Date: 2003-08-30
From: Bald Mountain Brook Lean-to

To: Blue-blaze to Monson
Miles today: 18.7

Everyone was up pretty early this morning, starting with Recycled. He was hot to trot and get to Monson where he had a friend waiting to meet him.   Hotdog and I were going to try for Monson as well, but just see how things went during the day.We climbed Moxie Bald Mountain, as soon as we left the shelter. It was a decent climb of about 1300', and provided some pretty good views, although it was a little cloudy. After we reached the summit, I knew there were no more major climbs all the way to Monson.When we stopped for lunch around 12:30, we had gone 13 miles. Monson was definitely in the cards for today. We crossed a couple of rivers...well, the East and West Branches of the Piscataquis River, but they were low enough that I could keep my feet fairly dry. I rolled off of a few of the small rocks, dipping my toes in the water, but at least I didn't totally soak my feet in water.About 2 miles from the blue-blaze to Pleasant Street in Monson, I called Mom and Dad to let them know we'd be coming into town in about an hour, and if they could meet us at the parking lot, we'd appreciate a ride. I was hoping they had cell coverage to get the message. Otherwise, we'd have to choose between walking 2mi to Shaw's, or 3.3mi on the AT to Maine 15 and hitch to Shaw's. We reached the blue-blaze, and I felt relieved. It was a long day, but not too hard. I was ready to be done hiking for the day though. Around a corner, I saw two people walking toward us. It was Mom and Dad! Yippee! They had just come into town and come to the trailhead to get us.We said our hellos and gave hugs, then piled into Ma's car and went to Shaw's. Shaw's is a boarding house, meaning bathrooms/showers are shared, and breakfast and dinner are available for a fee. All of the guests sit at tables in the kitchen or dining room and the Shaws bring food to the guests. We decided to go down the street to a BBQ place that had a band playing outside. For $10 each, we had all-you-can-eat beef ribs and chicken. We also got some cole slaw and baked beans. It was rather confusing, as one employee told us to just sit wherever we wanted, inside or outside and platters of food will be brought around. That never happened, so we had to keep getting up to get more food. Oh well. I guess a little bit of exercise never hurt anyone. I would've liked it better if the food was brought to me. I've been getting enough exercise lately. Somehow, I managed to eat enough, and as we were leaving, another employee gave us a plate full of baked goods. How come ! the service came as we were leaving? Whatever. Good food though, especially the chicken. I think I had about 10 pieces! Plus some slaw and some beef ribs. And I got to show Ma what a savage I'd become, when I dropped a piece of brownie on the sidewalk. I said "I'll get it!" then reached down, picked it up and popped it into my mouth. Yeah, I did it partly to see what Ma would say. Her horrified expression spoke volumes!I was feeling sleepy and we ended up going to our rooms around 8:30 or 9, which wasn't too terribly late for being in a town. I was hoping to sleep in, but breakfast is served early. Hopefully I'll sleep sound then.