tlbj6142
09-12-2004, 23:05
See reply below for gear/technique comments.
Thursday, 2-Sept-2004
Four of us flew into Portland, ME without issue. We mailed our stoves and fuel bottles to Gull Pond Lodge earlier in the week. Rental car folks talked us into a larger vehicle (Grand Cherokee instead of a Cavalier) for $8 more per day. Plus we had 2 keys, which meant I could leave some supplies in the car for when I passed Rt27. This let me keep my total wet pack weight below 16# for most of weekend (save for the 2-3 miles in which I carried 2 qts of water).
Long drive to Bob's place from Portland. Saw 1 deer, 1 red fox, 1 skunk, and 2 moose on the road.
Arrived at Bob's around 12:15am, went straight to bed.
Friday, 3-Sept-2004. RT4 to Oberton Stream 13.4mi
Up by 6am, ate, packed and filled fuel bottles. Bob shuttled me (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/4686/password/0/sort/1/cat/500/page/1)and a thru-hiker (Ponderer) to RT4 by 8:20am. And, then, took the rest of my group by the Rt27 lot to drop off the car and onto Caratunk.
Stopped at Piazza Rock lean-to for water. I was expecting a view, but couldn't find it. Just a big ass rock.
After a good climb (pre-trip workouts helped), I ended up on Saddleback Mtn for lunch, great 360 degree views, warm sun, slight wind. More great views from The Horn.
Somewhere on the downhill side of Saddleback or The Horn I broke one my arrow shaft poles (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=5284). This proved to be a good thing in the long run. See gear/technique reply below.
I stopped at Popular Ridge Lean-to for dinner and water.
Finding this shelter was a bit of an adventure. The privy is on the AT about 100 yrds before (if going NOBO) the shelter. Once I saw the privy I knew the shelter must be near by. I needed water (I only had about 8oz) and started to walk up and down every game trail in the area. After 10-15 minutes of frustration, I finally gave up. Only to find the fricken’ shelter right in the middle of the trail 2 minutes later. Boy was I pissed. And to make maters worst, Ponderer was already in the shelter preparing for dinner. He goes on to tell me that, “This is one of the times I listened to “Wingfoot” (referring to the book). He says the shelter is right on the AT.” A bit of salt in the wound.
It was only 5pm (sunset was at 7pm and twilight didn’t end until 7:50pm), so I decided to continue on. And I wanted to finish on a downhill so my knees could rest all night.
After dinner, I hiked on a bit more. I camped with Zipoff (NOBO thru) just south of the Oberton Stream a few feet off the trail. In the morning I noticed a "better" spot just north of the stream on the old rail grade near a very cool waterfall. We both had tarps, Zipoff ate, I had a snack and journaled. Hung our food down the trail a bit and were in bed by 8:30pm.
It was a great night. A mild dry breeze all night. We had zero condensation on our traps in the morning even though we were in a low area less than 100 yrds from the stream.
Saturday, 4-Sept-2004, Orbeton Stream to Sugarloaf Hut, 12.2mi (including Mt. Abraham's blue blaze)
We were both up by 6am.
We had a pair of those very, very noisy squirrels near our site that put on quite a show for us during breakfast and camp pack-up. They’d chase each other all around and then one would run into their nest (a hole in a tree). The other would then scream at it from the outside. Rinse and repeat. It was quite funny.
Nice hike up to Lone Mtn (9am).
I don't see why Perham Stream isn't listed as a water source in the Data book. There was plenty of flow (mid-shin deep a spots) and it hadn't rained in several days. Heck even the marsh area just south of the stream had plenty of water.
I had a total of 2qts when I left the stream. I hated to carry that much water, but if the weather looked good when I crossed the blue blaze up to Mt. Abrahams, I’d need it for the side trip.
The early morning was a bit cloudy and it even sprinkled (just a few drops) for a couple of minutes. But when I hit the crossing the weather was fine, so I headed up toward Mt. Abraham's.
What an awesome trail. I loved the rocky stuff above the tree line. Again, my wind shirt and thin Polartec beanie proved their worth for a second day.
I ate lunch in a small rock wind break on the side of the old fire tower (?). While I was eating 4 guys walked up via the Mt. Abraham's trail. The first guy was a bit surprised when he saw me sitting on the other side of the tower.
Again, great views, nice warm sun and a bit of wind. Perfect. I took a picture of Sugarloaf Mtn from Mt. Abrahams so I could show folks where I ate dinner (at least I was hoping to make it there for dinner). I read in this months BP'er that some wacko wants to put windmills up there. Glad I got there first.
Finished lunch and hiked back down the blue blaze. I was back on the AT by 1:15pm. I stopped by the Spaulding Mtn Shelter around 2pm only to find a bit of graffiti left by Lone Wolf (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=4685&nocache=1).:D
I was hoping to make it to Sugarloaf Hut by 4pm so I could hike down to Crocker Cirque Campsite for the night. This resulted in my 2nd day of mileage frustration. The terrain (for me) was just too difficult to build up some speed. As such, I was barely doing 1.5mph (net). This really pissed me off. It wasn’t until Sunday morning after the tough climb to Horns Pond that I finally came to terms with this truth and adjusted my attitude.
On the climb up the Sugarloaf blue blaze I passed several day and section hikers. I asked all of them if the hut was open, but none bothered to check. Or assumed it was locked. I was a bit concerned it might be, but that proved otherwise.
NOTE: There is a small box spring half way up the Sugarloaf side trail. It had plenty of water in it even though it had not rained in a few (several?) days.
I arrived at Sugarloaf at 4:45pm, checked out the “summit” and views around the various communications buildings. I took a couple of pictures of Mt. Abrahams so I could show folks where I ate lunch. I then walked over to the large hut to find the door wide open (I guess no one noticed that earlier).
I setup “camp” inside. The “hut” has a working radio (FM only), toaster, microwave and a single light bulb, but no water nearby or a privy. There was a package of microwave popcorn lying on the table, but it seems as though a mouse beat me to it. Damn. That would have been a great treat.
The views from the building were great. I easily picked out Mt. Washington and Mt. Katahdin. Which I confirmed with the raised relief map located under a glass table in the hut. It is interesting to note that Mt. Washington, Sugarloaf and Katahdin appear to form a straight line.
I ate dinner, read the shelter log and a few articles from a climbing magazine left behind by someone. Took a few pictures of sunset and went to bed. I used this 2.5” piece of foam under my pad as a bed and used two the couch pillows as pillows. Quite comfy.
I was alone all night. A bit of wind made of a few weird sounds from time to time, but I fell right to sleep.
I awoke to a strange noise at 3:30am. Sounded like someone opening the door (they are quite heavy and need to be pulled open from the outside). So, I got up, turned on my head lamp and the single hanging light bulb. I checked the place out only to find nothing. I had to go to the bathroom real bad, so I made use of an empty Goat wine bottle that was lying around.
Sunday, 5-Sept-2004, Sugarloaf Hut to Safford Campsite (10.4 + 2.5)
I couldn’t get back to sleep until after 4am. I had set my alarm for 5am so I could get some views of the sunrise and an early start down to the Crockers. The alarm went off on time. It was at that point that I decided to sleep in and skip the Crockers. So many folks (all without prompting) told me to skip the Crockers that I decided I would. Besides, this would allow me to catch up with the rest of my group hiking SOBO from Caratunk earlier. Maybe I would hike with them the last day or so?
So, at 7am, I started down Sugarloaf USA Ski slopes. Damn was that tough. Steep down hills covered with long grass, random holes and large patches of undergrowth and 4”-12” pine trees made for slow going. The slopes looked so “empty” when viewed from the top. It took me 1 hour and 45 minutes to reach the bottom.
I ate a second breakfast at D’Ellies. Nice Everything bagel with eggs, cheese, mushrooms, bacon and salsa along with a bottle of Mt. Dew. That hit the spot.
I started walking out to RT27. About a quarter mile before the exit someone picked me up. The driver is working to build a hut-to-hut system in Maine similar to that run by the AMC. He dropped me off at the parking RT 27 parking lot.
I dropped off some trash, picked up some food and left a note. I was back on the AT by 10am.
The climb up to Horns Pond just about made me explode with frustration. Roots, rocks missing blazes, etc. 5.1 miles in 3.5 hours was more than I could take. It wasn’t until I reached the top that I changed my attitude about my expected mileage. I hit Horns Pond at 1:30pm.
I was so hot (it was barely 70F that day) I was planning to swim a bit in Horns Pond (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/4687/password/0/sort/1/cat/500/page/1) after I ate lunch. Unfortunately, I ate lunch in the shade. I was freezing by the time I finished eating. Too bad, as a rinse off would have been nice.
I left for the Bigelows around 2:30pm. Unfortunately, both Bigelow peak and Avery peak were still stuck in a cloud (I think it was the only cloud in the area). It was kind of nice to see the cloud roll by, but I would have liked the views even more.
I ran into Baltimore Jack at the box spring just north of the Avery peak. We talked about 5 minutes as he was waiting for a friend to catch up. Told me his friend was having trouble with the rocks and hills. It was at this point, I realized he was talking about One-leg. I left Jack and ran into One-Leg 50yds later and wished him well.
Jack told me there wasn’t anyplace to camp between Safford Notch Campsite and Little Bigelow Lean-to. Damn, I wished I brought my hammock as there were plenty of hammock sites everywhere.
About 10 minutes (at the old man’s face lookout) later I ran into the rest of my group hiking SOBO. We talked about our adventures the past couple of days. And then went our separate ways.
At this point I was flying up/down the hills, as I had a major epiphany since Horns Pond. Trekking poles slow you down big time when hiking across the ugly terrain I was on. Once I realized it was easier to put one hand on a nearby tree and/or scoot down a rock face, I made great time. Of course having a 14# (wet) pack helps as well.
I arrived at Safford Notch Campsite around 7pm. Tossed up a line for a bear bag and setup camp on the #1 platform. There were 3 French Canadians (they made up 70%+ of the hikers I saw on this trip) at an “illeagal” site and another thru-hiker (Jersey) on the 2nd platform. I think 2 more folks arrived after dark as I could see headlamps moving through the woods while I was writing in my journal.
I ate dinner and setup my tarp pitched low on one side as there was a bit of a breeze rollin’ down the hill.
Monday, 6-Sept-2004, Safford Notch Campsite to East Flagstaff Rd (6.3mi).
I slept in, and didn’t leave camp until 8am. I only had to do 6 miles today. I was on Little Bigelow at 9:10am. At which time I took an hour break at a great look out in the warm sun.
Jersey stopped by and we talked for 30+ minutes. He did a thru last year and made it to the ME/NH border in early October as which point he assumed the weather would beat him to Katahdin. So, this year he started where he left off.
Apparently he ran into my brother, Father Ounce, back in CT while doing warm up hikes for this ME section.
I left the lookout and hiked another hour or so and stopped at another. I broke all backcountry etiquette by calling my wife as I had a great analog signal (probably from the towers on Sugarloaf which I could clearly see from my resting spot). We spoke for 20+ minutes.
Jersey arrived again. I stayed a couple more minutes and then left. While packing I ended up with a single sock drying on my pack. I assumed I had lost it somewhere. It wasn’t a real loss as they were the thin 3 pair for $2.80 socks from Wal-Mart. Later I found I had put 3 socks on my left foot and 2 on my right foot.
I stopped at Little Bigelow Lean-to for a snack and water. Three SOBO (flip?) hikers were there. I didn’t get their names. There was a young 20-something woman and a guy the same age wearing Keen sandals (couple?). Along with a silent fellow with a thin red beard. He appeared to be stoned, or just had a real problem focusing. I told them about Sugarloaf and later the 20-something guy asked me how to hike around the Crockers and up the slopes.
Just before I left a group (4-5) of 50-70 yo men arrived carrying trunks (well it looked like) on their backs. They were out for 2 weeks hiking from Monson to Andover (?). They were stopping for the day as I told them Safford Notch Campsite only had 2 platforms. Later I found out there are “campsites” (non-platform) at Safford Notch as well.
On the way out I passed what had to be a thru hiker. He asked where the water was located. I didn’t get his name.
I arrived at East Flagstaff Rd at 1:30pm. I decided not to do an out-n-back to West Carry, so I started to hitch. Within 10 minutes (2nd car), “Fred” and “Fat Daphne” in the Mystery Machine (complete with canoe on top) picked me up. They were camping on an island in Flagstaff Lake for the past few days and were now on their way out. I sat on a Rubbermaid container in the back of the van (I think Scooby had a more comfortable chair).
Fred appeared to be a bit drunk as the van tended to veer off the road from time to time (re-enforced by a Daphne commenting they just “stopped to make coffee”). When he veered Daphne would stare at him. Thankfully, he was only going 35mph as most cars were blowing by us on the left. Fred started bitching about ATV users (a common theme while in Maine) and outsourcing IT jobs to India.
I was in the car for 30+ minutes. I knew there was a quick way over to RT27, but they ended up taking me to North New Portland. Which I learn is about 40 miles from my car! I was actually closer to my car when I left the trail than in North New Portland.
I ran into a local grocery store, bought a drink and asked how to get to Stratton. I was pointed in the correct direction and left. About 1 mile later, a pickup with 3 folks inside stopped. “You guys going to Stratton?”. “No, we’re going to Jordan Lumber.” “OK, I have no idea where Jordan Lumber is located.” “It’s on your way.” “Great!”.
So, I jump into the back of the truck (portions of the bed literally held together with bungee straps). About 20 minutes later I was at “Jordan Lumber”. Now I was about 23 miles from the car.
There was a grocery store across the street. I should have just hung out in the lot and asked for a ride, but I didn’t. I walked along the road for quite a ways 30+minutes before a young kid (20?) picked me up. He was on his way into Stratton for the night and told me about the only place to stay in town was the White Wolf Inn (he worked there). He dropped me off at my car.
I picked up my street clothes, left trash, food and a note as I assumed the rest of my party would finish today as well. I wanted them to know where I would be staying.
I started walking down Rt27 toward Stratton. I was quickly picked up by a small car with 3 folks inside. I jump in to find out the front passenger (best described as Maine’s version of a crack whore) was smoking pot while drinking some Michelob Light. She was sharing the drink and pot with a skateboard toting 16-17yo kid in the backseat. I was kindly offered both, but refused.
The driver seamed “normal” and might have been the crack whore’s big brother. As he kept saying, “All we need to do is get you cleaned up a bit and everything will be fine.” Not sure the relationship anyone had (if any) with the young kid in the back seat.
They dropped me off at the White Wolf Inn ($25/night for hikers). And the young kid got out as well only to be seen riding his bicycle a few minutes later.
I was in Stratton about 4pm. About 2.5 hours after I left the trail.
I got a room, took a shower and came back down for dinner. I ordered the Wolf Burger (0.5# burger, with sausage patty, bacon, cheese and mushrooms) and fries. I needed 3 napkins just to eat the thing.
Overheard folks complaining about the anti-ATV crowd along with a statewide ballot issue which would outlaw baiting during bear hunting season. It is, as you know, part of Maine’s long and prestigious heritage.
The rest of my party never showed up. As I later learned they stayed at Cranberry Stream Campsite.
Tuesday, 7-Sept-2004
The rest of my party arrived at 8:45am. They took showers and grabbed a bit to eat from the local grocery. We packaged up our stoves to be mailed back home and dropped off the package on the way out of town (9:45a).
On the drive back we called Bluebearee and arranged a lunch meeting. We ate at some dinner type place in Gray, ME. We all had some great food and conversation.
We were at the airport by 2:30pm. The flights home were uneventful.
Conclusion:
This has to be the best backpacking trip I’ve had to date. Great views. Great weather (save for the cloud on Bigelow/Avery) and great hiking (after I learned to slow down and/or drop the poles). I learned quite a bit on the trip about my gear, techniques and pack weight. As this trip was, by far, my most aggressive pack weight to date. And, that alone, proved to be a real win. I’m already thinking how I can cut another pound or so from my pack weight.
While I had been warned several times about the trails being tough in NE I was expecting steep sections and such. That really wasn’t much of an issue. The footpath was the biggest issue. With the numerous mid-thigh steps and roots, it was just too difficult to get moving. And through this section you are either going up or down. There is very little level hiking. And putting the trekking poles away helped tremendously.
I’m sort of afraid to hike again as the weather has been perfect the last 3-4 trips. I figure I’m due for an ugly trip at some point.
On a personal note, the trip was a bit long to be away from family (7yo, 4yo, 10mo) at least until the kids are a bit older. So, this will probably be the last “long” trip I take for sometime unless I take 1-2 of the children with me.
I also discovered that I may “think” I don’t want anyone around, but I enjoy conversation. Not sure why, but on this trip I didn’t run into too much of the ****ty story tellin’ fools I’ve run into in the past on the trail. Maybe only serious folks hike in Maine. That, alone, made the short conversations more bearable.
Thursday, 2-Sept-2004
Four of us flew into Portland, ME without issue. We mailed our stoves and fuel bottles to Gull Pond Lodge earlier in the week. Rental car folks talked us into a larger vehicle (Grand Cherokee instead of a Cavalier) for $8 more per day. Plus we had 2 keys, which meant I could leave some supplies in the car for when I passed Rt27. This let me keep my total wet pack weight below 16# for most of weekend (save for the 2-3 miles in which I carried 2 qts of water).
Long drive to Bob's place from Portland. Saw 1 deer, 1 red fox, 1 skunk, and 2 moose on the road.
Arrived at Bob's around 12:15am, went straight to bed.
Friday, 3-Sept-2004. RT4 to Oberton Stream 13.4mi
Up by 6am, ate, packed and filled fuel bottles. Bob shuttled me (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/4686/password/0/sort/1/cat/500/page/1)and a thru-hiker (Ponderer) to RT4 by 8:20am. And, then, took the rest of my group by the Rt27 lot to drop off the car and onto Caratunk.
Stopped at Piazza Rock lean-to for water. I was expecting a view, but couldn't find it. Just a big ass rock.
After a good climb (pre-trip workouts helped), I ended up on Saddleback Mtn for lunch, great 360 degree views, warm sun, slight wind. More great views from The Horn.
Somewhere on the downhill side of Saddleback or The Horn I broke one my arrow shaft poles (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=5284). This proved to be a good thing in the long run. See gear/technique reply below.
I stopped at Popular Ridge Lean-to for dinner and water.
Finding this shelter was a bit of an adventure. The privy is on the AT about 100 yrds before (if going NOBO) the shelter. Once I saw the privy I knew the shelter must be near by. I needed water (I only had about 8oz) and started to walk up and down every game trail in the area. After 10-15 minutes of frustration, I finally gave up. Only to find the fricken’ shelter right in the middle of the trail 2 minutes later. Boy was I pissed. And to make maters worst, Ponderer was already in the shelter preparing for dinner. He goes on to tell me that, “This is one of the times I listened to “Wingfoot” (referring to the book). He says the shelter is right on the AT.” A bit of salt in the wound.
It was only 5pm (sunset was at 7pm and twilight didn’t end until 7:50pm), so I decided to continue on. And I wanted to finish on a downhill so my knees could rest all night.
After dinner, I hiked on a bit more. I camped with Zipoff (NOBO thru) just south of the Oberton Stream a few feet off the trail. In the morning I noticed a "better" spot just north of the stream on the old rail grade near a very cool waterfall. We both had tarps, Zipoff ate, I had a snack and journaled. Hung our food down the trail a bit and were in bed by 8:30pm.
It was a great night. A mild dry breeze all night. We had zero condensation on our traps in the morning even though we were in a low area less than 100 yrds from the stream.
Saturday, 4-Sept-2004, Orbeton Stream to Sugarloaf Hut, 12.2mi (including Mt. Abraham's blue blaze)
We were both up by 6am.
We had a pair of those very, very noisy squirrels near our site that put on quite a show for us during breakfast and camp pack-up. They’d chase each other all around and then one would run into their nest (a hole in a tree). The other would then scream at it from the outside. Rinse and repeat. It was quite funny.
Nice hike up to Lone Mtn (9am).
I don't see why Perham Stream isn't listed as a water source in the Data book. There was plenty of flow (mid-shin deep a spots) and it hadn't rained in several days. Heck even the marsh area just south of the stream had plenty of water.
I had a total of 2qts when I left the stream. I hated to carry that much water, but if the weather looked good when I crossed the blue blaze up to Mt. Abrahams, I’d need it for the side trip.
The early morning was a bit cloudy and it even sprinkled (just a few drops) for a couple of minutes. But when I hit the crossing the weather was fine, so I headed up toward Mt. Abraham's.
What an awesome trail. I loved the rocky stuff above the tree line. Again, my wind shirt and thin Polartec beanie proved their worth for a second day.
I ate lunch in a small rock wind break on the side of the old fire tower (?). While I was eating 4 guys walked up via the Mt. Abraham's trail. The first guy was a bit surprised when he saw me sitting on the other side of the tower.
Again, great views, nice warm sun and a bit of wind. Perfect. I took a picture of Sugarloaf Mtn from Mt. Abrahams so I could show folks where I ate dinner (at least I was hoping to make it there for dinner). I read in this months BP'er that some wacko wants to put windmills up there. Glad I got there first.
Finished lunch and hiked back down the blue blaze. I was back on the AT by 1:15pm. I stopped by the Spaulding Mtn Shelter around 2pm only to find a bit of graffiti left by Lone Wolf (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=4685&nocache=1).:D
I was hoping to make it to Sugarloaf Hut by 4pm so I could hike down to Crocker Cirque Campsite for the night. This resulted in my 2nd day of mileage frustration. The terrain (for me) was just too difficult to build up some speed. As such, I was barely doing 1.5mph (net). This really pissed me off. It wasn’t until Sunday morning after the tough climb to Horns Pond that I finally came to terms with this truth and adjusted my attitude.
On the climb up the Sugarloaf blue blaze I passed several day and section hikers. I asked all of them if the hut was open, but none bothered to check. Or assumed it was locked. I was a bit concerned it might be, but that proved otherwise.
NOTE: There is a small box spring half way up the Sugarloaf side trail. It had plenty of water in it even though it had not rained in a few (several?) days.
I arrived at Sugarloaf at 4:45pm, checked out the “summit” and views around the various communications buildings. I took a couple of pictures of Mt. Abrahams so I could show folks where I ate lunch. I then walked over to the large hut to find the door wide open (I guess no one noticed that earlier).
I setup “camp” inside. The “hut” has a working radio (FM only), toaster, microwave and a single light bulb, but no water nearby or a privy. There was a package of microwave popcorn lying on the table, but it seems as though a mouse beat me to it. Damn. That would have been a great treat.
The views from the building were great. I easily picked out Mt. Washington and Mt. Katahdin. Which I confirmed with the raised relief map located under a glass table in the hut. It is interesting to note that Mt. Washington, Sugarloaf and Katahdin appear to form a straight line.
I ate dinner, read the shelter log and a few articles from a climbing magazine left behind by someone. Took a few pictures of sunset and went to bed. I used this 2.5” piece of foam under my pad as a bed and used two the couch pillows as pillows. Quite comfy.
I was alone all night. A bit of wind made of a few weird sounds from time to time, but I fell right to sleep.
I awoke to a strange noise at 3:30am. Sounded like someone opening the door (they are quite heavy and need to be pulled open from the outside). So, I got up, turned on my head lamp and the single hanging light bulb. I checked the place out only to find nothing. I had to go to the bathroom real bad, so I made use of an empty Goat wine bottle that was lying around.
Sunday, 5-Sept-2004, Sugarloaf Hut to Safford Campsite (10.4 + 2.5)
I couldn’t get back to sleep until after 4am. I had set my alarm for 5am so I could get some views of the sunrise and an early start down to the Crockers. The alarm went off on time. It was at that point that I decided to sleep in and skip the Crockers. So many folks (all without prompting) told me to skip the Crockers that I decided I would. Besides, this would allow me to catch up with the rest of my group hiking SOBO from Caratunk earlier. Maybe I would hike with them the last day or so?
So, at 7am, I started down Sugarloaf USA Ski slopes. Damn was that tough. Steep down hills covered with long grass, random holes and large patches of undergrowth and 4”-12” pine trees made for slow going. The slopes looked so “empty” when viewed from the top. It took me 1 hour and 45 minutes to reach the bottom.
I ate a second breakfast at D’Ellies. Nice Everything bagel with eggs, cheese, mushrooms, bacon and salsa along with a bottle of Mt. Dew. That hit the spot.
I started walking out to RT27. About a quarter mile before the exit someone picked me up. The driver is working to build a hut-to-hut system in Maine similar to that run by the AMC. He dropped me off at the parking RT 27 parking lot.
I dropped off some trash, picked up some food and left a note. I was back on the AT by 10am.
The climb up to Horns Pond just about made me explode with frustration. Roots, rocks missing blazes, etc. 5.1 miles in 3.5 hours was more than I could take. It wasn’t until I reached the top that I changed my attitude about my expected mileage. I hit Horns Pond at 1:30pm.
I was so hot (it was barely 70F that day) I was planning to swim a bit in Horns Pond (http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/4687/password/0/sort/1/cat/500/page/1) after I ate lunch. Unfortunately, I ate lunch in the shade. I was freezing by the time I finished eating. Too bad, as a rinse off would have been nice.
I left for the Bigelows around 2:30pm. Unfortunately, both Bigelow peak and Avery peak were still stuck in a cloud (I think it was the only cloud in the area). It was kind of nice to see the cloud roll by, but I would have liked the views even more.
I ran into Baltimore Jack at the box spring just north of the Avery peak. We talked about 5 minutes as he was waiting for a friend to catch up. Told me his friend was having trouble with the rocks and hills. It was at this point, I realized he was talking about One-leg. I left Jack and ran into One-Leg 50yds later and wished him well.
Jack told me there wasn’t anyplace to camp between Safford Notch Campsite and Little Bigelow Lean-to. Damn, I wished I brought my hammock as there were plenty of hammock sites everywhere.
About 10 minutes (at the old man’s face lookout) later I ran into the rest of my group hiking SOBO. We talked about our adventures the past couple of days. And then went our separate ways.
At this point I was flying up/down the hills, as I had a major epiphany since Horns Pond. Trekking poles slow you down big time when hiking across the ugly terrain I was on. Once I realized it was easier to put one hand on a nearby tree and/or scoot down a rock face, I made great time. Of course having a 14# (wet) pack helps as well.
I arrived at Safford Notch Campsite around 7pm. Tossed up a line for a bear bag and setup camp on the #1 platform. There were 3 French Canadians (they made up 70%+ of the hikers I saw on this trip) at an “illeagal” site and another thru-hiker (Jersey) on the 2nd platform. I think 2 more folks arrived after dark as I could see headlamps moving through the woods while I was writing in my journal.
I ate dinner and setup my tarp pitched low on one side as there was a bit of a breeze rollin’ down the hill.
Monday, 6-Sept-2004, Safford Notch Campsite to East Flagstaff Rd (6.3mi).
I slept in, and didn’t leave camp until 8am. I only had to do 6 miles today. I was on Little Bigelow at 9:10am. At which time I took an hour break at a great look out in the warm sun.
Jersey stopped by and we talked for 30+ minutes. He did a thru last year and made it to the ME/NH border in early October as which point he assumed the weather would beat him to Katahdin. So, this year he started where he left off.
Apparently he ran into my brother, Father Ounce, back in CT while doing warm up hikes for this ME section.
I left the lookout and hiked another hour or so and stopped at another. I broke all backcountry etiquette by calling my wife as I had a great analog signal (probably from the towers on Sugarloaf which I could clearly see from my resting spot). We spoke for 20+ minutes.
Jersey arrived again. I stayed a couple more minutes and then left. While packing I ended up with a single sock drying on my pack. I assumed I had lost it somewhere. It wasn’t a real loss as they were the thin 3 pair for $2.80 socks from Wal-Mart. Later I found I had put 3 socks on my left foot and 2 on my right foot.
I stopped at Little Bigelow Lean-to for a snack and water. Three SOBO (flip?) hikers were there. I didn’t get their names. There was a young 20-something woman and a guy the same age wearing Keen sandals (couple?). Along with a silent fellow with a thin red beard. He appeared to be stoned, or just had a real problem focusing. I told them about Sugarloaf and later the 20-something guy asked me how to hike around the Crockers and up the slopes.
Just before I left a group (4-5) of 50-70 yo men arrived carrying trunks (well it looked like) on their backs. They were out for 2 weeks hiking from Monson to Andover (?). They were stopping for the day as I told them Safford Notch Campsite only had 2 platforms. Later I found out there are “campsites” (non-platform) at Safford Notch as well.
On the way out I passed what had to be a thru hiker. He asked where the water was located. I didn’t get his name.
I arrived at East Flagstaff Rd at 1:30pm. I decided not to do an out-n-back to West Carry, so I started to hitch. Within 10 minutes (2nd car), “Fred” and “Fat Daphne” in the Mystery Machine (complete with canoe on top) picked me up. They were camping on an island in Flagstaff Lake for the past few days and were now on their way out. I sat on a Rubbermaid container in the back of the van (I think Scooby had a more comfortable chair).
Fred appeared to be a bit drunk as the van tended to veer off the road from time to time (re-enforced by a Daphne commenting they just “stopped to make coffee”). When he veered Daphne would stare at him. Thankfully, he was only going 35mph as most cars were blowing by us on the left. Fred started bitching about ATV users (a common theme while in Maine) and outsourcing IT jobs to India.
I was in the car for 30+ minutes. I knew there was a quick way over to RT27, but they ended up taking me to North New Portland. Which I learn is about 40 miles from my car! I was actually closer to my car when I left the trail than in North New Portland.
I ran into a local grocery store, bought a drink and asked how to get to Stratton. I was pointed in the correct direction and left. About 1 mile later, a pickup with 3 folks inside stopped. “You guys going to Stratton?”. “No, we’re going to Jordan Lumber.” “OK, I have no idea where Jordan Lumber is located.” “It’s on your way.” “Great!”.
So, I jump into the back of the truck (portions of the bed literally held together with bungee straps). About 20 minutes later I was at “Jordan Lumber”. Now I was about 23 miles from the car.
There was a grocery store across the street. I should have just hung out in the lot and asked for a ride, but I didn’t. I walked along the road for quite a ways 30+minutes before a young kid (20?) picked me up. He was on his way into Stratton for the night and told me about the only place to stay in town was the White Wolf Inn (he worked there). He dropped me off at my car.
I picked up my street clothes, left trash, food and a note as I assumed the rest of my party would finish today as well. I wanted them to know where I would be staying.
I started walking down Rt27 toward Stratton. I was quickly picked up by a small car with 3 folks inside. I jump in to find out the front passenger (best described as Maine’s version of a crack whore) was smoking pot while drinking some Michelob Light. She was sharing the drink and pot with a skateboard toting 16-17yo kid in the backseat. I was kindly offered both, but refused.
The driver seamed “normal” and might have been the crack whore’s big brother. As he kept saying, “All we need to do is get you cleaned up a bit and everything will be fine.” Not sure the relationship anyone had (if any) with the young kid in the back seat.
They dropped me off at the White Wolf Inn ($25/night for hikers). And the young kid got out as well only to be seen riding his bicycle a few minutes later.
I was in Stratton about 4pm. About 2.5 hours after I left the trail.
I got a room, took a shower and came back down for dinner. I ordered the Wolf Burger (0.5# burger, with sausage patty, bacon, cheese and mushrooms) and fries. I needed 3 napkins just to eat the thing.
Overheard folks complaining about the anti-ATV crowd along with a statewide ballot issue which would outlaw baiting during bear hunting season. It is, as you know, part of Maine’s long and prestigious heritage.
The rest of my party never showed up. As I later learned they stayed at Cranberry Stream Campsite.
Tuesday, 7-Sept-2004
The rest of my party arrived at 8:45am. They took showers and grabbed a bit to eat from the local grocery. We packaged up our stoves to be mailed back home and dropped off the package on the way out of town (9:45a).
On the drive back we called Bluebearee and arranged a lunch meeting. We ate at some dinner type place in Gray, ME. We all had some great food and conversation.
We were at the airport by 2:30pm. The flights home were uneventful.
Conclusion:
This has to be the best backpacking trip I’ve had to date. Great views. Great weather (save for the cloud on Bigelow/Avery) and great hiking (after I learned to slow down and/or drop the poles). I learned quite a bit on the trip about my gear, techniques and pack weight. As this trip was, by far, my most aggressive pack weight to date. And, that alone, proved to be a real win. I’m already thinking how I can cut another pound or so from my pack weight.
While I had been warned several times about the trails being tough in NE I was expecting steep sections and such. That really wasn’t much of an issue. The footpath was the biggest issue. With the numerous mid-thigh steps and roots, it was just too difficult to get moving. And through this section you are either going up or down. There is very little level hiking. And putting the trekking poles away helped tremendously.
I’m sort of afraid to hike again as the weather has been perfect the last 3-4 trips. I figure I’m due for an ugly trip at some point.
On a personal note, the trip was a bit long to be away from family (7yo, 4yo, 10mo) at least until the kids are a bit older. So, this will probably be the last “long” trip I take for sometime unless I take 1-2 of the children with me.
I also discovered that I may “think” I don’t want anyone around, but I enjoy conversation. Not sure why, but on this trip I didn’t run into too much of the ****ty story tellin’ fools I’ve run into in the past on the trail. Maybe only serious folks hike in Maine. That, alone, made the short conversations more bearable.