MB on the AT

Today was by far the saddest day in the history of my hiking career.

I didn't head out until 2. I'm not sure how that happened exactly. We woke up around nine, which was already late, because I had made some crazy statement that I wanted to do 14 miles. Well, that definitely didn't happen.

From nine to ten, I fell in and out of sleep. I then woke up and looked through the People magazine I had received in my drop box. I then shared a loaf of poppy seed bread with Matt. I eventually evicted myself from the slumber party, but accomplished nothing. I got back in my tent to change clothes, and ended up falling asleep. It got to be about one when I woke up. I spent the next hour stuffing everything back in my pack. I was all ready to go at two, but I had to make a pit stop at the privy. Finally, I was a hiking machine at 2:15.

The first hour was an easy downhill to a river. There was a couple on the other side with two dogs. The dogs went crazy and probably wanted to eat me. I safely made it across. I then began the next hour and a half of hell.

I had to climb over 1000 vertical feet in less than a half mile. It was a practically a straight vertical climb. The views were great views, but it was a tiring climb. Once I got done with that part, I decided to make my own trail, which I found out at camp after Matt (who had been following my footprints) told me. Instead of following the correct trail, I followed the old trail. I was wondering why I wasn't seeing any white blazes, but since I was on a trail, I kept on going.

I eventually got back on the current trail, the old and new trail eventually met up. The rest of the hike to the lean-to was cold, but quick. I made it there by 7:30, which was faster than I thought I would make it. I was hoping Matt was close behind, because I was cold and wanted to cook some dinner. He eventually showed up a little past 8. I was a little iced lollie by then.

He wanted pizza, but I was too cold to get fancy. He set up his tent, and I quickly climbed inside. We settled on mashed potatoes and beef jerky for dinner. It was a delightful warm up. We stayed warm in the tent, and were glad we chose to set it up, because there was a pair of heavy snorers in the lean-to.

After an evening in town, it was time to head back to the trail. The shuttle was scheduled to leave at 9:30. The post office opened at 9 and I still had to resupply. I went to the general store and bought a Cherry Coke for breakfast. I was hoping to hit up the diner for breakfast, but Matt was still asleep, and I didn't want to go alone.

When I got back to the hotel, I got on the computer and ordered the 2007 Thru-Hikers' Companion. I had been using the 2006 version. I also ordered a new tent. It will be free standing, whereas my old one wasn't.

I then went to the grocery store to attempt to work out some sort of dining plan for the next few days. I ended up buying candy. I also purchased Cheez-Its. It was beyond pathetic. I then hurried back and dumped everything in my food bag. I tossed everything in my pack, and threw it in the lady's truck.

I then headed off to pick up my packages. I forwarded my bounce box and went through the boxes mother sent. I took out the good stuff, and jammed everything back into one box and sent it on to Rangely. When I went outside, the lady was waiting for me. Matt was still at the hotel, and was going later. I hopped in and was off to the trail.

After being dropped off, I attempted to organize all my stuff into my pack. It took me quite a while. By the time I was done, Matt had been dropped off. We were joined by Murphy, who had just come out of the woods. He was waiting for Whiskers, who was about an hour behind him. I shared my poppy seed bread with him. We all chatted for awhile, and then we were on our way.

Nothing too exciting happened in route to the campsite. Matt realized he didn't buy cheese for the pizza until about two hours in. He contemplated running back to town to get some, but I talked him out of it.

When we got to the campsite, there was a group of boys there. They were from the same camp as the ones that were doing maintenance, but they were just out hiking. We arrived too late to mooch dinner, but we had hot dogs. Matt did work out a trade with them: he gave them most of his Oreos for a block of cheese.

It was a cold night. We both got to set up our tents. I quickly feel asleep, but woke up a few hours later, freezing. I snuck into Matt's tent, because it's a 4 season, and is much better retaining heat. He didn't notice until twenty minutes later when he woke up. He poked me because he thought I was some sort of animal.

The rest of the night was warm.

I awoke to the sound of rain. It left me with no desire to start hiking. My goal was to be on the trail by 6, but it wasn't happening. I eventually motivated myself to get out of bed, and I was out hiking by 8:15. I reached West Peak by 9.

The rain clouds had moved, and I had a good view. I could see a ski resort and a little airport. I didn't take many pictures because I'm a fool. As I was climbing over to Horn Peak, the clouds moved back in, leaving me without a view. I wasn't too depressed, since I already had a couple good ones.

I headed down to the Horn Pond lean-to and got there by noon. I planned on taking a thirty minute mini siesta there. At the end of my break it started to rain. Having sent home my rain gear, I was in no hurry to hike. I decided to wait it out. In the time I was waiting, everyone caught up with me.

Eventually the rain stopped, and I headed down the hill to Stratton. I only fell once, but didn't get hurt. Matt ended up bending one of his trekking pole. I also ended up stepping in a stream.

I hit the road at 5:15. We tried to hitch a ride for a few minutes with no luck. I then pulled out my guide book, and we called the people at the Stratton Motel. After we secured a ride, two people pulled over for us. We told them thanks, but no thanks. It was heaven when the lady showed up. Her dog assaulted Matt during the ride.

When we got to the hotel, we were me by Brit, Smokey, Snicker, Princess Brat, and her boyfriend. We sat around for a bit, and then enjoyed the wonderfully hot showers. After that we headed out to eat.

The first restaurant we went into, no one greeted us when we walked in, and we didn't know what to do. We left that place and headed over to the Stratton Diner. The dinner was decent. I didn't finish everything, but I tried. After dinner I headed over to the general store and picked up some postcards. I wrote those out and walked down to the post office, while making phone calls. When I got back to the hotel, everyone was hanging out in the den. I stayed down there for the night, chatting and using the computer. I was in bed by midnight. It was a lot nicer than my sleeping bag.

So I successfully made it back on the trail by 7:00. I was hoping for a bit earlier, but I'm new to this whole early morning thing.

The hike up Little Bigelow Mountain was a gradual climb. It took me roughly two hours to climb to 3000 feet. The views were semi decent. There was a light haze all around, but you could see the other mountains. I could see West Peak, which I was to climb later in the day. It was exciting to see, but I saw that it wasn't going to be an easy climb.

I continued along on the mountain. I met a section hiker from Georgia. We didn't talk long. I kept walking until noon, when I decided to siesta on a large rock in the sun. While I was there, a guy passed me. I asked about Matt, and he said he wasn't far behind. I stayed there for two hours, resting my feet, getting skin cancer, and being bitten by ants. He never came.

At 2:00, I packed up and continued on. Half an hour later I passed a campground, which was my last water source for several miles. I went back to try and find the water, but no luck. On my way out, I met Smokey. He said Matt was right behind him. It was true. I told them my sad water story, and said I was going on. They told me it was completely dry on top, and I had to get water. We all went back into the campsite.

Matt and I went on a safari to find the water. We eventually came to a stream. All was good. I got 2.5 liters of water, since we were planning to camp up top, between the peaks. We then decided to lounge on one of the tent platforms. It took us awhile to get back to everyone, which made them fear that the water was far away. We gave them directions and charged up the mountain. We started to climb at four, and I didn't reach the summit until a little after seven.

The view on top was nice. There was an abandoned fire tower on top that I wanted to break into. Going down to the campsite was a pain. It was all rocks, and they were turned on their side, so they were skinny and jagged. I made it to camp by eight. Matt already had his tent set up, and was trying to make room for mine on the same platform. I told him that wasn't going to work, since my tent isn't free standing. He invited me to a sleepover in his tent, which I gladly accepted. The black flies were being a real pain, and the Deet wasn't helping. I retreated to the tent and called it a night. We talked for a bit and then I passed out. Then the storm came. It was nice to be in Matt's tent, because it's a 4-person tent, and that meant it wasn't going to blow away. The storm lasted almost all night, and I hardly got any sleep. I was excited to get up in the morning, because I knew I was going to be in Stratton by dinner.

We didn't make it to the campground, and had to settle for the lean-to. It wasn't so bad since we had the entire thing to ourselves. We were hoping to meet some Northbounders, but apparently no one wants to party with us.

The hike here was nothing spectacular. I did pass the 2000 mile marker, but it's off by five miles, making it the 2005 mile marker. It was one of the hottest days so far. I had to stop every thirty minutes to drink, when I usually stop every hour. I did fall once, which is when Matt finally caught up with me for the day. I scraped my knee, but I continued on.

We came to a lake, and I took an extended time out, while he went ahead to the lean-to. I chilled on the beach, got some water, and called the parents to let them know I was still alive. After wasting more time, I finally headed off to the lean-to for the night.

When I got there, Matt already had the fire going and told me how dirty the lean-to had been when he got there. Apparently there was a used condom left inside. After being grossed out, we decided to have dinner. He shared his mashed potatoes with me, and I had tomato soup. All was good. I was in bed by 9:30, which was my goal, since I have a 4000-foot mountain to tackle tomorrow. I hope to wake up by 5:30 so I can pack and get started early, because it's supposed to be a hot one tomorrow.

Today was a super early morning for us. Breakfast was at seven. Everyone else was up by six. OB and Trocar were going to Tim's a different way, so they headed out early. I stayed in my bag until 6:40. I quickly changed clothes and headed over. Matt passed me on the trail over, and hurried ahead to tell him I was on my way. I got there at 7:03, but he didn't start serving for another ten minutes.

We were each given a dozen pancakes. They looked like whole wheat with cinnamon. He also put blueberries, raspberries and we think apples or apricots in them. He also have us a glass of milk and juice. The Northbounders easily devoured their dozen pancakes. Matt came close to finishing his. I was a wimp and only ate half of mine. He offered to wrap the rest up, but I declined. I kicked myself the rest of the day for this stupid decision.

It then came time to pay. It was only $6.50 for the cakes. My pathetic hiking partner had forgotten his money, so I had to cover him. We thanked Tim for his kindness and headed back to the lean-to. After having such an early morning, we decided to take a nap. It was glorious. We stayed horizontal until about 10:45. I then got the urge to start hiking by 11:30, so I started to pack up.

Right as I was about to head out, a Northbounder arrived at the shelter. He was the first of five that I would pass. There was also about eight Southbounders or section hikers that came to that shelter for the night, so Pierce Pond shelter had quite the party. Matt gave me a two and a half hour head start. The hike was pretty easy, but my feet hadn't warmed up yet. Eventually I found a good rhythm and the time drifted away.

The last two hours were a pain. My shin started to hurt. I made it to the lean-to at 8. Matt had already taken a swim and was having a stare down with a bunny. We (meaning he) built a fire.

Sleep came easily, but I was awakened in the middle of the night, when a mouse decided to climb Matt's face. He had a minor freak out, which was to be expected. The rest of the night was uneventful.

In the morning, we were awoken when Traveler and Tau made a pit stop at the lean-to. Traveler is from Amsterdam and hikes some of the trail every year. They were going to ford the Kennebec today. Once he reaches Katahdin, he's turning back around and heading south. He told us about the time he crossed the Kennebec on an inflatable banana. This year, he started in November near Harpers Ferry and headed south to Georgia and the headed north. Tau is his lady friend that he met along the way. She's going to be the first lady Northbounder to finish this year. Mathieu and I think he'll pass us mid July.

Today's big dream was to make it to a campsite 12 miles away, but we might have to settle for the next lean-to which is 8 miles. It all depends on my gimpy leg. I also have torn a hole in my pants, which means I'll have destroyed two pairs while in Maine.

Man, this state sucks.

The ferry ride was not an actual ferry, but a canoe. It's run by Steve, who has been doing it for twenty years, and this is his last year. I let Matt handle the paddle duties. Steve jabbered for awhile after dropping is off. We continued hiking.

After going three miles, we decided to only go to the next shelter. We were tired from our early morning. We got to the shelter around 1:30. Half an hour later a group of 11 year old boys showed up. They were from a summer camp and were going to be doing some maintenance work on the section we just hiked. They were led over by Tim Harrison, who has a lodge near the trail. We talked with him for awhile. He has a pancake breakfast in the morning, so we signed up for that the next day. He invited us over to get water from his well. We told our sad life stories to him, and he told his. There was no group hug, but there should have been.

After he left, we sat around for an hour, trying to figure out an appropriate time to go get water. We didn't want to interrupt his dinner, so we headed out around 4:30. I was an idiot and decided to wear my flipflops, which made the journey a bit longer. We got there and signed the register and got hooked up with some water. We talked for a few minutes more, and then hurried back to the lean-to.

When we returned, the kids had a fire going and their leaders were cooking dinner. We were also joined by two Northbounders, Orange Blaze and Trocar. OB went over to Tim's to sign them up for breakfast while the rest of us watched the kids eat burgers. They did offer me one, which I quickly devoured. OB came back, and said that Tim was quite the chatterbox and he would've never gotten out of there if another couple hadn't shown up.

It was the return of Treats and Castle, who had been MIA since the river crossing, which was at the same time as us. They showed up at the lean-to, and said they had spent the day down by a waterfall.

We all spent the evening hearing tales from the Northbounders and eating any food the boys offered us. They left the campsite to go play mafia, which we were not invited to. We spent the rest of the evening chatting, heading to bed around ten.

Today, Matt had to hurry off to Caratunk to get his mail drop. The plan was for him to leave around seven or eight, but he didn't head out until nine. This meant he had to rush through the last six miles to town. He ended up making it to the post office at 11:10, and the place closed at 1115. All was well.

My morning was nowhere near as exciting. I ended up laying around until 9:30. I then decided to make some hot chocolate. I eventually got back on the trail at 10:30. I hauled it to town, making it in less than three hours. Matt left me a note saying the milkshake place was closed but that he was going up the road two miles to a restaurant lodge. I walked about a mile down the road until I hit the ferry guy's camp. He saw me, told me I was hurt, and drove me to the lodge. I got there right at two.

Matt was sitting down with Treats and Castle. I head over to the table, and Matt gives me the room key and map to the room. It's at the very top of the hill. He apologizes for the crappy location and begs me not to kill him in his sleep.

I eventually make it to the top of the hill. I take a nice shower and head back down to get some food. The place had their own brewery and did rafting trips, so it was quite busy. I ordered the chicken fingers, and dreamed about what I'd order for dinner. Treats and Castle eventually left, after polishing off my leftovers. It was then nap time. After a good two hour snooze fest, we got motivated for laundry and dinner. We tossed our clothes in and went to eat. It was a tad depressing - they only offer three dinner entrees a night, and tonight they were all seafood. I ended up getting a burger with sweet potato fries and some ice cream. It was all very good. I then went back to the cabin and Matt went to the hot tub. The lodge had a live band playing, since it was Saturday night, but I wasn't into hearing them. I let my ankle soak for an hour and then called it a night.

It was a pain to wake up the next morning. The ferry only runs from 9 to 11, and we had to meet the shuttle people at 8:30, so Matt could go to the general store to get some bug spray. I eventually got all my crap back in my bag, and headed down to breakfast. It was a buffet, which was pretty awesome. The eggs were subpar, but the bacon was amazing. I also got plenty of OJ. I finished up right as Matt came down. They called for the shuttle, but it never came. The chick from the bar eventually have us a ride, so we made it in plenty of time to catch the ferry.

Today everyone headed off by nine, except for the lazy bums, which would be us. I stayed in my sleeping bag waiting for my legs to fall off. When that didn't happen, I decided to start hiking.

It was around noon, and I did not let myself have a siesta. I hauled tail for the first hour, almost doing three miles. I then began to climb the mountain that would not end. I believe the name was Pleasant Pond Mountain. It took me about five hours to make it to the top. When I did, rain started to pour from the sky. It was cold rain, and there was a hard wind. I wanted to curl up and die, but I kept moving.

Matt finally caught up with me when I was going down the mountain. The rocks and roots were wet and slippery, so we tried our best to not break any bones. Matt did knock his elbow on one rock.

We eventually made it to the shelter, which already had two people asleep in it. We woke them up and made the move over so we could fit in. It was a full shelter tonight. Matt and I made pancakes and hot chocolate for dinner. My pancakes were a bit burnt, but once covered with syrup, they tasted delicious. Tomorrow should be a short walk to town. We'll miss the ferry, but Matt has to go to the post office and we thing there's a place that sells milkshakes.

Well, we think we have trail names. Matt is Wildfire, because he likes to make a campfire everynight, and mine is Ashes, because I always get covered in them.

After a lazy morning, I finally started hiking around 1:30. Matt didn't start until 4.

It took me almost two hours to hike the first mile.

At the first peak, I took an extended break. I called mother and father and sent out my most recent emails. I also checked the weather for the next few days, which was not a pleasant sight.

I then continued up Moxie Bald. I eventually got to the top at 4:15. It was a great view all the way around. I thought Matt was behind me, so I chilled out on top until 5. I then made my descent. It took another hour and a half to make it to the shelter.

I was the first one there, which was a strange feeling. I was alone for almost thirty minutes when I was joined by a group of Northbounders. They were Grooveasaurus, FedEx, and some dude with dreds. Groove was definitely the most lively of the bunch. Matt eventually arrived and built a fire. We had our Ghetto Pizza for the second night in a row. Everyone marveled at our gourmet skills. As we were finishing dinner, Treats and his lady, Castle, arrived. It's going to be a wild time in the shelter tonight.

The original plan for today was to hike 15 miles and make it over Moxie Bald Mountain, but as you know, we're pathetic when it comes to plans. We woke up early enough to make it, but lack of motivation kept us from getting out of the sleeping bags. We sat around until nine. Our day could have been worse.

Murphy, the guy with the artificial feet, found out he had broken another bolt, and all the spares he had were too short. He didn't feel comfortable hiking further, so they turned around and headed back to Monson.

The forecast for the day was rain, which held off until we had to ford a stream. Luckily, that coincided with siesta time. We forded the river, set up a miniature fire, and had lunch while trying to stay dry. We wasted about two hours waiting for the rain to quit. We eventually started hiking again.

We had less than six miles to go until we made it to the shelter. The first hour was good. I was hauling major butt and cranked out two miles. We then got separated. The last four miles killed me. My feet had already been in pain. It feels like there are deep bruises on the bottoms, and Advil won't help.

The next two miles were full of slippery rocks from hell. I eventually had to cross a little pond. There was a rope tied across it, which gave me false hope that I could cross it without having to change shoes. Big mistake. I ended up taking a seat in the middle of crossing. It was already seven by then. I tried to hurry it to camp, since we had made dinner plans, but it just wasn't happening. I finally rolled into the lean-to just shy of nine. Matt had been there since sixish.

After throwing all my gear off and giving a run down of my travels, it was time to eat. On the menu for tonight was Ghetto Pizza. We got the metal grate and laid it across the fire. On top of that, we put some aluminum foil. We then assembled our pizzas. We had some tortillas and pizza sauce, cheese and pepperoni. We put them all on the fire. When the cheese looked like it was starting to melt, we yanked them off. We then rolled them up. They were absolutly delicious. We each had two. It put the hot dogs from the previous night to shame.

We eventually went to sleep. I think I actually slept the whole night through. I did have a dream where Matt was driving an RV and wanted to stop for an apple, and I had to go to a skating birthday party.

Since we stayed the night at Shaw's, we decided to eat breakfast there too, since it was all you can eat. The breakfast hour was from 7 to 8, and we showed up at a fashionable 7:35. I only wanted bacon and eggs, but there are no special orders. Instead you give them a number, and that's how many you get of everything. I just went with one. I got an egg, a piece of French toast, sausage, potatoes, and one lousy piece of bacon. The whole eating experience was so-so. I then put a pin on a map, indicating where I was from, and went upstairs to finish packing.

We took everything downstairs and sat on the porch talking with a few people. Eventually the lady took us back to the trailhead so we could continue our journey. She gave me a hug, which was weird, since I never talked to her. She also told us to mail her a postcard when we finish. I owe her money for laundry, so the chances of her hearing from me are quite slim.

The rest of the morning was uneventful. We mastered using our hiking poles, and my speed increased.

Around noon, we decided to try our new idea that we've been discussing for days. We were close to a lake, so we headed in that direction. The plan was to eat lunch there and take a nap. We have decided to adopt the siesta from 12 to 2. We were looking for a parking lot, but instead found several small cabins. We knocked on one door to ask a lady for directions, but she only told us how to get to the AT and not the lake. We ended up taking a nap in the shade at one house. They had a hammock to sleep in, but their windows were open, so we didn't know when they'd be home. The naptime went over very well.

The afternoon was full of more hiking. We forded a stream, but it wasn't a big deal, since it hasn't really rained in two weeks.

Tonight's lodging is the horseshoe canyon lean-to. We were met by Murphy, Whiskers, and Emily. They went to bed and we cooked hot dogs. It was a nice transition back into hiking.

Today started fairly early. I woke up around 6:30 and stayed in bed planning my day. I eventually got up and sorted through all my gear. I made a trash pile, a keep pile, and a send home pile. It seems like I dropped a lot of weight from my pack, but I have yet to attempt to fit my food in yet.

I then decided to take a shower. After that I went to the post office to buy some boxes. I bought one to mail stuff home and one for a bounce box. I packed up one box to send home. It included my 15 degree bag, my vest, a long sleeve shirt, my towel, and everything else I hadn't used during the wilderness. I took it to get mailed and it cost me $30. I then went back to the room to gather my things.

Buddy came to get us around 10:45. I was ready to go, but Matt still had a few things to do. On the way out of town, we stopped so he could get a watch.

We arrived in Monson and checked into Shaw's. We got a private room with two beds, which was good because Willie was staying here also. After we got settled, we went to explore the town.

Right after we turned the corner we were met by our favorite person. We didn't want to see him, but we did want to hear how he got out of the wilderness. He told us that he never saw the couple that offered him a ride again, and that he had tried walking down an old fish farm road. He did see a couple in a jeep there, but they wouldn't give him a ride. But they did give him sandwiches. He ended up wasting that day.

Then he hiked to the next lean-to, where a hiker gave him some tuna. The next day he got out of the wilderness around 5:30, the same day we did, except we got out in the morning. He tried hitching a ride to Monson, but no one would pick him up. He then found a piece of wood and used his sharpie to write Monson on it. He was then promptly picked up and taken to Shaw's. After telling his tale, he decided to stalk us for the afternoon.

We went by the post office, but it was closed for lunch. We then headed down to the Mobil, which had a place to order food inside. We bought drinks and I ordered a pizza. The pizza was delicious. We then headed back to our room stopping by the post office on the way back. We lost Willie at an antique store, which only supported our theory that he should go gay.

I retrieved my four packages and opened them immediately. My eyes filled with tears of joy when I opened up my steripen. I was also excited to get my smaller sleeping bag. All the lovely goodies mother included were wonderful also.

After getting back to Shaw's, I took a nap while Matt hung out downstairs. I eventually joined him. The afternoon was filled with mindless chit chat. We headed out for dinner around six, which we got at the Mobil. We wanted to try the pub, but it's closed on Mondays. We had the burgers for dinner, and they were surprisingly decent.

There are a lot of Southbounders in Monson tonight - probably around a dozen or so. We're glad we spent the night in Greenville; all these people are a bit overwhelming. We're also glad we resupplied there, since they have an actual grocery store. The general store here is nice, but since I'm a picky eater, I would have little to choose from.

The rest of the evening was spent chatting. I had my last shower for awhile. I packed my bag and it feels about 30 to 35 pounds. I'm hoping to be asleep by 11, but we still have to plan our hikes for the next few days.

Tomorrow's breakfast is supposed to be good. I'm looking forward to plates of bacon.

Today started semi -early. We woke up around 5:30ish, but I didn't head out until 8. We only had three miles left to hike until civilization.

The first part of the trek was a tad uphill, but the last two miles were relatively easy. We got done much sooner than we thought, around 10:30. We took a picture by the sign. We had only been done for ten minutes when our ride showed up. His name was Buddy, and he runs shuttles for hikers. Murphy had told him that we might come out last night or in the morning. He waited for a bit the previous night, but said he didn't mind because he likes to read books there.

We asked him if any hotels in Greenville had pools. He called his wife, who was at home mowing the grass, and she didn't think so. He then drove us around Greenville, pointing out places to stay and where the outfitters store was. We finally found a place. I think it was called Chalet Moosehead or something.

I sprung for the room with a kitchenette. I then had the hot shower of my dreams. After we both got clean and pretty, we headed out for lunch. We dined at Kelly's Landing, which was just down the road. They have an all you can eat breakfast on Sundays, but we missed it by a few hours. The food was mediocre at best. I had cheesesticks and chicken. The prices were reasonable, but the service was lacking. It was not the feast we dreamed of, but it got us through the next few hours.

On the way back to the room we stopped at a gas station for snacks. I got some Dr. Peppers and some suckers. As I was walking back it started to rain. I made it back safely before any real downpour started.

We stayed around the room for a bit watching Man vs. Wild on the Discovery Channel. I've never seen the show before, and I now think I've found the dumbest person alive.

After being grossed out, we decided to head to town. It was a nice thirty-minute walk to our destination. We hit up the outfitters first. I bought trekking poles, fuel, and some pants, having split mine earlier. I then sat around reading the paper while Matt got on the Internet.

We then hit up the grocery store to resupply. Combined, we bought about $100 worth of food. We then made the long walk back, which was not easy with our multiple shopping bags. We then sat around the room some more watch Man vs. Wild (I think there was some sort of marathon). We saw him bite the spine of a fish, eat a frog, and bake a turtle. This totally got us in the mood for dinner.

After looking through the leaflet they call the yellow pages, we called all the pizza places, and no one delivered. We then decided to walk back to town. It turns out that there's a pizza place close to the room. We stopped there and ordered a pizza. The chick said it was going to be 25 minutes, so Matt decided to run into town to use the ATM, because Monson doesn't have one. She told him it would take him no time to make it there and back.

Forty minutes later, he finally returned.

I sat in the pizza place waiting, since he had the key. We then scurried back to the room and feasted. I only had two slices, but Matt ate about four. The rest of the evening was spent watching the Discovery Channel.

I went to bed at around 9:30. I didn't miss my sleeping bag or lean-to at all.

After being out in the wilderness for a million days, my phone went dead, and I could not write updates. I thought about writing on paper, but nothing ever came of that thought. I'll try to recap the last few days, but I'm sure I'll forget some things.

I believe I left off on the day Willie showed up pantless. That night was pure torture, as he kept us awake until midnight talking about himself. The next morning we broke free. He said something about his knee, so we sped ahead.

The morning walk was quite easy. The trail was wider than normal and pretty flat. It was a popular part of the trail - Gulf Hagas and the Hermitage. We met some day hikers that offered us bottles of water. We thanked them but did not accept their offer. Something seemed a bit off: why would two men, who weren't from the area, be out during the middle of the day in the middle of the week in the middle of the woods? I explained to Matt that they were probably hiding a body.

We had to wade across a stream that was about fifty feet wide, but it was only a foot to a foot and a half deep. After we made it across, Matt sprinted ahead. This is where the sad part of the day happened. The rest of the way seemed like uphill. Everytime I climbed a hill, there would be a taller one next to it.

The goal for the evening was to reach the chairback lean-to. I thought I had reached the peak at mile seven, but then I turned and saw the next mountain. I also saw the rockslide I was going to have to climb up. Luckily, Matt had waited at the top of the mountain, to make sure I made it up safely. I finally did make it up at around 8:30. It was one of the most awesome climbs ever. It wasn't too hard, and the views from the mountain as the sun was setting were absolutely beautiful.

Getting to the lean-to was a little less than fun. It was getting dark quickly, and we were out of water. The shelter was only supposed to be a half mile away downhill. We made it there in darkness. We once again had the shelter to ourselves. Now we had to find water.

There was no steam, but a spring instead. We thought we had to get water from a bog that we had crossed, but luckily we saw the sign for water. The water source wasn't much better. Matt's water filter got clogged, but we managed to get a couple of liters.

We cooked one of my backpack meals for dinner. I wasn't too into it, but he loved it. Even more fun began after we went to sleep.

The lean-to is old, and on a steep hill, so it's not exactly square or level. It also has mice. I felt the first one by my feet right after we turned the lights out. I then listened to them scurry about. I was paranoid for most of the night about them getting into my food bag. I barely got any sleep. When the sun came up, I saw one run along the inside wall of the shelter. It was not a very good night, or morning.

At seven, Willie showed up. A little piece of me died.

He told us how he stayed at the bottom of the rock slide for the night. He then blabbered about how he didn't have any food. I have him my jar of peanut butter and some peanuts that I hadn't eaten. Instead of saving them for later, since he was in the process of making breakfast, he started eating it right then.

We were also joined by Murphy, who had prosthetic feet. He had broken some bolts on Katahdin, and finally got the parts. He was dropped off at the beginning of the trail and was hiking backwards to meet his friends and then start hiking again. Everyone who he told his plan to told him he was crazy, because this plan involved him hiking over four or five mountains. We told him the info we had about his friends, and he decided to go down to the stream we had forded and hitch a ride out.

There was a parking lot close by. Willie hiked on ahead of us and we tried to put off starting for awhile. The day involved going up and down some mountains. We saw two Northbounders. The day ended at the Cloud Pond lean-to. Willie was there.

I don't have the time to go into detail about the other days, so I'll try to hit the highlights:

We camped by a waterfall, forded a steam, met a crazy old man from Texas who calls himself Chuck Norris, successfully lost Willie (but only for a few days), saw a deer run away, tumbled down a rocky slope, did a thirteen hour day of hiking, but only made it 11 miles, two full days with only eating 200 calories, and the joy of never having to step foot in the 100 mile wilderness again.

Hopefully I won't have to go so long between charges again.

Today was a lazy start to the day. We didn't head out until ten. I made several attempts to find the trail. On the third guess I was, in fact, on the correct trail.

It was a slow 1.5 miles to the top of the mountain. It took about two hours, which included several stops. On the top I had excellent cell service. I made a phone call to my mom and sent out my most recent emails. We saw yet another view of Katahdin. There was also a small building on top with solar panels. We think it was a weather station. There was a lock on the door, and we were tempted to break in. We decided to stay legal and keep on walking down the trail.

After about a mile going downhill, we came to a side trail. Matt had no water and I had very little. The next stream was miles away. Luckily, there was a sign that said there was water just .6 miles down the trail. We had to make the journey to survive. It was a waste of an hour. It was steep going down, and a pain to come back up.

We found the water. It was ice cold and delicious. On the way back up, there was a tiny meadow. I told Matt to go ahead to the next shelter, which was five miles down the way. In the meadow I found some moose bones.

At the top of the trail, I stopped and had some lunch. I then continued on the trail. After about an hour, I got my foot stuck and felt myself falling. The ground was quite steep, so I grabbed on to whatever I could. I grabbed a branch and swung myself around to the side. Instead of letting my head hit a rock, I decided to head-butt a branch. I sat down on a rock to regain myself. And that's when my favorite person came down the trail.

To make things even more interesting, he wasn't wearing pants.

I'm serious.

Apparently some guy at the last shelter had taken a pair of his shorts. His other pair was wet, so instead, he got a piece of cloth and tied it around his man bits.

He stayed with me for the next four hours. Luckily, he stayed behind me. He had made plans to stay at the campsite, but went with me all the way to the lean-to, to make sure I made it safely.

The trail was a pain - steep up hills and downs. There was one nice level place, on top of Gulf Hagas, where there were wildflowers. It felt like there was no end, but once we made it to the top, we realized there was only a mile to the lean-to. I made it around 8:30. I hiked less than eight miles, but it felt like eight million.

Tomorrow's plan is to hike either eleven or seventeen, if Matt doesn't burn the shelter down with me in it. That boy loves his fire.

Today started kind of slow. Most of the other people were gone by eight. I took forever for me to pack up my gear. We made several more comments about how Willie should try dudes, and somehow he told us a story about how he wore ladies' underwear to high school one day.

Scarred for life, I headed out around 9:30.

Willie said he was going to spend the morning swimming naked. Matt made the comment that if Willie kissed a dude, it would be the first natural thing he'd have seen on the trail.

Ten minutes after I left camp, I fell face first into a puddle of mud. It was awesome. I walked a little ways to a stream, and tried to wring out my shirt.

The rest of the morning was uneventful. We climbed a smallish mountain. I told Matt that I'd meet him ahead at the spring. I attempted to get cell service, and when that didn't happen, I enjoyed the view. I walked off on some rocks and found a hat with a mosquito net. I was afraid of finding a dead camper, but I didn't.

I met Matt down the road at the spring. We were both dying of thirst. Since his pace is much faster, I told him to hike on to the second lean-to and that if I didn't make the first lean-to by six, I would just stay the night there.

I made a quick footwear change, putting on my Croc flipflops. I happily wore them until the next lean-to. To get there I had to cross a swift moving stream. The guide book says you're supposed to ford it, but I used my amazing balancing skills and made it across on two fallen logs.

When I got there, there was a dude who was about to go down to the steam to bathe and do laundry. After spying on him for several hours, I headed on. Ten minutes after I left, I had another mud episode. My flipflops were sucked in. They made it out safely, but I had to make another footwear change.

Life was good for the next hour. Then it started to rain.

I had no desire to head back, which would mean another night with Willie, so I soldiered forth. I crossed a road a mile and a half before the lean-to. The car I had been praying about was not there to meet me. There was a spring there to quench my thirst, which was good because I was almost out of water. It took me almost two hours to climb to the lean-to. Some idiot had the great idea to put it on the side of a mountain.

I finally made it to my resting spot at 8. Matt's eyes popped out of his head. He thought I wouldn't have made it and stayed at the previous lean-to. He said I had heart.

Our pals from the previous night are not here. We think they went to a camp site after the mountains. We're sharing the shelter with Adam from outside of Birmingham. I didn't ask if he knew my brother. Today's total mileage was 11.5.

Tomorrow is an easy day (only 7ish), but it's all mountains.

But mountains mean cell service. Hooray!

Today was an 11ish mile day. We slept until about nine. As we were packing up, we met a Northbounder named Toothpick. He told us that the other Northbounder we saw hiking the other day was trying to make it from Monson to Katahdin in 3 days. We were beyond amazed. We told him about our sad hamburger experience and he decided to go there for lunch. He had done the same 11 miles we were about to do in about four hours. Our faces melted even more.

The morning started at a quick pace. We did over two miles in the first hour. Mathieu said he thought he heard voices when he left the lean-to. Afraid of meeting Willie, we kept on running.

We did make a brief stop at the lake to soak our feet. The mosquitoes were out in full force today. Add that to my list of things I never want to see again.

We kept a quick pace for the first few hours. We ran into some new Southbounders, Jeremy and Brad. They had stayed at the burger place the night before. They even brought a slice of pizza to eat in front of Matt's face. We asked about Willie, and they didn't think he would catch up with us. We also asked about Joey and George. They said they thought George went home.

A little while later down the trail, we ran into Joey and he confirmed the story. The three of them passed us. After hiking about four hours, I began to wilt. I pulled over to a stream to take a breather. Matt stopped for awhile, but headed on without me. I stayed a few more minutes and headed out. I decided to hike in my flipflops the rest of the afternoon.

It was an uneventful time. I saw a tiny snake. I also saw a man and his adult son. They were only doing the 100 miles. I eventually made it to the lean-to. It's an almost full house. It's our two new friends, Joey, Matt, and me. It sleeps six.

I believe there will be a lot of cuddling and spooning.

Around eight another dude showed up. We shuffled around and made room for him. Twenty or thirty minutes after that, my favorite person showed up. No one believed me when I said he might. We made no attempt to squeeze him in.

Right as we were done packing up camp on the beach, our favorite person showed up. Matt was done packing, so I headed up the trail. Willie followed.

I got to hear about him losing his virginity and all about how some girl in west Virginia likes him and is waiting for him. At one point I considered jumping in the lake, knowing my pack weight would be enough to sink me to the bottom and allow me to drown.

I tried picking up the pace to get to the burger place by lunch, but it didn't happen. The walk from the trail was much longer than the 1.2 miles quoted. We made it to the dock by 12:55 and blew the airhorn. We made it across by 1:05, and when we asked about lunch, we were shot down. He gave us some crap about how they keep certain hours or else they would never get out of the kitchen. I ended up buying two cokes, an orange soda, a brownie, and some postcards. The sodas were lukewarm, since they are kept in a 1920s style fridge. The trip was not as enjoyable as I thought it would be. I was able to make some phone calls and find out the Spice Girls are reuniting. It was also nice knowing that we might not see Willie again. But we do have his email address.

There were some hippie looking kids at the place. One chick had dreadlocks, and didn't want anything to do with us. One guy with long hair thought my steripen was damaging the environment, since it ran on batteries. The other dude had two prosthetic legs and was waiting for a screw to be FedEx-ed to him so he could keep on hiking. We talked to the guy's wife for awhile. She was nice, but didn't wear a bra. We didn't judge her to harshly for that. We stayed for about an hour. When we got back to the dock, we saw Joey and his dad, George. George was excited about the cold beer. We're not sure how he felt about another night with Willie. He did tell us Willie's new trailname, which is...(drumroll)... Lone Tree.

He got this name because we hung his hammock the night before, and at some point in the middle of the night, one of the trees uprooted and fell over. He crawled in the shelter around three in the morning to sleep.

We eventually made it to the next shelter which made it an 8 mile day, not counting the 3 miles (packless) we walked (roundtrip) for invisible burgers.

As we were walking to the shelter it started to lightly rain. It got a little harder as we continued on, but we were men and soldiered on. So far there hasn't been anyone to join us, and it's not looking like there will be. The people we hung out with at Abol Bridge are about a day ahead of us. We hope to see them again, but aren't going to try and strain ourselves to catch them. After the disappointing hamburger adventure, we're looking forward to making it to Monson/Greenville and washing our clothes and taking a warm shower. Willie may try to catch up with us, but there is no chance in hell that we're sharing a hotel room with him.

Tomorrow is supposed to be an 11 mile day. The next few days we'll see a couple of mountains. I could live the rest of my life happily if I never see another rock or step into a muddy swamp again. I also think that all the mosquitoes have gathered in Maine for some sort of festival. No amount of bug spray will keep them at bay. I'm not getting bitten, but they are invading my personal space to an uncomfortable level.

As we were packing up camp today, we met two new friends, Joey* and his dad (we think) who are from Boston. I asked them if they were going for burgers tomorrow, and they hadn't heard about it. They did say that they spent the night with Willie, and he was behind them. We packed up camp super quick. We climbed a bunch of dumb hills. At the end was a pond, which we both jumped in to cool off.

After a lot more walking we came to a mountain that had an incredible view of Katahdin. I had my camera buried deep in my bag, so I didn't get a picture, but I swear I was there. We did see a Northbounder. He was booking it up the mountain. He said hello in passing and that was the last we saw of him.

Our plans were to make it to a campsite tonight, but we killed two hours at the shelter talking to Joey and his (possible) dad. I told them more about the burger place and we talked about Willie. They doubted that he'd make it there tonight, but we set them straight.

Eventually Willie did show up. Everyone was quite surprised.

I let him copy down the directions to the burger place and gave him band-aids for his blisters. There was then another round of questions. I somehow ended up telling him that I was a drug mule in college and that I spend my money on male prostitutes. We also told him that Matt and I met when he was in prison for running a dog fighting ring and I led the prison Bible study. Willie declared me one of his homies, but I cannot declare him one of mine, for he will not kill for me with no questions asked.

After finally leaving that party, we had high hopes of making the campsite. I started getting a little tired, and feeling like the trail was maybe catching up with me. We completely lost the trail for about ten minutes - it was not pleasant at all. We never made it to the official campsite, so we made camp along the lake. Matt shared his tent with me again, so I was not left out in the cold. He also shared his stove, since I have yet to buy fuel for mine.

I went to bed fairly early and slept like a log, for the most part. There was one large rock around my hip area, but I managed.

Tomorrow's plan is to haul it to get burgers. We have a rough schedule to keep. Our plan is to make it to Monson by the next morning and then hitch it up the road to Greenville. There's more to do there and they have an outfitter store, so I can replace all the crap I've been losing.

* I change all names to protect the innocent and the guilty.

Today has been an eventful day. We did end up outrunning Willie, but I had to pay it back in negative karma.

I headed out of camp by 5:30 this morning. It wasn't even ten minutes down the trail, when I had my first fall of the day. My foot got caught as I was going up, and instead of taking my time and getting my foot unstuck, I kept on going. I fell face first on the ground, with my nose landing on a rock. I heard a definite crack. There wasn't any blood and I can still breath out of it, so I'm assuming it isn't broken. Pictures will eventually follow.

The fall slowed me down for a few minutes, but I kept on going. Each step forward was one step away from Willie. I made a few minor wrong turns along the way, but for the most part stayed on course. There was a lot of mud to walk through today. It was common to step in some and have your entire shoe submerged.

The rest of the walk was mildly uneventful. I saw Matt again at a shelter, six miles from camp. He said he hiked as fast as he could to get away from Willie. We hung around the shelter for over an hour, cleaning our muddy shoes and wringing out our socks. We decided on staying at a campsite again tonight.

When we made it to said sight, I decided to put up my tent. This was another catastrophe. I had no footprint for my tent. It was impossible to set up. I have been working on it and have yet to come up with a feasible plan. Matt offered to share his tent, but I could not accept. This is my problem and I need to come to a solution on my own.

The second sad event of the day was that I lost my steripen. I looked all through my bag, and it was nowhere to be found. Luckily I had my filtering water bottle, so there is no fear of catching a parasite.

We're having another campfire tonight, so that will be fun. We're going to try and hike 13 miles tomorrow, so that on Saturday we can go get hamburgers. Where do you get hamburgers in the wilderness, you ask? Well, you just go to a dock, blow the air horn once and a boat will come and get you. We're trying to decide if we'll stay the night. We plan on arriving before lunch and checking the joint out.

We finally got our butts into gear around 1:30 or so. I headed off to the store one last time, to buy a Dr. Pepper and some more bug spray. While I was in the store, I saw my first Northbounder. He looked like a crazy homeless old man. The lady at the store said he was the first one she's seen this year.

Matt and I headed out at 2. We were dreading seeing Willie again, so we took our time getting started. We had originally planned on making it a short day, and only going the 3.5 miles to the next lean-to. We made it there in less than two hours and decided to keep on going. Willie was already at the lean-to, so we told him of our plans, which were to keep hiking and camp at a pond that was only a few miles away. He said he'd meet us there.

When making our plans, we didn't realize we'd be climbing a 1,500-foot tall mountain. It was a bit of a pain, but we were sure Willie would wimp out and we wouldn't have to see him again. We were so wrong.

At the top of the mountain, we realized that we had cell service. I called my mother and father and sent out my emails while Matt called to cancel his car insurance. We were up there for about 15 minutes when Willie came hiking up the rock. It was pretty unbelievable to see him again. I continued my trend of leaving poor Matt to deal with Willie alone.

It was about 6:00 then, and we still had about another 1.8 miles to go. I didn't see the two of them again until around nighttime, when Matt came running up the trail telling me that he had found a campsite. It was right off of the lake and was pretty nice except for the cool breeze coming off the lake. I was sad that I had sent home the inside of my tent, but was a trooper and braved the 45 degree temperature.

The evening's events included a small campfire and 20+ questions with Willie, who I now believe I know better than myself. Tonight's therapy session with Willie ended with me telling him to try being a homosexual for a while and maybe he wouldn't have any girl problems.
Matt and I are a bit worried about staying another night with him, but we think we'll leave him in our dust tomorrow. Willie said he's only going to the next shelter, which is about 8.5 miles away. We're going to shoot for a pond a few miles after that and campout again.

Today we hiked from Katahdin Springs campground down to the Abol Bridge campground. It was a little less than ten miles. Within the first twenty minutes of hiking, I managed to make a wrong turn. I was climbing over a tree and it didn't seem right. Luckily at that point a couple was hiking from the other direction.

I made my way back on the path and to the first foot bridge. It looked petty awesome for the first few minutes, but as I was crossing, I misstepped and my right leg landed in the water. My shoe and leg were totally drenched. I got across and took a break to wring out my socks.

Most of my hike was uneventful. There was another foot bridge that was across a busy stream. I was having trouble figuring out how to cross. Luckily, there was someone sitting across on the other side. I got halfway across and tossed my pack to him. The bottom got a little wet, but it made it across. I had to step in the stream to make it across, drenching my feet for the second time of the day.

After getting across, I introduced myself to my new friend. His name is Willie* and he's a freak with a bunch of guns - his words, not mine. After hearing this, I decided to run back down the trail to see how far back Matt was, to see if he needed any help crossing the stream. He made it across with a dry pack, but wet feet. At some point we were along the trail and our pace matched Willie's. Since he was a 'freak with guns' and Mathieu is in the military, they had tons to talk about. I let them follow and have their girl chat while I tried to pick up the pace and lose our new friend.

It finally happened when we set down for lunch. Willie went ahead while we sat on a bank to eat. We thought we had lost him at some point, but then he appeared from the woods to say he had a guy problem, but returned feeling tingly. Matt and I are both confused. He stayed with us the rest of the way.

The last two hours of walking, our packs felt the heaviest. It was a pleasant sight to see the campground. We went to the store to get a space, and the lady recommend the lean-tos down the road. Matt ran down to take a look while I threw back a couple of Yoo-Hoos. There was only one person down there, so we headed out.

There ended up being two lean-tos, so Matt and I took one and left Willie and our new friend Jacob* take the other. Matt made a fire, which unofficially made our site the party site. Willie and Jacob came over to eat their dinner.

We were eventually joined by two other folks who had hiked Kat today, meaning they had done around a twenty mile day. We sat around and hung out until just before sundown. Willie ended up staying until around ten. It was nice when he finally went away. Matt and I joked about him coming over during the night and me waking up to see his face staring back at me.

Sadly, it happened.

I woke around seven and saw him and was very sad. Matt got a better show than me. Apparently, Willie stripped down in front of the lean-to. We both pretended to be asleep until about ten. Willie then asked us what time we were headed out and I told him around one or so, thinking he would go on without us, but he hung around until past noon. We'll have to spend another night with him tonight. Hopefully it won't be so bad.

I have many more things to say about Willie, but they deserve their own email. I also don't want to scare anyone.

* I change all names to protect the innocent and the guilty.

It was a category three day. Which meant some (most) of the trails were closed, while it was not advised to hike above the tree lines on the ones that actually were opened.

We (my hiking buddy Matt and I) went up the Hunt Trail, which is actually part of the AT. At first, it seemed like it was nothing compared to yesterday (at Katahdin). That changed after we passed Katahdin Falls. It was basically a rock staircase, which doesn't sound too bad except that the mountain was 90 stories high. I basically sprinted up it.

After three hours or so we decided to turn around. The huge gusts of wind and the constant stream of rain was robbing me of my body heat. My knee hurt on the way down, but after getting off the trail, I was a champ.

After we came down we returned our day packs. We signed in with the ranger to hike the AT. We also weighed our packs. Mine is a little less than 50 and Matt's is at 70. After watching Matt and the ranger struggle with the pack for awhile, we went back to the lean-to. This is where the saddest part of my day occurred.

I had bought five king size 3 musketeers bars at Rite Aid earlier in the day. I left them sitting in the lean-to like an idiot. When I came back, four were gone. I'm not sure if squirrels or mice ate them. I was very sad.

Matt then built a fire. I ate cinnamon toast crunch for dinner while I watched Matt tend the fire and cook his dinner. We went to bed around nine. I couldn't get to sleep. It rained a lot and the wind was howling. The plan is to head out around nine tomorrow, but we'll see what happens.

We came across one couple who looks absolutely miserable - a chick with the shaved head and a guy. We saw them as we were going up and they were coming down. They looked super tired and were not happy when we told them it was about an hour and a half to the bottom. We also saw them in camp attempt to make a fire with little success. He asked us for a smoke at one point.

We hope we see them along the trail; we figure their fighting will be quite entertaining.