Day #158 - AT Hike

Monday, August 17th - Day #158 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 19.7
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 2141.3/2,193 (97.64%). 51.7 miles left!!

Logan Brook Lean To (2121.6) to Antlers Campsite (2141.3) - tent at Antlers Campsite

Total ascent - 1,410’
Total descent - 3,258’

Total states completed - 13/14

**No rain - Really nice weather day. High in the mid 70’s

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4 more days left on my AT journey!!  Today was a really good day.  19.7 miles went quickly. This was the flattest, easiest terrain we’ve had in a long time. We averaged nearly 3miles/hr much of the day.

We had to make it to Jo-Mary Road (15 miles in) by 3pm to meet the guy from Shaw’s Hostal that was bringing our resupply. We learned from a SOBO hiker that there was some trail magic at Jo-Mary Road. With this in mind - we double-timed it and arrived around 1:45pm. Some trail angels were there with hot dogs, sodas, and chips. Awesome!!  They had chairs for us. We were able to lounge around while waiting for our resupply. It was really nice!

I mentioned how my Hokas were falling apart last night. I bit the bullet and went ahead and got the Altra Lone Peaks today (Slider’s shoes were also destroyed - so he got a new pair as well). I cringe to think I got new shoes with 4 days to go - but if the side ripped off and inhibited me from getting off Katahdin - that would be a problem. I figured I would need shoes as I drive back to St Louis (before heading to Colorado) anyway.  This is my 7th pair of shoes on my journey. 3 Lone Peaks for the first 1,000 miles and 3 Hokas for the next 1,000 miles —- then a pair of Lone Peaks to bring it home.

I’m staying at Antlers Campsite tonight. My tent spot is probably the best I’ve had on the whole AT. I’m setup right near this amazing lake with great views. Hoping to see a moose when I wake up.

One last huge day tomorrow - a 21.6 miler. No crazy climbs - but the course is expected to be more difficult than today - plus - there’s rain in the forecast. We might be walking in mud puddles and on slick rocks.

Here’s to staying healthy and strong. 51.7 miles to go!!  4 more days on my journey!!  Keep the faith!

The Trail Angels - ‘Kentucky Krew’

Me - at dinner

Sitting around getting some trail magic

Really nice trails today

View from campsite

My best tent spot of whole AT

Nice lake midday

The trail magic setup - hotdogs, chips, soda

Day #157 - AT Hike

Sunday, August 16th - Day #157 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 17.1
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 2121.6/2,193 (96.74%). 71.4 miles left!

Chairback Gap Lean To (2104.5) to Logan Brook Lean To (2121.6) - tent at Logan Brook Lean To

Total ascent - 4,562’
Total descent - 4,164

Total States Completed - 13/14

**No Rain - Overcast and cool most of the day. Rain looks like it could be coming tonight.

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Coming to you live from my tent at the Logan Brook Lean To.  Today was the last day of significant climbing before Katahdin. We climbed 4 separate peaks - Gulf Hagas Mountain, West Peak, Hay Mountain, and White Cap Mountain.

We all started together at 6:00am - Sam, Slider, Granger, and myself. It was a long grinding day out there (11 hours). The 4 peaks all came late in the day. I was completely exhausted when I arrived into camp around 5pm. We stayed together the whole day - they all dusted me on the last descent - I just had nothing left (and wanted to be cautious).

The early morning involved a pretty technical downhill (reminiscent of the Whites) and also a river crossing (took off shoes and wore camp sandals).

My gear is taking a beating out here. My new Osprey pack took a major rip in the back mesh pocket coming down the technical descent today. Granger had a safety pin that we used to latch it back together. (She’s now sewn 1 rip and helped me with a safety pin for another). My CNOC water bags are filled with holes. I collect water and little water streams shoot everywhere. I’m able to still use them because the holes are tiny - I just have to filter right away and not store in my pack. My Hokas are falling apart. The front and sides of the shoe are tearing away. I’m worried if I catch a stick the wrong way - the whole bottom cushion of my shoe will fall off. Tomorrow- we have Shaw’s bringing us a resupply - I’ve asked them to bring me a pair of Lone Peaks (they didn’t have Hokas - I used the Lone Peaks the first 1,000 miles of this journey). I’m going to see how the Hokas due tomorrow - I duct taped them today. They have been getting progressively worse every day. I might just buy the Lone Peaks and carry both. I want the cushion of the Hokas for Katahdin - but I also want a shoe that’s not going to fully fall apart on me.

I’m including my proposed schedule for the final 5 days of my journey. I have 2 really long mileage days tomorrow and Tuesday - then a couple very reasonable days before Katahdin.

Final 5 day schedule

Day #162 - 10.6 miles (5.3 to peak of Katahdin - then have to descend the same way) 4,187’ ascent. 4,187’ descent. Birches (2187.7) to Katahdin (2193)

Day #161 - 9.8 miles. 862’ ascent. 392’ descent. Abol Pines (2177.9) to Birches (2187.7)

Day #160 - 15 miles. 1,555’ ascent. 1,981’ descent. Rainbow Stream Lean To (2162.9) to Abol Pines (2177.9)

Day #159 - 21.6 miles. 2,884’ ascent. 2,374’ descent. Antlers Campsite (2141.3) to Rainbow Stream Lean To (2162.9)

Day #158 - 19.7 miles. 1,410’ ascent. 3,258’ descent. Logan Brook Lean To (2121.6) to Antlers Campsite (2141.3)

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It’s 8:30pm now - I’m going to shut it down early again tonight. My body is so weak and fatigued right now - sleep is absolutely vital to me

I don’t have strong enough signal to post tonight - I hope to find somewhere tomorrow - but I’m not sure because there will be no mountains.

Goodnight from Maine - 71.4 miles left in my journey!!!

White Cap Mountain Peak

White Cap Mountain 

Granger - crossing river

My ripped pack

Nicer trails

Duct tape to hold my shoes together

Hay Mountain

Side tearing away from my shoe

Break time

Gulf Hagas Mountain 

White Cap Mountain 

Early morning 

Sunrise in Maine

Day #156 - AT Hike

Saturday, August 15th - Day #156 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 10.9
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 2104.5/2,193 (95.96%)

Long Pond Stream Lean To (2093.6) to Chairback Gap Lean To (2104.5)

Total ascent - 3,578’
Total descent - 2,506’

Total states completed - 13/14

**No Rain - Really nice weather day. Temperatures even a little cool this evening.

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A bounce back day for me today. I didn’t know what to expect or how I would feel - so I left the shelter 30 minutes before Sam & Slider/Granger. I got out at 6:30am - they were targeting 7am for departure. I fully anticipated them catching me on the first climb of the morning.  But - I never saw them. I even waited 30 minutes at the peak of the climb - but still nobody.  I was getting cold at the summit - so I decided to press on. I ended up walking the whole day by myself. I got into the shelter at 2:30pm - they all showed about an hour later.

I was really surprised they didn’t catch me. I felt OK today - but I was still going so slow because of the brutal course. I guess those guys found the course just as hard as me - we all commented that it was one of the toughest days for us since the Whites.

Today I passed the 2,100 mile marker.  The last “100 mile mark” of the trip. 88.5 miles to go!  Tomorrow will be the last hilly section before Katahdin. We won’t see anything over 2,000’ the rest of the way before the end.

5:30pm - I’ve been resting this afternoon since arriving into camp. Chickweed, Cambyr, and Cookie Monster just arrived. They’re staying here tonight as well. Chickweed’s little boy - Trey - is joining them for this section of the hike. I think he’s 12 years old. He’s gone 25 miles so for in 2 days - which is absolutely amazing to me. Chickweed & Cambyr have been on trail nearly 6 months - completely experienced with solid trail legs. This boy is on Day #2 - it’s going to be challenging for him to keep up with them. Chickweed is carrying almost all his gear to give him a chance.

I’m finishing up the blog early (before dinner) - so I can get max hours of sleep tonight. Tomorrow is a huge day - 17.1 miles with 4,700’ vertical. I can do this!  I can do this!  If I get through tomorrow - the terrain becomes flatter. Only 6 days left on my journey!!

I’m going to say it every night until the end -  Here’s to staying healthy and strong!!

Goodnight from the 100-mile wilderness!

Rocky trails

Awesome views

One of the peaks today

Maine has rugged, stunning scenery 

Barren Mountain peak

Squirrel posing

Our shelter - Chairback Gap Lean To

Tower at peak of Barren Mountain

2100 miles!!!

Great views from the Chairback Mountain range

All kinds of lakes

Pitcher plant - Granger told me about them

Day #155 - AT Hike

Friday, August 14th - Day #155 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 15.0
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 2093.6/2,193 (95.47%). 99.4 miles left!!!

Monson (2078.5) to Long Pond Stream Lean To (2093.6) - tent at Long Pond Stream Lean To

Total ascent - 2,896’
Total descent - 3,139’

Total states completed - 13/14

**No rain -  Nice weather day. Not quite as hot as the past few days. Highs in the low 80’s.

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99.4 miles left to go!!!!  Tomorrow I’ll be passing over the 2,100 mile marker. 7 more days to go on my journey. A week from today - if all continues well - I’ll be summiting Katahdin.

1 day down in the 100-mile wilderness. Not a great one for me. Last night - my private room at the Hostal sat above the picnic table and fire pit located outside. There were several hikers partying well after midnight out there. I couldn’t get to sleep from all the noise.  Because of this - I was really weak and fatigued today. I fell behind everybody and they had to wait on me at breaks. And - this made me angry because I couldn’t keep up (it’s a competitive thing). Then - I stopped talking because I was mad (keeping in my feelings) - and things just progressively got worse from there.

Oh-boy. Days like today are so challenging for me. I know I have this competitive mindset - I know it shouldn’t be a big deal if I’m the last guy in - but it’s so hard to control that fire sometimes. Another point - when you’re hiking with 4 people and you fall behind a 1/2 mile or so - it’s also kind of scary. You really have no backup. If something happens to you - they would never know it. Now - I’ve hiked the better part of the AT all by myself - so this emotion really shouldn’t matter at this point - but I guess I’ve been hiking with people so frequently lately - I’ve come to depend on it. I’d compare this to having a spouse, kids, roommates - you get comfortable when people are around - when they’re not - sometimes it can feel isolating.  Live and learn.

I just need to keep positive. Tomorrow is only 10 miles - but a really tough 10 miles. The day starts with a 1,700’ climb right out of the chute.  I might start before everybody else and see how I’m doing.

The hike today had some beautiful scenery. Lakes everywhere. We saw 3 beavers in this bog - unbelievable. It’s fairly rare to see a beaver - but 3 of them (including a baby) is really special. There were several creek crossings. On one of the crossings - I put on my camp sandals because we had to wade knee deep to get across. All good.

OK - it’s 8:50pm - I definitely need sleep tonight. I’ll sign off for now. No cell signal - I’ll try to post on the mountain top tomorrow.

Here’s to remaining healthy and strong!

Sign coming into 100-mile wildernesses 

Tons of lakes today

Awesome scenery 

End of hike today

Crossing a river with shoes off 

Very nice

Great lakes

2 beavers

Mural at shelter

My breakfast at shelter

Day #154 - AT Hike

Thursday, August 13th - Day #154 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 17.9
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 2078.5/2,193 (94.78%)

Bald Mountain Pond Lean To (2060.6) to Monson (2078.5) - Shaw’s Hostal

Total ascent - 2,021’
Total descent - 2,005’

Total States Completed - 13/14

**No Rain - another really hot and muggy day. Highs in the mid 80’s

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Coming to you live from Shaw’s Hostal in Monson, ME. My last night in a hotel/Hostal on my AT journey. It’s crazy!  Sam, Slider/Granger and I just went out for dinner. We talked a lot about our AT journey - our favorite days, our worst days, favorite Hostals, etc.  Like I mentioned several days back - I’m definitely ready to be finished - but I’m sure I’ll miss it once I have some time to decompress and reflect on my journey.

Today’s hike went a lot smoother than yesterday. The course was much easier. We finished up a little before 3pm - so we averaged 2 miles/hr (including breaks).  There were a couple sections where we were doing 3+ miles/hr for an hour or more. We laughed about mid day.  The course had been pretty simple to this point. We decided it was like the Hunger Games - just when you think you’re doing OK - the course starts throwing daggers at you.  We descended into this riverbed. We had to forge the river on slick rocks getting our shoes soaking wet (Sam slipped and fell completely in the river). Then - we were attacked by swarms of horse flies. Next - we went through a 2 mile stretch with tons of trees down across the trail. We had to dunk, crawl under, crawl over, and sidestep tons of debris.  We probably averaged 1 mile/hr for that 1-2 hour block.

Alright - next step on my journey - the 100 mile wilderness. This stretch in Maine is famous on the AT. It’s known for its remote, rugged terrain. But - it’s also supposedly one of the most picturesque places on the AT. 100 miles with no towns, limited cell coverage - it’s you and the forest. This is what you were trained for!!

The first 40 miles or so of the 100 mile wilderness is challenging - quite a bit of vertical. The last portion is relatively flat - offering nice walking trails (we’ve been told). We’re targeting 6 days to get through this stretch. We’re doing shorter mileage days at first - and will throw in a couple 20 milers at the end. We did setup a resupply with Shaw’s halfway through. By doing this - we don’t have to carry 6 full days of food. Plus - if we need something (equipment breaks, etc) - they are a source that can help bail us out of trouble.

We’ve been told that cell coverage does exist at a couple shelters - but I’m not positive how frequently I’ll be able to post during this upcoming section (So don’t be alarmed if I can’t post for a few days). I should be back to civilization by next Wednesday - with just 2 days left.

8 days remains on my journey. Here’s to taking on the 100-mile wilderness. Here’s to health and strength to make it through successfully.

Good night from Shaw’s Hostal. (The Hostal is nice - it has a lot of resources - but it’s not the best Hostal on the AT in my opinion)

Shaw’s Hostal

Shaw’s Bunk House and cottage

One of many creek crossings 

A huge boulder that had broken apart - lunch break

Huge uprooted tree

Sunrise at our shelter last night - reflecting

Beautiful sunrise

Lake in Monson - walk back from dinner

Dinner spot in Monson

Lake in Monson

Another early morning reflecting pic

Smooth trail today 

Early morning sunrise at shelter

Granger - walking over a beaver dam

Cool church in Monson