Date: 2006-09-12
From: Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to

To: Rangeley, ME
Miles today: 9.4
Weather: clear sky

   The miles are flying by as Katahdin gets ever closer. We are sad and excited as we near the end of this AT expedition; sad because this has been an amazing journey and excited because of all of the plans that we have made while hiking. But there are still over 200 miles to go!   It's great to finally be in Maine. The last of the 14 states. Maine is full of lakes, ponds, evergreens, birches, and bogs. Today I became very well acquainted with one particular bog when I slipped off the bank and went in up to my knee. We had a good laugh and then Dad helped pull me out. That bog just wouldn't let me go.   When we first entered Maine we were still in the Whites. Whew. Those were some tough miles. We were beginning to get worried because we couldn't predict how far we'd be able to hike in a given day. After 1800 some miles we were pretty good at judging what our hiking speed would be and how far we could go, but that first bit of Maine threw us for a loop. There were a few tough climbs, but it wasn't that which was slowing us down. The trail was rugged. Roots, steep rocks, rock walls that were difficult to climb and dangerous to decend. Most of the time it was faster climbing up a mountain then down. Thankfully, since we left the Whites at Grafton Notch, the terrain has drastically improved.   Mahoosic Notch, part of that rugged section in the south of Maine, is supposed to be the toughest mile on the AT. It was. Aerobically, it didn't get you breathing very hard, but it was a boulder playground. Over boulders, around boulders, and even under boulders, we had a great time scrambling through that section. We even took our packs off to squeeze under some of the house-sized boulders. We took our time, taking lots of pictures and video. We found that there were so many white blazes in Mahoosic Notch that one could practicully go where-ever they wanted to and still be on the white-blazed AT. Someone must've gone haywire with the white paint because there were oodles of white blazes in every direction, white arrows, and even some white x's, whatever they were for.   Wildlife? Well, we've seen moose tracks, moose poop (they look like a pile of milk duds), but no moose in Maine. We chased a turkey up the trail and a female spruce grouse flew up into a tree right in front of us. Spruce grouse are as big as a football so it seems funny to see them perched in a tree looking down at you. We finally discovered the source of a loud, sharp, chattering call. We've heard it for a couple hundred miles now, and it always came suddenly and seemed to be trying to scare us away. We had thought that it was a kind of bird, but the source of the call was actually red squirrels. Now it's funny to hear them chattering at us, telling us to get a move on.    For the past couple days we've been hiking with Sleep Ninja, Old School, B-Rad, and a few others. The weather has been great for hiking during the day, but has dipped below freezing at night. (Thank goodness for our 0* bags). Since it's been cold, we've also had campfires for the first time in a long while. We're all glad that we got our stove sent to us in Glencliff. In the summer we didn't miss it, but a cup of hot tea and a steaming bowl of rice and salmon is a little slice of heaven when the mercury drops.        We'll try and update when we can, but internet access is becoming very few and far between. And today...   We were walking along, talking, looking forward to reaching Rangeley today when we come to the Little Swift River Pond campsite. We were surprised to find two canoes by the shore of the pond. Of course we had to try them out. We paddled around the lake for awhile before setting off on the trail again.      The miles zipped by as we talked about our plans for after the trail. Soon we were at the road leading into Rangeley. While we were hitching, a couple walked out of the woods and offered us a ride as long as we could fit in their small Toyota car. We made sure that we could fit. They dropped us off at the super market and then came back later to drive us down to the P.O. It¢s amazing how accommodating some people are.       Dad picked up our box at the P.O. (the camcorder charger) and then we sat down at a pavilion by the edge of the lake to eat lunch. I went to the library to update our trail journal and when I got back, Sleep Ninja had joined us at the pavilion. It was such a beautiful spot that we walked over to some condos bordering the park and asked if we could tent in their yard. We didn¢t realize the shower of hospitality that was going to be bestowed on us when the owner of the condo said ¢yes¢.