Date: 2008-06-26
From: East B Hill Rd (Andover)

To: South Arm Road (Andover)
Miles today: 10.1
Weather: broken clouds

Alright, folks. An update opportunity has come about- again. I find myself back at the Cabin tonight after an agonizing decision. I tell you- I am a horrible decision maker sometimes. My trail name should be "Fret"...no lie. I don't ever want to make a 'bad' decision that may lead to regret. But I have to make a decision FIRST before that can happen.. sometimes I find myself at an irritating stand-still. Whew... I finally decided I would do 10 miles slack pack...I know some of you all don't like those words when it comes to a thru-hike.. :/ But I did it today. This will result in time for my left ankle to chill out. I continue to schimmy the thing on a daily basis here lately- frustating! I have also found myself so worn out- unable to recuperate from the beat down from the Whites! haha...it is unreal to me. So, the rest tonight will be welcomed. I will have some tough days ahead this next week, but I will just do what I have been doing- hiking!The hike today took me up and over Moody Mountain. I tell you- NH and ME LOVE taking you straight up, no lie. I have never walked up so many rock faces in my entire life. I have had some crazy rock scrambles, as well. The roots are helpful at times and obstacles the rest of the time. The rocks vary in size and quanity on trail. The mud is seemingly never ending. I did ford my first river today. I could have walked across with my shoes on, but I wanted to soak the feet...Fording- plenty of that to come! I was able to finally get some distance covered as we hiked because the trail was more conducive to hiking and not climbing today- unlike the previous week's worth of trail. I met Crazy Legs (started March 8th) and Marathon (started March 24!)...they plan on finishing on July 8th. I may or may not see them again. I am with the "Georgia Boys"- One Flop and Hurricane, as I have affectionately decided to label them. We will hike out tomorrow morning and head NOBO...planning on hitting Stratton in three days. There will be some good climbs in there, but we see the 'flat land' in the near distance. Shucks- Katahdin is in 'near distance'... haha...but I do have 246.4 miles left. We should meet back up with Strides, Waterbear, Stormennorm, Marathon, and Crazy Legs in Stratton. They all did somewhere in the 20 mile distance today...we'll make the distance up in the next three days.I have so many scrapes, bruises, gashes on my legs and arms from the past two weeks. It is ridiculous... I look beat up! haha. I have been extremely tough on my body- slipping at any moment, repeatedly each day! haha..entertaining for those around and unsettling for me each time I step my foot on a wooden plank or attempt a descent on a rock face. The trail out here is funny in many ways!I will update a little more on my Whites experience..and my first few days in Maine. Immediately I think of the climb from Mizpah to Madison, which took me up Mt Washington. It was biker day- so only those on motorcycles were allowed to drive up. I had Strides, One Flop, and Hurricane hiking behind me all morning. They were great motivators in keeping me going on a steady pace to the Lake of the Clouds hut and then up Washington. As we hit the top of Washington, it was cloudy and windy and chilly...Surprisingly enough I began to tear up. It was weird because it hit me out of NOWHERE! I sat on a bench and took it in. I had just hit the milestone of Mt Washington- some place we had once only talked about and made 'I wonder what it will be like' statements about..and I was finally there. I was there with a group of people I had never dreamt of being with. I was there because I walked there- from Georgia... It hit me- my trip is truly my own. I am thru-hiking- for real... not just dreaming it up. It hit me- I have actually been making progress... it is tough to explain. But as we all figured out what we were doing, the sky opened up a little bit. The blue sky was short lived, but I appreciated it. We took a group photo and then I took an individual picture. After snacking and feeling overwhelmed by the people at the summit, we hiked down. We did not moon the Cog, but Strides did moon some bikers...haha.. The hike to Madison hut was great. As we left Madison and went back down below tree line, I was saddened.. The rocks and treeless peaks were so cool...seeing what we climbed the day and half before was neat. I rock hopped and took it all in- stopping several times to gaze out on the vastness of what was around me. I felt so tiny, yet so full of life.I met Neptune at Pinkham Notch- cool guy going SOBO. We were going to stay at Carter Hut, but as we bagn to climb Wildcat at 3 pm, it rained. None of us wanted to deal with it in the rain, so we hitched into Gorham for the night. We decided to climb it the next day- great decision. Wildcat, Carter Notch, and Mt Moriah (total of 21 miles that day) really took me for a spin. The climbs were long, sometimes steep. Wildcat and Carter had several peaks- the neverending mountains! The smooth descent into Gorham was a God sent gift... I was appreciative for the sun that day, although it did rain for about 15 minutes to re-wet everything! On my way to Pinkham Notch, though, I ran into the Moose. That thing scared me, like I mentioned last entry. I was crusining into the notch. Before I knew it, I was about 10 feet from the butt of this huge animal. It then registered to me- OH, A MOOSE! AH! I immediately turned around and went southbound. I did not want to startle the thing. I then went back NOBO, but singing and hitting my poles together. That just got her attention...she wasn't scared of me. She then started walking towards me- OH BOY! I walked so fast SOBO, again.. repeated my singing thing...she walked my way again. I was alone and wigging out. I did not need her charging me. Finally I hear her take one step into the woods. I decided to get a stick and toss it her way to see if it would get her to move into the woods.. and it worked. I threw one more stick- she moved into the woods..and then I ran so fast down trail. haha.. If that was on video, all of you would pee your pants because I was so scared. Glad that was over.The Whites offered some spectacular sights to see- no doubt about it. I would love to bring people here and see there reactions to those mountains. I started out skeptical of the grandeur of the Whites..and I have left convinced that they are awesome... They KICKED my tail- boy, did they...but they left me satisfied with knowing my hard work was matched by some unbelievable thrills and joys!Um- Out of Gorham all I could think of was that Maine border. It took forever- it seemed. When we got there, I let out a hoot and a holler. It was not as sweet as I anticipated..but I am in Maine. Today as I was fording the river it finally hit me.. I AM IN MAINE! Wow...Ok- dinner time. There is a little more for you all to read.. Enjoy this day. Thanks, you all, for your love and support. Keep the comments coming. I REALLY enjoy reading them.