Date: 2015-08-20
From: Horseshoe Canyon Lean-to

To: Shaw's, Monson
Miles today: 9.0

THIS IS IT.I am in Monson.This is the last trail town.The last hostel.The last resupply, the last mail drop.The last pre-Katahdin pizza.I don't know how I feel.I got up BEFORE 5 this morning because I was so anxious. Also, I really had to pee.I warned my sheltermates before bed last night that I was getting up early, and that I would NOT be courteously packing up outside of the shelter, and that they would have to endure the obnoxious noise of the garbage bag that lines the inside of Gertrude rustling about as I shoved her full of gear.If the shelter hadn't been mostly full of my friends, who also wanted to get into town early, I would have been quiet and careful, but I knew they wouldn't mind. Firebear and Muddy Duckling actually don't seem to mind when my morning antics wake them up. They enjoy a slow start and a few minutes to wake up in the comfort of their bags.So I got up, and was out SO EARLY. GLORIOUSLY EARLY.I actually was still wearing my headlamp when I left. It was just dark enough that I wore it just in case, but as I hiked I found that I didn't really need it, and packed it away after less than a mile so that my sweat wouldn't seep into the electronic bits and ruin it.And the trail was so wonderful! For the most part, anyway. The morning started smooth and easy. I cruised along. Three miles an hour!There were also some stretches of slippery rocks and mud. My Merrells got damp when I forded/rock-hopped/slogged across the Piscataquis.It started to rain shortly after my river crossing. Not a heavy rain, but an obnoxious drizzle. It was humid and hazy and hot, and I was soon dripping sweat, my clothes soaked. This has been standard the last few days... The heat has been oppressive.At times, it felt like I was drinking the air instead of breathing it. It was so gloomy under the canopy that I felt like I was in a Halloween movie, some creep in a mask just around the corner, ready to take me out.It was still gorgeous, though. I hiked along an old road, overgrown and forgotten by cars, for half a mile. I squished through mud and slipped on smooth rocks. I tripped and stumbled over roots. I stopped on the hill to catch by breath before plowing onwards, thoughts of pizza and hot water tempting me forward.AND YOU KNOW WHAT?! I HIKED 9 BY 9. I can't even remember the last time I did that!I reached the road and crossed in the drizzle. Silent Force, who I had leapfrogged with throughout the morning, was waiting at the trailhead parking lot, talking to a man who was preparing to set out on a day hike.Silent Force called Shaw's, a hiker hostel in town, and Hippie Chick, a successful past thru-hiker and new owner of the hostel, came to pick us up.Because this was my last stay in town, I decided that I would pay ten dollars extra for my own room rather than a bunk. SHOCKING, I know! Red Panda wasn't ridiculously cheap for once!This was actually motivated by the fact that when I was in Stratton, I stayed in the motel hostel. There were two bunkrooms, both empty when I arrived. When I returned from chores, however, Apple Cider had claimed a bunk NOT in the empty room, but in the room with Gertrude and my gear spread out!I like Apple Cider well enough, but I wanted my own room! Why would someone NOT seize the opportunity to have a bunkroom all to themselves?! I would have reacted the same way no matter which hiker arrived. And it turned out that Apple Cider was quite a pleasant roommate. However, when I last-minute emailed Shaw's before leaving Stratton, I requested a private room to ensure a comfortable stay and good sleep at my last town stay before the Hundred Mile Wilderness.Speaking of Stratton, The Case of the Missing Mail Drop has been solved! I confused mom by asking her to send my Monson mail drop to the hostel instead of the post office. As a result, she sent the Stratton box to Monson. All is well, though. The mixup resulted in a surplus that was shared with the Aussie Legs. Sorry, mom!I also got my last pizza money today, along with a card with a mountain pictured in it. The pizza fairy labeled it "Mt. Katahdin" and added a little stick figure of me. Adorable! It made me so happy. I did buy a pizza today...Also, of course, a nice, Iong, encouraging letter from my mommy. What could be better before setting off into the wilderness of Maine for a week?It was a busy day of sorting mail drops, eating snacks and pizza, and doing chores. I mailed my broken SteriPen home and purchased more AquaMira drops to ensure that I have enough to make it to Katahdin.Since we plan on taking six days to get through the Wilderness, and then one day to get from Abol Bridge to the Birches, where we will stay the night before we summit, we have nearly eight days of hiking left. To carry enough food for eight days would be obnoxiously cumbersome.The Lakeshore House (another hostel in town), however, provides a drop service. For $25, you can fill up a 5-gallon bucket, and they will leave it in the middle of the wilderness for you to pick up, so you don't have to carry all that food all week.I split a bucket with Silent Force, and the Aussie Legs and Iso also went in together. We all plan to stick to the same schedule and will retrieve our goodies on the same day.My food took up much more space than everyone else's. I don't even care. One more week of sugary, fatty food, and then I will be back to salad and yogurt. I may actually spend all week dreaming of salad and yogurt...By the time all of my chores were done, it was obnoxiously late. I called mom and Dan and finalized The Plan, and made requests of items for them to bring. This included a dress and sandals to wear to Alexa and Allie's wedding so that I won't have to wear my hideous hiker clothes. I am extra excited for the wedding. What a weekend it will be! I really just want to spend my post-summit week laying in bed and watching movies, but I know that I will be overwhelmed with things to do. I always make myself busy. The Aussie Legs may visit the weekend after Katahdin, on their way to NYC! Another thing to look forward to!A million things happened today but they are the same town-things as always. Laundry, food, shower...I don't have any phone service in town, but have hostel WiFi. I tried to call dad using the hostel phone but only got his voicemail. I am disappointed that I may not be able to talk to him before I climb The Mountain.It will be a long time until I summit. A long time until I will be in touch with the outside world again. I think that will be a good thing. I want to be absorbed in the end of the hike. I want to cherish that time with my friends and the trail. I am sad that Coco and Magnus and Chris won't be there to share the final moments, but the trail family that has formed over the last week or so is fantastic.I promise that I will try the at least write brief journal entries to post after The End. Battery worries may keep them short.I know that the end will be here too soon. The week will pass and I will climb the mountain, and I will just feel LOST.Time to end my last town day and drift off to pizza dreams.Of course, it is so hot that I need to sleep with the windows open, and there are some chatterboxes outside, but hopefully they will retire soon.This really is it...Tomorrow morning, I will step foot into the Wilderness. I will hike and hike and hike. Next week, I will climb Katahdin. One journey will end, and another will begin. There is always another journey, at least.I am excited. I am anxious. I am sad and hesitant. I am happy to have a bubble for company, and of course so happy to have my hiking alone time during the day to process and contemplate.I really don't know how I feel. I don't think I ever will. I am thankful for gifts from my mother and pizza fairy and Trail Mentor. I am thankful for the journey.Here's to 114.5 more miles.