Date: 2008-07-25
From: The Birches Lean-tos (Katahdin Base)

To: Katahdin Base (Millinocket)
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

I woke up this morning to a slight drizzle and an empty shelter. LT and Dirty Harry were out by 0600 I was back to sleep by 0630. The plan for today was to have the rest of the family start at 0700 from the Saddle Trail on the other side of the mountain. I was to wait until 0930 and meet them on top. To be honest, I was rather worried. If it was drizzling and breezy at 1000' the summit would be brutal¢¦especially for one party to stay up there waiting for the other. I had no cell service so I couldn't call them either. But, one thing you learn out here is that problems tend to work themselves out and this was no different. The Stevenson clan had enough sense to come visit me first and make a decision. I'm usually not too picky on weather forecasts when it comes to hiking but Katahdin is different. Not only would I love to have clear weather for the big day, but if my family is climbing, it changes things. No matter what trail you take, Katahdin is no walk in the park. The rest of the family wouldn't exactly love climbing tough mountains in rain and wind, so the decision wasn't too difficult. I've got plenty of time, no one misses another day of work by waiting (it's the weekend) and Saturday's weather is looking much better. So, I shall wait one more day. While we were in the area, we strolled over to the Ranger Station and trailhead where we met Time Traveler and her family. They were going up in a few minutes but we squeezed in some ceremonial photos. Good luck! Zeroing today got me to thinking about an idea that Kirby had mentioned a few weeks back. He told me that some thru hikers purposely end their hike at the base of Katahdin to "prove" that their hike was about the journey rather than the destination. While it is a bold idea, reaching the end is part of the journey as well. Stopping 5 miles short reminds me of a tagline on Napoleon Dynamite movie posters: "He's out to prove that he's got nothing to prove." While fun to entertain, I think I'll climb Katahdin. Even though this trip has truly been about the journey, the truth is that Katahdin is a damn cool mountain and I want to climb her. She represents all the hard work, determination, joy, and all those other nifty words that people use while attempting to describe what it¢s like to hike 2176 miles. I will simply wait one more day. So, my father, mother, brother Ryan, and sister Julia headed back to Millinocket for breakfast at the AT caf©. There¢s a board for the ¢08 thrus to sign at the caf©, so I signed within a silhouette stick of dynamite. I took the liberty of signing despite not climbing yet. Sue me. Since there isn't a whole lot to do in Millinocket besides eat and visit the Antique Snowmobile Museum, we headed back to our cozy family cabin and watched some riveting daytime TV. After a few hours, all of us were itching to go do something. I know, lets go¢¦.hiking! That's right folks¢¦I hike on my zero days. So, back to the park we went for a 2.5 mile loop through some standard flat trail. The highlight was an excellent pond-side vista with Katahdin in the background. It was still clouded in (which made me feel better about zeroing) yet it was still beautiful. My brother Ryan, who brought his awesome camera and photography skills for the occasion, got some great photos of all of us (along with some bear poop). We met Isaac at the Ranger Station when we got back and he recommended a few restaurants in the area. The family decided on the Three Rivers restaurant/bar where we had a waitress who was an 11 on a 1-10 hyperscale. In preparation for the big day tomorrow, we all were in bed by 2200. I can¢t wait. "Man is born to die. Its works are short lived. Buildings crumble, monuments decay, wealth vanishes, but Katahdin in all its glory forever shall remain the mountain of the people of Maine." ~ Percival Proctor Baxter