Date: 2012-09-22
From: Katahdin Stream Campground

To: Baxter Peak, Mt Katahdin
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: moderate rain

Day 184: Well....this is it. Today is summit day. Sitting around at the cabin last night, we were not sure exactly how to feel. So many thoughts, memories, and emotions running through our heads as we make a feeble attempt to grasp the finality of this grand adventure. Soon, we will hike the final 5.1 miles of the Appalachian Trail, and then we will all go our separate ways as we re-enter the civilized world. Some will go back to jobs that wait for them. Some will go back to school. Many, however, will struggle as they try to figure out what to do next with their lives. One thing that we will all share though is that we will always have this wonderful adventure as part of our being and that at any time, we can call upon all of the wonderful memories the trail has left us with. I have done my best to describe our hike in this journal, and when I get back home, I will do my best to try to convey the hike to my family and friends, but as has probably been said by many past thru-hikers, one can never do justice to describing the trail experience in spoken words or writing. Only by doing this hike can you truly understand. It is simply an amazing experience. We rise at 4:30 this morning, and Sparky and I prepare a quick breakfast of scrambled eggs and pancakes. Easy, Gravity, and their friends meet us all here at the cabin at 5:30, and soon we are all in cars heading towards Katahdin Stream Campground. Looking out the window as we drive, the morning light begins to push aside the darkness revealing a cloudy day. We can see mountain peaks beyond the lakes as we pass by them and are encouraged that the weather will hold out today. At 6:30, we reach the campground and get ready for our final assault of Mt Katahdin. Photos are taken, day packs and clothing for the day are donned, and then we are on our way. Our son, Patrick, our daughter, Molly, SilverGirl, and I hike together. Our plan is to meet the rest of our hiker family at the top. The first mile is relatively easy as we ascend gradually. Reaching our first viewpoint, we can see blue sky and sunshine on some of the distant mountains, but here on Katahdin, low clouds swirl across the valleys below us. Overhead, the clouds are pretty solid and moving across the sky at a good clip. The air is cool and gets cooler still as we gain elevation. Ascending further, the trail becomes steeper and soon we break out of the tree line. Above us looms what appears to be a nearly vertical climb up through huge boulders. By now, the clouds have begun ro close in over us and it starts to drizzle. A cold breeze blows the drizzle sideways and soon we are enveloped in the clouds. The going is extremely slow and difficult as we pick our way up through the mass of boulders. It seems that whenever we reach the top of one section, a new, nearly vertical section of boulders emerges from the fog. After a seemingly endless climb, we finally emerge onto the Tableland, a flat stretch of the mountain before the final climb to the summit. By now, the wind has picked up considerably, the temperature has dropped, and the drizzle has turned into a driving sideways rain. We are all getting cold at this point, but there's no turnimg back now. Climbing the last stretch up to the summit, we finally see the summit sign emerge from the clouds. We have made it - 2184.2 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to the summit of Baxter Peak on Mt Katahdin. At the top, we find Sparky, Passionflower, Voltron, Easy, and Gravity there waiting for us. SilverGirl and I do our picture thing on mmthe summit sign and then we get some group pictures. The weather is just plain nasty, and everyone is anxious about getting off the mountain so we don't linger there for long. The descent is downright dangerous as conditions continue to deteriorate. At one point, we feel a bit of sleet pelting our faces. More thru-hikers are still ascending as we descend, and a couple of the crazy young kids are climbing without shirts for God knows why. I say to SilverGirl on the way down that someone on the mountain is going to get hurt today, and sure enough, a little further down on the steep rocks, we come across a young woman being practically carried by two men. She has blown out her knee and can't walk without a lot of help. Patrick, Molly, SilverGirl, and I pick our way down through the rocks with extreme caution while shivering with the first symptoms of hypothermia. Fortunately, we all make it unscathed back down to the parking lot. Looking back at todays climb and descent, it has to rank as the hardest climb and descent in adverse conditions we had on the entire thru-hike. It is unfortunate that the weather could not have been better today, but reaching the summit sure was sweet nevertheless. We are tired and ready to go home now. I don't know how many times I will say this during the coming weeks, but I can't believe we're done! Where has it gone?  It all seems like such a blur now. Tomorrow morning, we will say goodbye to Sparky and Janet and make rhe 5-1/2 hour drive back home. Passionflower will come home with us for the night, and then we will bring her to the airport on Monday for her flight home to Florida. Thankyou to all of our readers, family, and friends who have helped, encouraged, and supported us along the way. We could not have finished this hike without you. You are all trail angels.