Date: 2004-07-12
From: The Birches Campsite

To: Baxter Peak, Katahdin
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: broken clouds

Trail Day 112 -        A very special day!daily miles 10.4 on ATMichael set my watch alarm for 6 am, but we boiled water for oatmeal at the Ranger station so we did not start up until 7. I asked Michael, who always set the pace, to go easy on me. Michael was always very patient and a joy to have as a hiking partner. My competitive streak kicked in when we passed some young people who were tying bootlaces. I thought they expected to quickly overtake this old man who passed them but I stayed ahead for most of the ascent, passing several others my age on the way. The first mile was not very steep and it followed Katahdin Stream. After that we began 2.5 miles of steep rock climbing taking us from 1500 ft. to 4600 ft. It was a clear blue sky day with low humidity and endless views. We left the treeline at 3500 ft. and it looked like we were on top of the world. The rocks piled straight up in front of us and fell away from us behind and on both sides. Michael advised me on hand and foot holds in tricky places. We were both having great fun scrambling up the rocks. We paused to take in the views at each topping out point. With only a daypack, we were free to climb without burden.We reached the Table Land, a flat plateau at 4600 ft. that is an easy walk for about a mile. We could see the rest of the trail before us leading up to Baxter Peak. I was starting to tire from the sudden altitude change and slowed down. The trail was rocky but it was not difficult. I struggled to climb the last ascent of about 500 ft. and felt a wave of emotion when I reached the Baxter Peak sign. Although my thruhike was not complete, I felt we had accomplished a significant journey in coming through the 100 mile wilderness and summiting Katahdin and it had not been easy. I was glad I had done it with Michael.I asked Peanut to take our photo but my camera battery was too too low. Michael had his camera also, so all of our Katahdin photos were taken in black and white. We rested at the top for 45 minutes and exulted with Pickle and Peanut and all the other hikers who were up there, enjoying the 360 degree view of Maine mountains and lakes. The sky was crystal clear and you could see all the way to the horizon. It had taken us 3 hours and 15 minutes to get to the top and it would take the same time to get back down. Going down was trickier because it was harder to see where to put our feet and easier to slip off the rock. We met several groups of summer camp hikers going up as we descended. At Hunt Spur, a young couple were in the middle of an argument because she refused to climb any further. When we reached the stream, we almost ran the rest of the way, happy to be done. Now Michael would go back home to Florida and I would return to Monson to hike south to Harper's Ferry. For days I had been feeling sad about Michael going home and leaving me to hike without him. His company was a delight and he was a great source of encouragement with his constant positive attitude. I was accustomed to seeing his colt like movements leading the way up the trail. I did not know how I would deal with the blues I would inevitably get when he was gone. And I was not looking forward to more of Maine's rough steep trails and dark and low, wet and buggy bogs. When we reached Millinocket, I talked about this with my wife and she devised a plan that would delay my parting from Michael and make it easier for me to continue on. I also considered getting off the trail and going back home to Florida because it was hard to see Michael going home without me. He was happy about the prospect of seeing his girlfriend and I would like to see my wife. But he had new challenges waiting for him in Florida, and I still had 1000 more miles of trail.