Date: 2003-09-01
From: Maine 15

To: Long Pond Stream Lean-to
Miles today: 15.1
Weather: overcast clouds

So this is the 100-mile Wilderness. It looked like Anystate for a while. Then it looked like Maine. Then I got tired. Then I found out, at this lean-to, I have under 100 miles to go. 99.4 according to the Data Book. Wow! It still hasn't fully registered in my mind. Occasionally, I get a drift of what that means, but I'm still thinking a lot about the next step. Currently, the next step is to get to Jo-Mary Road to be picked up by Pa on the 4th, and go to my cousin's wedding. I know that when I'm dropped off at Jo-Mary Road on the 7th, I will begin to realize that there are no more maildrops, visits from friends and family, or town stays until I reach Baxter State Park, and at that point, Katahdin is oh-so near. For now, the next goal is Jo-Mary Road.I felt quite sluggish today. I'm not sure if it was all the good Shaw's cooking still sitting in my gut, or a short day yesterday, or tiredness, but by the time we reached Wilson Valley Lean-to, about 10 miles out of Maine 15, I was pooped. Of course, we hadn't had lunch yet, so maybe that had something to do with it, but I was tired. Hotdog and I had thought, if we felt good once we got here (Long Pond Stream Lean-to), we might go on to the next shelter, about 4mi north. By the time we got here, around 4:30, I was ready to stop. So we did. It wasn't a difficult day, just tiring. There were a lot of little ups and downs, which wore on me. I hope to sleep well tonight, and be ready to roll in the morning.Recycled, Sarge, Itchyfoot, Big E, Stormin, Notes, Eric and one other are here as well, with a lot of us tenting. When Hotdog and I arrived, we thought the shelter was full, because there were sleeping pads and bags everywhere in there, but when I went down to hang my food bag in the shelter, I only saw 5 in there. But, I had already set up my tent, and wasn't going to take it down at that point.Today was a pretty good day, weather-wise. It started out mostly clear and cool, but returned to mostly cloudy. Since setting up camp, there have been a few passing sprinkles, just enough to make me fear rain, but not enough to get anything wet. Just in case it does rain, I have my rain fly on my tent, and everything in my pack, which is just under the fly too. I'm hoping it won't rain hard if it rains, but I can't control the weather.I'm hoping, if I summit Katahdin on the 12th, that taking 6 days to get home will help ease me out of trail mode and back into "real" life mode. I don't know if that is enough or not. Actually, I'd prefer about a month, but I can't do that. Or won't do that. I feel like I need to get a job not too long after getting home. After all, I'll soon have a car payment, plus rent, and that money has to come from somewhere! I'm still working on some ideas though. "Working on" meaning tossing them around in my head at night. I know I want to visit my brothers and sisters, and will plan to do that as soon as I can manage it.I wish I didn't think about these things all the time, but I supposed I have to. Wow! Within 2 weeks, I'll be done with this adventure. The time has just flown by, and yet it seems to have been a lifetime since I left. I am ready for the physical part of this to be over. My body needs a rest. But I do not want the social part of this to end. I have met many wonderful people, and I don't want to lose tough with them, or miss opportunities to meet others. That will be the hardest part: Not having that instant connection (the trail) when I meet people. I'm going to have to keep in touch with this year's hikers to keep sane! I'm fortunate to have a 2003 thruhiker living near me, so we will get together and talk trail when we need a dose of it. Honestly, I'd rather walk in the woods than talk about walking in the woods, but after this is over, I will take what I can get.Once again, I still have many miles to go. Amazingly, it's down to double-digits, but still... many miles to go.