Date: 2018-08-06
From: The Birches shelter 

To: Milinocket, ME
Miles today: 5.2

Today was THE day. I climbed Mt Katadhin!It¢s so hard to put into words what that was like. It was surreal. Katadhin is the biggest and baddest mountain on the whole trail. It¢s a 5 mile climb at 5,267ft. It was like Mt Moosilauke on steroids. It had some steep inclines like the Wildcat Peaks. It had strong winds like Mt Washington. It had a lot of Mahoosuc Notch boulder hopping. It was like a giant blend of all the hard shit I¢ve done up until now. Halfway up the mountain I had to strap my trekking poles to my backpack and just start climbing. You definitely use your hands just as much as your feet. I killed it though. I left the base at 8:30am and got to the top a little before noon. I passed dozens and dozens of day hikers, which was a big ego boost. LolIt was the hardest mountain I¢ve climbed yet, but the first time I felt super capable in what I was setting out to do. Like when you¢ve made it this far, what¢s one more 5,000ft climb. Instead of dreading the hike, I enjoyed it. Whether NoBo, SoBo, or Flip-Flopper, it¢s a huge moment for any AT thru-hiker. It¢s emotional. It¢s overwhelming. It¢s monumental. And I felt that. I¢m doing shit out here every day that I never thought I was capable of achieving. Every night I go to sleep and can¢t help but think DAMN, I did today. That¢s a great feeling. The top of the mountain was in a super windy cloud, so no great views. But still got a kickass pic to prove I was there! I hung out at the summit for about an hour waiting for Potato and Kidska to get there. They slept in. Lol We got a great group photo though with the summit sign. It was crazy how many people were up there though. There¢s lot of different trails you can take up the mountain besides the AT, which many consider to be the hardest route. The other trails make the mountain a lot more accessible to kid camp groups and stuff, so it was a little overwhelming to see so many middle school boys. LolAround 1pm I started making my way back down the mountain. The decent takes nearly as long as the accent. Every step is really technical. I took the Abol Trail down though because it¢s a little shorter and thus a little faster and I was REALLY hungry. All I could think about was a Subway 20 Miles away in Milinocket. Took me 2 hitches to get there, but I did it! And I feasted. Kidska and Potato eventually showed up. We ate our celebratory foot-long subs, got snacks at Family Dollar, then walked to Katadhin Inn & Suites to split a motel room for the night. There were several options on where to stay for the night, but we chose this place for the promise of a pool and hot tub! You know you¢re staying in a ¢hiker town¢ when there¢s a sign posted above the pool stating ¢For the courtesy and health of all our guests, please shower before using pool or hot tub¢... LOL! I just about died! With no bathing suites and no shower in over a week, we jumped right in that pool in our hiking shorts and bras. Long live the hiker trash!Later that evening, I did eventually shower and take advantage of the coin-operated laundry room. Most hostels give you ¢loaner clothes¢ for you to wear while you wash all your hiking clothes. But since we¢re staying at a motel, you just get a towel. Lol So while chilling in the hallway of this motel wearing a towel and waiting for my laundry, you won¢t believe who comes sauntering around the corner. With the same scraggly beard and super corny smile, it was my long lost buddy and hiking partner - SKYWALKER. I legit almost cried. Lol We got separated over a month ago and I thought for sure I¢d never see him again. And then there¢s TODAY. My LAST day on trail as a NoBo. The LAST chance we¢d EVER have in crossing paths again and here he is! This trail is the freakiest force of nature and I fucking love it!! We sat on a bench and talked until midnight, recapping everything we had been through from the day we got separated. We hiked the same piece of trail over the past month, but had two entirely different experiences. Lol I still can¢t believe we just ran into each other. What a perfect little reunion to finish the northern half of the AT with. This journey has been so hard and so challenging, but also so rewarding, memorable, and absolutely incredible. And thankfully, it¢s not over yet!To Be Continued.