Date: 2006-08-11
From: Branch of Nahmakanta Stream

To: Rainbow Spring Campsite
Miles today: 19.5
Weather: light rain

This morning Josh was up and rearing to go before me, which was a first. I could only chalk it up to one thing: "happy pills." Of the few items we picked up at White House Landing, the most important was another 20 or 30 Vitamin I. We were both feeling good as the miles slipped away today. One of the shelters we passed on the trail had been featured in a film about the AT I had seen before I started, and it felt weird to recognize it despite the fact that I'd never been there before. We took a break at this shelter, during which we got to experience a decent little spat of pea-sized hail. Many hikers I've met have told stories of "golf ball sized" hail at various spots on the trail, but I actually hadn't seen any hail at all until now.While the weather today may have been somewhat sporadic, the weather for the week overall has been fantastic. It's only rained on us twice, and both times it was late in the day or at night, and by the next morning had cleared up again. The best news of all came last night, when the folks at WHL informed us that the weekend (which was when our summit bid was planned) was forecasted to be clear and sunny! I had hoped and prayed for just that sort of news, but you never really know what you'll get. Even still, things could change, but it's sounding pretty good at the moment. After enduring so many different kinds of weather, you'd think that thru-hikers wouldn't really care what kind of weather they summited in, but the truth is that for the past month or so we've all been harboring this hope for good weather on D-day in the back of our minds, even when we weren't talking about it. It's even become a standard farewell to hikers you think you might not see again: "hey, see ya! good luck- hope you have good weather on Katahdin..."The big story of the day can be seen in the picture above. Yes, my first and only moose on the trail! And it wasn't just a sighting- it was an encounter. First though, I have to give you some background. I've been dying to see one ever since I entered moose country back in Vermont. I've been asking tons of people whether and where they've spotted them, and this whole time, the clock's been ticking as the end of my hike drew near. So yesterday, as I was hiking, I took it up with my Father in Heaven. Keeping it simple, I just told him what I wanted, reminded him that there were only two hiking days remaining, and left it at that. The Bible says that God loves to give good gifts to his children, so I guess I shouldn't have been surprised when the very next day, a cow moose decided to get up close and personal with us.Josh saw it first, although we both had heard the splashing. We were hiking beside a stream/bog, and I knew that that sound wasn't just water running over rocks. "Moose!," he hissed, in a voice I was sure would scare away all but the bravest of creatures. "Get your camera!" There was some thick brush between where we were on the trail and the water, and as we tried to get a better look, the moose apparently had the same idea. It suddenly turned and started coming directly towards us, crashing purposefully through the brush. A caretaker on the trail had told me that a cow moose can sometimes be aggressive if it feels that its young are threatened, but this one appeared to be alone. Nevertheless, we didn't want to take any chances with an animal that was a good foot or two taller than me, so we both found sturdy trees to get behind. The moose stopped about twenty feet short of us and just looked us over for a while, then stomped back in the direction from which it came. From there it circled around, emerging on the trail we had just traversed. After a couple of pics my camera battery ran out, and I had time to switch over to a new one while the ever-so-helpful moose ventured back out into the water and started paralleling the trail upstream. We continued up the trail and watched as it splashed along until it was ahead of us, then crossed the trail and headed into the woods on the other side. Josh and I were so excited, all we could say for a while was "that was AWESOME!" Some sightings are simply of a rear end while the animal runs away, but we got to see this moose in the water, on the trail, in the woods, beside us, behind us, ahead of us, and coming directly at us! And best of all, I knew it was a blessing from God in answer to my prayer of the day before. I continued on my way feeling that my hike was now complete, my cup was running over, and my faith was strengthened.