Date: 2014-09-23
From: Rainbow campsite

To: Katahdin stream campsite
Miles today: 21.1
Weather: few clouds

In which so many unexpected things have happened.It rained after I went to bed last night. I wasn't expecting that. Thankfully it did not throughout the night so I could pack up my tent dry. That was a great start to the day, and an early one at that. I woke up at 0500 and rolled over then fell back to sleep. I didn't even hear my alarm! Good thing M and LB were awake. I bolted when I heard them.All worked out and we kicked butt this morning. We took one break and that was at a lovely, mossy, piney forest shelter with huge boulders likewise covered in moss. Double shot and Pizaaz showed up. We had a snack and chatted for a bit before pressing on to Abol Bridge. I wrote my final note in the register at the shelter....."I'm so grateful for this adventure. Katahdin or Bust!"It felt good to do that and very surreal. Today has seemed like a dream. I'm just walking like usual and my thoughts are everywhere. I made it to Abol Bridge by noon after stepping off of a bog board and landing ankle deep into some lovely thick, black mud. Gross. I finally got my first glimpse of Katahdin as I walked over the bridge. Amazing, breathtaking, incredibly barely describe it. The colors were vibrant, the sun warm, wind chilly and it was a bit overwhelming. The peak was still under clouds and I realized that I am not going to see this beast until I am summiting. That is my fate!So my parents were at Abol Bridge walking around when I came walking down the road. It was great to see them and they were busy giving out trail magic to those many hikers rolling through. It was like Halloween except with Chips Ahoy and ramen noodles and Ritz crackers.We went into the store hoping to find the restaurant open or at the very least a good deli sandwich. Strike One, Strike Two.....neither. The store was getting ready to close in a week and options were limited So now what?! Well, I bought the most junk food I have on this trip yet...cinnamon bun, cheese Danish, mounds, butterfingers, snickers, nuts, tuna and crackers. Lunch consisted of 2 cheese sticks, a pack of crackers, chocolate milk and the rest of my GORP.While eating a truck with a moose in the trailer just drove by. What?!! We watched, then looked at each other and questioned if we just saw a moose. That we did. Then another truck pulled up right in front of the store where we all were grazing. This store is an "inspection station" for people coming out of the woods with their kill. Those hunting apply for a lottery to hunt, if chosen they have one week to hunt one moose. One shot literally and figuratively. The guys that rolled up already had the moose gutted, the heart and liver in a bucket and the meat iced down. This was pretty wild and something I never, ever expected to be witnessing today! Fascinating too and I learned a lot. We all got tons of pictures of the moose and their hunters. Enjoyed the stories they had to tell too.Then along came another truck and trailer with a second smaller moose. This one they weighed strung up by its antlers by chains. 700#s and the smaller of the two moose. They were on the way to the butcher in Bangor after the weigh in. There must have been about 10 of us hikers around enjoying the show... Double Shot, Pizaaz, Messy, Lost Boy, Stormy and Red Beard, then a blast from the Smokies...Trudge, Ray Charles, The Rock and Blue. A third truck pulled up. The head and antlers were in the back but the rest of the meat was already cut up and in the coolers. I saw 4 moose in one day! It was really cool to see what one looks like up close and personal, just sorry they were dead.We finally headed into Baxter State park around 1330, 11 miles to go. I said my "till next times" and hiked on into Baxter!Now this seemed surreal. The walk was beautiful along the crystal clear river. We had to cross one river with very slippery rocks spread far apart. Thankfully I made it without falling in or having to change shoes. I walked by Big and Little Niagra falls and realized this was the trail I hiked in 1999 when I was on vacation up here. Cool. It looked familiar yet different looking through different eyes.The hike into Katadhin stream campsite was a dream. We were welcomed by a group of hikers camping at one of the sites, some had summited and others were to summit tomorrow as am I. Our first stop was to the ranger station to check in which we did. I am hiker #616. We also got to stay in a lean to tonight instead of hiking on to the Birches. We set up in our leanto around 5:15. It's chilly tonight and spitting a little rain. We put the tarp over the front of the leanto to keep warm. We cooked dinner on the picnic table right before it started to rain and we quickly adjourned to the leanto and gorged ourselves on food. Ramen and a teriyaki side with peanut butter, nuts and hot sauce. Yummy and followed by a mounds and apple cider drink. I'm officially stuffed. The stream is beautiful that runs behind our campsite. The water is crystal clear, river rocks smooth and beautiful. The water is also chilly.So far I know that Race Walker, Rowdy, Hobbit, Double Shot, Pizaaz and us are going to summit in the morning. My alarm is set for 0600, my day pack(or real pack) is packed and extra gear is in a bag to go to the ranger station in the morning. So crazy!