Monday July 1,2013

High lights of the past week:

Tuesday June 25:13.4 miles to hurd brook lean to ( Sobo mile point18.6) arrived at 2 pm. Toad and moose spotter here..they came 3 miles from last shelter...they are sore.
I had to use my bug head net today to keep the gnats out of my eyeballs. The net worked well over my little desert camo bucket hat. I'm trying long pants and sleeves for a physical mosquito barrier, buff around my neck...I can't see well through the net which is a problem if the footing is uncertain..
Terrain here is moss, rocks, roots, water...muddy bogs. Lots of moose poop and tracks on the trail.
I string up my tent using my paracord inside the shelter..using it as a bug net for sleeping..inside and ready for sleep at 530pm..long day planned tomorrow

Wednesday June 26

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH-QGthWqfA&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Up at 5am, walking at 550 am...slept fairly well with earplugs.. Made it 19.4 Miles to wadLeigh lean to..I'm alone tonight. Blister on left Achilles from trash in sock, left pinky toe sore...does moose tracks ice cream have chocolate covered almonds? If so, I know why it's called that..
today I .walked around crescent pond and along rainbow lake..mud and roots and rocks persist. I fell today..slipped on a root..nothing injured but it's frustrating!
2 creeks to ford tomorrow..not looking forward to it.

Thursday June 27th
21.4 miles to Cooper brook (59.7)
Didn't leave until 730, arrived at 530..really long day. Lots of balance beam walking through and over muddy bogs and fording across creeks, rock hopping across streams swollen with all the rain. Expecting more rain tonight. I plan to go only 11.7 miles to loan brook tomorrow...give my bones a rest.
Chicken, black beans and rice for dinner, Lorna doones and ginger tea and a snicker fun size for dessert...yum. 3 ibuprofen and 1 Benadryl, too.

Friday June 28
Left at 730am...rainy, cool and windy...perfect hypothermia weather...only made it to east branch lean to (67.8) after fording the East branch river knee deep and a little swift for me...luckily I caught up to the 4 section hikers as they were crossing so I wasn't alone..:
Kim, doc, map maker, lam..we got to the shelter and decided to stay and get dry and warm.. We thought we may go another 3.6 miles to the next shelter if the weather cleared, but it's still raining at 3pm...

Saturday June 29th
Left at 630am...I soon left the section hikers behind. Arrived at chair back lean to at close to 7 pm...21.6 miles..too long and stressful of a day..5 big climbs with chair back being the worst...I wouldn't have continued on after fording the river (tearfully stressful..my prayers  were answered as there was a  nice young couple on the other bank that waited for me to cross...I wanted someone to be there)...all the young guys were at the shelter so it was full...setting my tent up so all will be soaked in the morning...I've been in Maine almost a week and haven't seen the sun..or Katahdin either, for that matter...all the"views"have been a foggy mist...Maine is a miserably muddy place, the trail is rarely walkable...I either slog through moose poop mud that tries to keep my shoes, shin deep puddles where the rain water isn't draining off the "trail" (that is a stream bed), or I'm scaling up or down slippery wet boulders ...this is the worst place I've been, mentally and physically!

Sunday June 30
Chair back (88.5) to otter pond parking
Thank God for shuttles! Screw the next 3 river crossings..I'm going to Monson!
Thanks to Curly, slingshot and the boys for keeping me company and just this side of insanity today....I'm on my own nerve and need a rest badly when I can't even speak without crying...ugh.
So I proudly skipped the last 14 miles into monson in the name of safety and sanity.
Thanks to buddy for plucking me our of the mud, Dana and Dawn at Shaws for reassurance, Kim at spring street bbq for great food and an angelic,  supportive, encouraging 2 interactions. If you're ever near Monson, ME, please pay these establishments a visit! Upon arriving at Shaws, I dried out my tent, did laundry, showered, ate bbq, went to bed.
Monday July 1
Up at 530, in the kitchen helping with breakfast: washing dishes and clearing tables..(I volunteered for this...2ND career?) Spent the day sanitizing water bladder, filter, shoes, pack, organizing food and hike/resupply schedule for the next 3 weeks or so...this is very time consuming...plan is to skip ahead beyond the next 2 river fords due to the continued rain..water level and flow rates make it too dangerous...4 people got swept downstream yesterday on one of the rivers I skipped coming in...
I've really tried to give myself short days in this God-awful terrain...the elevation profile is just that...no hint as to the difficulty of the terrain: boulders to climb though and over or a nice walking path?...if we all knew that up front, it may diminish the adventure? Nah I'd like to be prepared.
My mental state is much better after some well needed rest, ..I will just need to be willing to back off my "push" and enjoy what is presented to me..I fell if I give myself time for, and actually take several breaks each day, this will be a less stressful experience. I am and always have been my own worst enemy....I hope my feeling toward the great state of Maine had shifted positively before my next post.

Pics: tent bug net; allowing wet stuff to air and drip; poor feet had a wet week; bbq chicken, beans, Mac n cheese, lemonade; chicken salad.
Not many pics of hiking as it was raining the whole time.