Date: 2004-08-24
From: Hurd Brook Lean-to

To: Katahdin Stream Campground
Miles today: 13.4
Weather: clear sky

My boots hit the trail before 8 in the morning. My emotions were a strange mix of sadness and screaming excitement. This was the end of the Hundred Mile Wilderness, in a way the last real day of the trail. Baxter State Park, Mount Katahdin and the last blaze were just ahead. The truth be told, with a little push, this could be my summit day. That thought didn't escape me. If there was any chance of being joined by friends, it would have to be tomorrow as advertised. Besides, the park folks had all sorts of rules about being off the mountain by this time and not starting the climb after that time. This all seemed kind of silly to a seasoned thru-hiker and one with 40 years backpacking experience. The object was to have a great time right now, not to make waves in protest. OK, OK, summit tomorrow as planned. Stop thinking about it.The View of Katahdin from Abol Bridge was a jaw dropper. That's all that can be said. It was just so huge, massive and solitary. The big waters of the West Branch of the Penobscot River in the foreground just made it all that much better. There were folks on the shore below readying canoes for launch. It felt like a recreation center.The bridge was however specifically designed for logging trucks. It was just a one lane affair with a sign depicting dimensions of its width at both the curb and the guard rail. Not wanting to get caught on that bridge when a logging truck came barreling through it was nice to be on the parallel foot bridge. This was just an exquisite day. Now, if tomorrow can just be as nice. That's asking a lot in northern New England.Across the bridge was the Abol Bridge Store and campground. Not knowing who or if there might be friends waiting for me ahead, a little resupply was in order. The store was well equipped for that and for souvenirs. There were picnic tables outside where I joined my fellow thru-hikers for some early lunch or snacks. There was a pay phone but it didn't take calling cards, only cash. That's because there were no phone lines here. This was a cellular pay phone. Pretty strange, but why not. Once more my attempts to call folks were met with answering machines. No one even left voice mail for me. They probably figured, not being at home, I wouldn't get it. Still this was getting a little depressing.There was no hurry today. It was only 13.4 miles to Katahdin Stream Campground or The Birches thru-hiker only campsite. So, after a leisurely 2 hours at the store, it was back on the trail around 11am. The rest of the gang was out ahead of me and headed for The Birches. Me, I didn't know. It depended on the possibility of finding friends ahead.Shortly a strange triangular kiosk appeared in the middle of the trail. There were all kinds of notices posted on it including yesterdays weather report that predicted sunny weather through Thursday. Yea! There was a thru-hiker register and a signup sheet for The Birches. There wasn't a lot of space at The Birches and it looked like it had filled up a few nights ago with folks with familiar names. It wasn't looking crowded yet for tonight. I signed up just in case.On a nice flat section of trail winding gently through the forest just a few feet from the river, a hiker approached in the opposite direction. It was obvious he was a thru-hiker. His name was Wildcat or something like that. I congratulated him. He headed south and I north. A little later the question came to mind. Where was he going? He just finished. Was he doing it again? Wow. I should have asked him. It was an opportunity missed.The trail was flat and easy. This was a happy day. It followed along rivers with occasional paddlers. Eventually it started to climb along some nice cascades. There were some nice big sunny slabs in the water way that just called out for a visit. This made a nice spot for lunch part 2. The water just cascaded down the rock. Some local hikers came by for a visit. They enjoyed some brief conversation with me but mostly it was just about soaking it all in for me. It was almost over. Savor these last few hours. No hurry.Shortly the trail broke away abruptly from the water. It was heading up to a height of land. Still it was just gorgeous. Then it began a slow descent and came out to a small grassy clearing, a parking lot and another trail register. Having signed the register, I turned to take a picture of the sign, ¢Katahdin Stream Campground ¢ 2.5 mi.¢ Then I looked up to find the white blazes on the other side of the parking lot. There was a couple standing there dead ahead in the parking lot staring at me and grinning. That was strange.Wow! It was Jim Derby and presumably his wife whom I had never met. This was the guy who suggested, a year ago, the idea of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. That was the seed that made this whole thing happen this summer. They lived in Maine, though nowhere near here. Maine is big. This was fantastic and what a surprise. They had already set up at the campground and just on a lark thought they would drive over here on the off chance they might catch me. They had just pulled in. Amazing. They offered me a ride but that wasn't going to happen. Chris took the truck back and Jim joined me for the short hike. We had started hiking and skiing the back country together back while he was a student on the Technical Crew back in Gilford, NH. That had to have been back in the early 80's over 20 years ago. We have shared a few adventures in the years since. We have stayed in touch over the years on a random though seldom basis. But our thought have always been with each other it seems. This was a great reunion.The next 2.5 miles was a pleasant moderate hike with Jim. At Katahdin Stream Campground we went straight to the Ranger Station. After registering with the ranger and paying my fee to spend the night, he gave me forms to be completed about my thru-hike and returned to the ATC. Of course, I had to checkout the hiker register there too and make my own entry. Rising Sun and M were there and it was fun for Jim and Chris to meet some other thru-hikers. Nobody and Alright had signed the journal just ahead of me.We walked over to the campsite Jim and Chris had secured. It was actually a little lean-to with a picnic table and a fire ring. The stream was just 30 feet away. Similar lean-tos were not far on either side with cars parked in between. This was a little strange compared to my usual lodgings. We had some good times, some good food and then some good sleep.It had been a short easy day of only 13.4 miles with only about 300 feet of elevation gain. It was tough to stop so early in the day. The company of a long time friend helped as did the gorgeous evening sky.