Date: 2004-09-26
From: Abol Bridge Campground

To: The Birches
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: clear sky

Abol Bridge Campground has an odd cellular pay phone. You have to pay a dollar per three minute call even to a tollfree number. Still I tried it and managed to get my email. I got two welcome surprises.First, The Walking Stomach is back on the Trail! She fell and hurt her knee back at Mount Mooselauke and had to get off. She is rejoining Little Tree at Monson to hike the Wilderness and Katahdin. I hope her knee holds out and she makes it.Second, my father is coming to meet me! With the sketchy phone here and no phones after until Millinocket the best I could do was send him a reply telling him to meet me at the Ranger Station after the climb or contact me at the hostel afterwards.I managed to send that reply as well as my accumulated journal entries. But when I tried later in the evening to see if there was a reply, it just beeped coyly at me and disconnected.A thundershower rolled though at dark. I guess my tent needed rained on once more before finishing! When I woke at midnight it was clear with a nearly full moon so I tried getting a moonlit shot of Katahdin from the bridge.I tried the phone again twice in the morning but no luck. I hope my father gets my message and understands where to meet me.I got hiking about 8. Late but still first on the Trail. I was the first to get to the entry kiosk and sign up for a spot at the Birches tonight. The Birches is a site for thruhikers with room for 12 in two small lean-tos and in tentsites. TOM (The Old Man) showed up then and signed in right after me.Just after the kiosk I found three blueberries. That made me glad, as I had worried I might not find any today. I slowly savored them one by one. The last had a marvelous raisin flavor that burst on my senses. Then came a blackberry. Making my way over boulders get to a line of stepping stones leading to a footbridge I slipped and drenched one foot. Along Daicey Pond were still more bushes full of those dark blueberries. I might have eaten quite a few except that I really wanted to get to the Birches. I settled for several handfuls plus a big handful I saved in my waterbottle to eat on the summit. Lighter than champagne and in a way more appropriate!At Elbow Pond I saw TOM standing on the footbridge over the outlet stream looking out over the pond. I looked and there was a moose! It was the first moose I have seen while hiking since my first morning in Vermont. It was too far away to tell if it was male, but later TOM told me he had seen it close up and it was female. Sigh. I have not seen a bull moose the whole hike. They avoid me just like the bears do.At the Ranger Station at Katahdin Stream Campground TOM and I registered, paid the $9 fee and selected daypacks to use on the ascent tomorrow. In the morning we will leave our own packs and heavy gear at the Ranger Station. Then off to the Birches to settle in.I ate, finished the mystery novel I had gotten from Cooper Brook and relaxed the rest of the day. I also organized my gear for the climb. I sorted through all my clothing selecting prospective things to bring in one stuffsack, including Goretex top and bottom, windpants, fleece pullover, balaclava, glove liners and a pair of leather gloves I bought in Monson when someone warned us about sharp rocks. I added a heatpack, spaceblanket and firstaid pack and hooked the compass/whistle, knife and flashlight to the cord. The clothing to leave went in the other stuffsack. Map and park permit went into the daypack tonight. I will use the sack as a pillow, then just add it and a plastic bag with snacks and the daypack is ready to go. My main Pack I can load tomorrow for travel home instead of hiking. Rather unusual after all these months. Everything inside where it won't get lost and I won't have to bother with waterproofing and plastic bags.5 Miles Left! WOW!