Date: 2003-08-30
From: Bald Mountain Lean-to (1280')

To: Horseshoe Canyon Lean-to (880') 
Miles today: 13.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Aloha! I'm pretty sure you've heard this before but just in case you missed it... DAMN I LOVE THIS JOB! How many of you can say that and truly mean it? Hopefully lots. It's an awesome feeling when you can.This morning started off like every other one - tent down, pack up; breakfast, teeth brushing, good laughs with the other camp mates, and on the trail. Last night's crew of Recycled, Hot Dog, Wench, Coffee, CeeBee, Old Corpus, Don Quixote (all in the shelter), and Mountain Dancer was an excellent group to spend the evening with. It's beginning to look like this may be the group of folks that summit together or near. That's alright with me. They're a great stand-in for the '01 Class.Recycled, Wench and Hot Dog decided early on to hike the 22 miles into Monson today due to the much easier terrain profile. Those remaining chose to hike the 13 miles to this shelter. We were all in shock at our early arrival hour (2:30p) after having spent the day meandering along, picking blueberries, munching, breaking as we went, and basically enjoying the much "kinder and gentler" terrain. Even though the weather wasn't completely on our side (overcast and quite chilly when not hiking) it was still a very pleasant day. There was a brief moment of thought and discussion of continuing on ourselves but we sat just long enough for the feeling to pass. Sometimes it just works that way.The trail over was, as I said, relatively easy. It started right off with the hardest part of the day - a 1350' climb to the top of Moxie Bald Mountain (2629'). It wasn't all that high when compared to everything else we've been doing in the past weeks but it was still a huffer. This one had to go near vertical at points. Once on top, the winds kept us from lingering long, to chilly. We did for a moment though since this was supposedly the first spot from which we would be able to see Katahdin on the AT. Luck wasn't with us today - no Katahdin.Coming off the top, the terrain resembled a perfectly placed rock sidewalk at a slightly sloping angle. Perfect for hiking... on a dry day. As I watched Coffee slip but not fall, CeeBee watched me slip but not fall. Then as she brazenly laughed at my slip, down she went - sliding nicely into home. A perfect sliding maneuver. Since there was no blood and she wasn't hurt we could only score her an 8 for style and grace. A softball coach would have been proud.With no other slips or slides to entertain us, excluding those that had pushed ahead to Monson, we all arrived at the Moxie Bald Lean-to at the same time. A perfect place and setting for a snack. The lean-to sits very near the edge of the pretty Bald Mountain Pond. Supposedly many moose are in the area but as usual, not while we were. It was still a great break with loads of laughs to be had.Our first big picture stop came shortly after departing. I originally thought Piazza Rock was a formidable looking monstrosity. In comparison to the ones we went through today though, it was just a big rock set atop another big rock. Today's rocks may not have been quite as big but their precarious looking settings made them a blast to play on and with. All took numerous pictures. I'll show you when I get home.It took us forever to arrive at the West Branch of the Picataquis River (940'). (Say that name fast or slow... if you can.) Normally this river is knee-deep and can be dangerous during periods of heavy rain. Such wasn't the case today. It wasn't even knee-deep. As a matter of fact, it probably only made ankle-deep in a spot or two. The fording opportunity I had been looking forward to all day wasn't going to happen. Bummer; it adds a bit of excitement. Well, there's one more chance when we ford the East Branch tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.From there it was an easy three miles to here. As I said in the beginning, we arrived much earlier than anticipated so there was quite a bit of discussion about continuing on. It really didn't take long to blow it off. We're it tonight. Besides the ATV¢rs on the other side of the river, no one else has opted to join our merry band of hikers. Couldn't have pleased us more. We've whiled away the hours by modeling sleeping bags (Coffee), journal writing (CeeBee), logistic planning for the upcoming weeks (everyone), and testing Mountain Dancer's stove in comparison to Coffee's and mine. It's been a good day with great people and respectable mileage. We're all pleased.Tomorrow will take us in to Monson; pretty much our last town stop on the trail. We've all made reservations at Shaw's Boarding House where we hear there's a fantastic cook. The cooking includes an AYCE breakfast and dinner. We're all looking forward to it since most of us will also be taking the following day off too. One last zero before the final push to the end. It's needed.For me there are two additional reasons for looking forward to getting to Monson - Pizazz and Gutsy. As I last heard it, Pizazz was hoping to come hike for a couple of days but obligations elsewhere are not going to allow her the time. So instead she is going to drive up for a visit. Excellent! When she found that Gutsy was still at The Cabin awaiting transportation out she decided to pick her up along the way. Gutsy's problem solved, Gutsy will be back with us and I get to see Pizazz again. Triple excellence! It's going to be a great Labor Day Weekend!For now though, it's cold (everyone looked like polar bears earlier) so I'm going to snuggle down deep in my comfy warm bag and call it a night. It's late you know (830p) and everyone else has been asleep for an hour. One of these days I'm going to get to bed at a decent hour too! You sleep well. Tomorrow is going to be a good day and we all need to be rested for it. Goodnight!Blood, Sweat and Tears: nopeAches and Pains: right knee is swollen and bruised from yesterday's fall. Motrin is helping but it does hurt. Good point? No longer feel the grinding in the left knee!Moans and Groans: only 123.5 miles to go... waah!Critter count: 1x spotted frog, 4x chipmunks, 3x really scrawny red squirrelsCountdown: 123.5 miles