Date: 2015-08-13
From: The Birches

To: Katahdin Summit
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: overcast clouds

Katahdin Summit 5.2 Getting to sleep last night was difficult. I felt like a little boy on Christmas Eve. I was excited and somewhat anxious about the last five miles to the summit of Katahdin. My gift will be to finish. After 149 days of hiking there is one more day left. Our camp was up early. Obsolete rose at 4am and Myster Lynard an hour before him. I followed at 4:30am. After coffee and breakfast Obsolete and I signed the trail register at 5:45am. There were three hikers ahead of us that started before 5am. Obsolete and I were full of energy. We both went at a fast pace. Obsolete soon went well ahead of me. My heart was pounding and my thoughts went back to our start at Springer Mountain and the reasons that brought me to attempt this journey.   Today¢s hike would fulfill my goal and I would complete my journey. The morning was perfect. Cool, dry with the promise of sunshine and white puffy clouds. It would be a glorious final day. The sun was up but hidden behind the mountain. Hiking was pleasant and the trail well groomed. It was easy and beautiful following Katahdin Stream. There is an inspirational view of the falls just after a mile of trail. Thoughts of the previous five months hiking filled me for the first two and a half miles. I covered this distance in one hour. Despite my energy my rapid pace would soon change. The trail gradually increased in slope with rocks transitioning into boulders. The increase in difficulty required my full attention. Pleasant thoughts of past hiking days were replaced with were I needed to find hand and foot holds.   Close by trees became my hiking poles assisting me over challenging areas. A few well-placed sections of rebar helped me to crawl over the more challenging rock scrambles. This was a technical and sometimes dangerous section. I was working my way up to ¢The Tableland.¢ As I hiked alone and enjoyed the serenity of the climb. The sun remained behind the mountain in front of me. The view behind me was spectacular. I paused frequently catching my breath, allowing my heart rate to slow down and to simply enjoy the view. The suns rays filtered by the mountain, the passing puffy clouds and blue sky inspired me and rewarded my effort. My camera captured picture after picture of the incredible landscape. It was a special time for me. I resumed my climb enjoying every step, every stop, every opportunity to take it all in. Finally I made it to ¢The Tableland.¢ Once there I was treated to a remote rocky landscape. Cold and windy, fog and mist rolled over the terrain. Puffy broken clouds sprinkled the sky around ¢The Tableland¢ at the same level as the ground. The last time I saw a view like this was looking out of the window of an airplane. It was simply inspiring.   It was if I were on top of the world. The Katahdin Summit remained 1.6 miles away. The trail rose gently on the way to the summit. The wind picked up with the temperature dropping. In the distance I saw an image of a person partially hidden by the fog sitting behind a pile of rocks. As I got closer the figure rose to great me. It was Obsolete. He said, ¢We started at Springer together. We are going to finish together.¢ I didn¢t¢ want to hold up his trip to the summit but was pleased to see him and welcome his greeting. I¢ve learned a lot from Obsolete during the past months on the trail and have grown from his camaraderie. He gives freely of his time and talent being of service to everyone. I¢ve benefited from hiking with him the most. How gracious and thoughtful it was of him to wait for me. We continued on together hiking past Thoreau Spring and to the final push to the summit still a mile away. We reflected on our hike together, the generosity we received and how our journey has changed us. It was a privilege to be here and a blessing to have such perfect weather for our summit together. We had committed to summit this day rain or shine unless the mountain was closed. The trail gave us a perfect day. As we got closer the Katahdin Summit sign became visible illuminated by the sunshine through the fog. The image could not have been more beautiful and perfect. We arrived at the famous sign together.   Weather beaten yet strong the sign announcing Katahdin¢s 5268 ft. height and the end of our journey. We were all smiles. The summit was ours alone. The earlier hikers were off to the side to protect themselves from the wind. There was an incredible view of ¢The Knife¢s Edge¢ on the other side the summit. The sun was shinning on one side with the steep rock jagged edges casting long shadows on the other side contrasting the gentle slope we just climbed. Obsolete and I took turns taking each other¢s summit pictures to capture our journey¢s end. My experience at the summit was perfect. I kissed the sign, hugged it and venerated it. Finally I stood on top with my arms above me thankful for completing my journey. No screams or tears flowed which are common when a thru hike is finished. However my emotions ran deep and I felt a great since of contentment and peace. Serenity enveloped me. I was overcome with gratitude and humility for the privilege to have such an experience. Standing on Katahdin completing my journey at that moment was a lifetime experience. I could not have had a better finish. After spending time on the summit enjoying our time and outstanding views we headed back down. As we were among the first to get on the trail that morning we passed many of our thru hiker friends on their way up. It took us a long time to descend as we greeted everyone, posed for more pictures and relished in the moment. We arrived at the base and lounged awaiting the arrival of Myster Lynard and our shuttle to Bangor for a flight home tomorrow. T There are no more miles to go. I¢m finished with my adventure. I¢ll post a final journal entry next week.