Date: 2015-09-18
From: West Carry Pond Lean-To

To: Pierce Pond Lean-To/Harrison's Pierce Pond Camps
Miles today: 10.0

I slept later than planned. During the summer the sun, birds, and heat had me up every morning by 5 or 5:30 a.m. Now that the sun is setting earlier and rising later, and it is a bit chilly in the mornings, it is easy to sleep a little later. It is hard crawling out of a warm sleeping bag, stripping down to change clothes, and putting on cold, damp, stinky clothes. This is by far my absolutely least favorite part of hiking the AT. At least in the warmer months my clothes had a 50/50 chance of drying if I hung them when I set up my tent. I hung my clothes last night, but they did not dry before I went to bed.By the time I hit the trail it was almost 8 a.m. It was another beautiful day. I feel incredibly fortunate regarding the weather. A while back southbounders and friends of mine who were hiking in Maine had to deal with rain and cold. They complained that the trail was a muddy mess and the water was high at the places hikers must ford. Locals have repeatedly told me that this September has been unusually warm. I am very lucky indeed.As is typical in Maine, the trail was rocky, rooty, and muddy. At times the roots looked like varicose veins holding the rocks to the trail. It is very easy to trip or turn an ankle on a root or rock, so at times I have to go very slowly and pick my way along the trail.The AT guide mentioned "East Carry Pond, beach at north end." I guess it is a matter of perspective. If 3 guys had not decided to take a break to smoke pot on the little sliver of sand, I probably would not have even noticed the "beach." Having lived in Florida for over 20 years, I would never have considered it a "beach." I did, however, really enjoy the forest. The tall straight evergreen trees provided wonderful shade, a very pleasant fragrance, and a carpet of needles that covered and cushioned the trail. I stopped at a bend in the trail at a particularly lovely spot and took a break. Along came "Tie," a solo hiking woman about my age who previously thru hiked the AT and was back doing a southbound section hike of Maine. She is also the manager of the Laughing Heart Hostel in Hot Springs. We chatted for quite some time.Tie highly recommended that I stop at Harrison's Pierce Pond Camps at least for breakfast (12 pancakes). She said better yet, get a cabin! I had considered stopping there or in Caratunk, but not both. As I moved on up the trail I noticed I was hiking on what appeared to be an old logging road. I also noticed I had not seen a white AT blaze in quite a while. Since I am now a "serious" AT hiker with Guthook, I pulled out my phone and fired up the app. Sure enough, Guthook showed that I was parallel to but east of the AT. So I cut through the trees and brush to my left. I stopped several times to recheck Guthook because I could not see the AT. Then Guthook updated and I was too far west of the AT. Apparently I had been on the AT all along. So I needed to cut back through the trees and brush to get back to the old logging road.Somewhere while bushwacking I lost my reading glasses. Since Springer Mountain I kept the same pair of glasses clipped to my shirt, and now they were gone. I felt terrible leaving something behind in the woods, but I never would have found them. I hope some aging chipmunk or red squirrel can use them. Fortunately I have a spare pair of reading glasses.As I reached the Pierce Pond Lean-To (gotta love the name - Pierce), I decided to follow Tie's advice and took the blue blazed trail to Harrison's. It is a place time has forgotten.   There are several little cabins surrounding a main building that serves as the dining and recreational hall.I found Tim, the owner, in the kitchen. For about $60 I got a cabin, a hot shower, a huge delicious dinner, and a huge delicious breakfast in the morning. Tim was extremely hospitable. Usually hikers just get a cabin and breakfast for $40. He let me add dinner.Tim explained that there had been many similar sporting camps all over Maine. In fact, AT hikers went from camp to camp before shelters were used. Wealthy sportsmen also used the camps, sometimes staying for the entire season. According to Tim, almost all of the other sporting camps are now gone.The daughter of FDR and her husband spent their honeymoon at the camp long before Tim owned it. Pictures of Ana and a mount of one of the fish she caught are displayed on the walls.The only other overnight guests were an older couple. For dinner I had chowder, a very large salad, a huge baked potato, a very large ear of corn, and a very big ribeye steak. I ate more than enough for 2 people - I know because I kept track of what the couple ate. I was too stuffed for dessert - a banana split.I slept great in the cabin. There was no electricity, only oil lamps. A wood stove was in the corner for heat if I was cold. I did have a sink with cold water and a flush toilet. I also had visitors in the middle of the night. At midnight I heard some rustling noises. I had emptied the contents of my pockets onto the table, which included left over trail snacks I collected my food, put it all in my bear bag, and hung it on the hook made from a coat hanger, which was hanging from a nail on one of the log ceiling beams. Then I went back to sleep. Sleeping with critters no longer bothers me, but they cannot mess with my food!!The AT is calling. What a great adventure to stay at this rustic sporting camp right along the AT! Thank you Tie for encouraging me to stop here!