I’m outnumbered and have been hanged up on by this group of hellions. Woe is me. The beer gods took pity on me and secreted two beers in our fridge. At least SOMEONE has remembered me.
EFG
This is a particular favorite entry of mine;) proud to be a hellion!!