Date: 2011-10-05
From: Katahdin Stream Campground

To: Katahdin Summit
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: scattered clouds

The big day had arrived. One more mountain to climb. One more day of adventure. One more day with the best friends - no close family - "Hopeful", "Nate Dog", "Guinness" and "Sweet Tea". One more day in paradise. In a few days, I'll back home to the life I had before the trail. For now, let me enjoy one more day of adventure. We were dropped off at the campground where we stopped the day before. We registered at the ranger station and I got a day pack. This ended up being the only day that I hiked without full gear. "Nate Dog"s friend BJ took several pictures of us with Katahdin in the background. Then he and "Sweet Tea"s friend joined us for the days adventure. The trail up the mountain can be broken up into three sections. The first part is a gentle grade, the second part is the tough, steep section full of rock scrambles and the last part, known as the tablelands, is a gentle sloped trail of all rocks. As we hiked along, the weather seemed good with just a fair amount of wind. As we got into the second part, the wind picked up and it began to sleet. Once above the treeline, the wind really became strong. I began to worry about the conditions. Being stuck on top a mountain in severe weather is very dangerous. Were we foolish to continue? I really didn't want to turn around and wait for the weather to clear but was ready to if the weather made the summit impossible. When we got to the edge of the Tablelands, we gathered together to ask the question if we should continue. It was in the low 30's, the wind was 50 to 70 mph and it was sleeting fairly hard. The water on the rocks hadn't frozen so we thought we could summit, take pictures and head back down. By the time we got close to the top, the temperature had dropped into the mid twenties and the rocks became ice covered. We pressed on. We knew were clsoe to the top but the fog made it difficult to see more than about 20 feet. Suddenly, the coveted goal came into sight, the sign on top of Katahdin. We were done! Everything was snow covered. The winds were ferocious. We each had our picture taken on top of the sign then spontaneously, we gathered for a group hug. BJ took a picture of it but what wasn't captured was the length of time we embraced and the emotion expressed in what was said to each other as well as not said. "Hopeful", "Guinness" and I had completed the hike under tough circumstances both physical and mental. The emotion of the moment was the realization that we prevailed despite these difficulties. We didn't quit. We encouraged each other when things got difficult. In a way, we were truly a team. We immediately began our trek back down the mountain. At times, the wind would gust to the point where we couldn't walk. Each step had to be done with care because of the ice on the rocks. At every point, I found myself placing my foot between rocks so that I wouldn't slip. In some places, there was no option but to slide down on our butts. Eventually we made it to the treeline where the wind wasn't as bad. Afterwards, we were on the easy section and were able to move fairly quickly. Back at the campground, we celebrated with others who had also summitted that day. Symbolic of the whole journey, we prevailed against some pretty tough conditions. The sobering news was that a lady who arrived at the summit after us ended up slipping on the ice and breaking her leg as she descended down the mountain. This was a reminder of how dangerous it was up there. One thing was clear, team yardsale was as close as family. I don't know how long these words will exist in cyberspace but I do know the memory of our adventure and our friendship will last a lifetime. What I feel right now is a strange mixture of emotions. In a way, the trail had become my new home and now, I was heading to my home back in Tennessee. Also, my life was upside down when I started and now, there is uncertainty as to what the future holds. But, like the journey I just completed, it is a new journey, full of surprises, joys and adbenture. Like the one that was just completed, it is to be enjoyed no matter what the circumstances. I've learned that everything will work out. I hope in time, I will be able to verbalize these feelings. For now, I'll simply have to be content to enjoy the accomplishment. We climbed into our friend's vehicles and headed back to town to have a celebration dinner. Soon, we all would be heading for home.