Make it count: Day #145

Tuesday, August 4th - Day #145 - AT Hike

Miles Hiked Today - 13.3
Total Miles Hiked on AT - 1959.5/2,193 (89.35%)

South Arm Road (1946.2) to ME Route 17 (1959.5) - Town & Lake Motel, Rangeley, ME

Total ascent - 4,389’
Total descent - 3,594’

Total states completed - 13/14

**Rain - Rain most of the day. The hurricane is coming through now - about 7pm

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It’s 7:30pm - Hurricane Isaias is coming through western Maine right now. I’m safe in a hotel room at the Town and Lake Motel in Rangeley, ME. The wind and rain are fierce outside. I’m looking at some trees near the lake - hopefully they can withstand the heavy wind gusts.

We knew the weather was projected to turn pretty bad by early evening. We knocked out 13.3 miles by 4pm. We experienced a lot of rain during the hike - I was completely soaked to the bone most of the day. The goal was to be in a hotel by 5pm - mission accomplished.

In order to allow us to go a bit faster - we slackpacked today. The shuttle driver from Pine Ellis held some of our gear during the day. She picked us up and brought us to our next destination this evening - and we were able to grab the remaining gear at that point.

Even though I wasn’t carrying 35 pounds (probably carrying 15 lbs)- the day was very tough. 4,389’ of vertical ascent and 3,594’ of vertical descent. We climbed Old Blue Mountain, Bemis Mountain, and Bemis Mountain Second Peak. The course was wet and treacherous. Slider took a couple of nasty spills - hitting his hip really hard on one occasion. Luckily - he should be OK - just a bunch of bruising.

When the rocks and tree roots get wet - it’s a tedious effort to go downhill. On a day like today - I welcome ascents. We finished the day with a 700’, 1-mile climb. I was feeling strong and pushed hard up the hill. We all made it to our pickup spot about 30 minutes early. We ended up sitting in pouring rain until our shuttle driver (Gloria) arrived.

There was a great barbecue place across the street from our motel upon arrival into Rangeley. Sam, Slider/Granger and I all had a great dinner. I had the pulled pork - which was excellent. We capped the night by swinging by a convenience store for a pint of ice cream - all good.

Hopefully - if the weather forecast holds true - the biggest part of the hurricane should move through the area overnight. We are planning to hike tomorrow - a solid 13.1 miles on the books. We have some flexibility- as we have our hotel rooms booked for tomorrow night as well. If it’s still storming in the morning - we’ll either Zero or get a later start to the day.

Here’s to staying safe during the storm. Here’s to continued good health and strength.

Goodnight from stormy western Maine!