Date: 2016-07-06
From: Little Bigelow Lean-to

To: Pierce Pond Lean-to
Miles today: 17.7
Weather: light rain

Didn't sleep too well last night. It's a fight now between taking my sleeping bag off because it's too hot and covering up my exposed skin to keep it away from mosquitoes. I'm pretty chewed up this morning. I found Seal Tree sleeping on the bench in front of the shelter, though. Apparently the bugs were even worse for him in his hammock and he couldn't take it. Not sure how sleeping on the bench solved that though, haha.We were off pretty early, around 6:30 and finished up the descent from the Bigelows and now faced a day pretty much of flat terrain. We chatted about the abusive Canadian from last night, and Seal Tree did an impression that went "Yeah, Goldie, I don't have time to be a dirt bum hippie bitch!" that put me in hysterics. Right off the bat we hit the shore of flagstaff lake and took a break to enjoy the shoreline. A great deal of the route today follows the path of Benedict Arnold's portage route on his expedition to invade Quebec. There were lots of signs that read "portage" and had the insignia I draw in logbooks, so I stopped for many pictures. I also had thought that being part of a group would bring a higher sense of motivation to each of us, that we would rely on each other for a willingness to finish the trail. It's true, that did happen to me last night, but there's also some building negative energy that sometimes arises. Seal Tree's hatred of bugs is mostly something to laugh at, but it's clear that Lightning just wants to be done with this trail, and vented his frustration a couple of times today. We took a very relaxing break about halfway through the day at Arnold's Point Beach that helped everyone relax a little bit. It's a lovely spot out on a peninsula heading into West Carry Pond. We skipped a lot of rocks and waited for Goldie to catch up, and she told us about some crazy Sobos at West Carry Pond shelter a little while back. It was a picture perfect day, with just a couple of clouds and wonderful blue skies. We pulled into Pierce Pond lean-to around 2:45, and decided there was no real sense in moving on: four miles ahead was the Kennebec River, over which you must get ferried across in a canoe. The ferry runs between 9 and 11 and 2 and 4, and since we could cover the miles in just over an hour, we figured we would just be waiting there tomorrow morning anyway. Seal Tree was of the opinion that we should just ford it but we convinced him otherwise. Crazy ol Seal Tree. We set up camp; the other folks hammocked out - indeed, Seal Tree and Goldie decided to combine their hammocks and tarps into a "fort" - while I picked out a spot in the shelter. There are a number of other folks here, including a German couple sectioning, two army buddies with the largest jetboil pot you will ever see, two flip floppers named Daisy Duke and Buttercup and a Nobo whom the other three had met named Professor Dude (who is funnily enough a vegetarian who makes an exception for bacon). We decided to have some naptime, and I ended up reading a couple of chapters of Lord of the Flies out loud to Seal Tree and Goldie while I lay under their hammocks. The other impetus for staying despite our early arrival is that just a few tenths of a mile away is Harrison's, a camp of rustic cabins that apparently serves a hell of a breakfast. The four of us walked over on the little spur trail past some impressive cascades on Pierce Pond Stream to Harrison's to sign up for spots at breakfast. The place is kind of like a shantytown, with a bridge across the stream made up of old wooden pallets. I opted for the full experience of eggs sausage and pancakes, as did most folks. We walked back up to camp and considered taking a swim but were discourage by some of the largest leeches we had ever seen swimming in the water. Seal Tree found a stick with some fishing line on it and tried to catch something, to no avail. It was nice to be in camp, but I honestly thought I would enjoy these flat sections more than I have. I was looking forward to the break, but without the challenge of crazy terrain, it's starting to feel like miles. I honestly think my enjoyment of the section may be hindered by a faster pace and by the folks around me. I'm certainly not leaving the group, but I just wonder.