Date: 2013-10-01
From: Cooper Brook Falls Lean-to

To: White House Landing, Mahar Rd. 
Miles today: 14.0

I didn't sleep well last night, or at least I didn't fall into a hard sleep. I'm guessing that I was anxious to get to Tom. I got up about 5:45, went to the bathroom, made breakfast, patched my feet (one of the blisters was filled with pus. Not good), packed my stuff and was on the trail by 7:20. It's funny, now that my meeting day with Tom is here, I'm much more calm and maybe even a little nervous. We haven't seen each other in close to 10 months. I set off, and the trail was beautiful, smooth, and allowed me to make good time. Before I realized it, I was at Jo-Mary Rd. I saw Canon and Lady talking with a gentleman. As it turns out, he was one of the trail maintainers for this stretch of trail. I choked back tears as I told him about my upcoming reunion with Tom. I've been telling anyone who will listen these days. He wished me luck, told me to thank Tom for his service, and he gave me a granola bar. I thanked him and was off. The miles melted away quickly, and I couldn't believe how good of mileage I was making. Occasionally I'd stop to look around, look for bears or moose, but I only heard the barks and chatter of squirrels as I passed through their territory. I got to Mud Brook, and the foot bridge was gone. In lieu of a bridge, there was a red rope strung across for a hiker to cling on to while they rock-hopped across. It worked wonderfully.Soon I was hiking alongside Jo-Mary Lake. It was huge, and the water looked so clear and inviting. A swim would have felt great in the near-80 F weather, but instead I settled for a quick snack break at the water's edge. I pulled out a granola bar and my cellphone. I called my mom to wish her a happy birthday, and I sent Tom a text message saying that I was only 5-6 miles away. I sat on a piece of drift wood and looked out over the water. Its surface was as smooth as glass, and it reflected the scarlet red trees and turned them on their heads. As my feet, pressed into the white sand was a fresh set of moose tracks. My phone vibrated, and I saw that I had a message from Tom. It had been sent the day before. There was a photo of him standing on Abol Bridge with Katahdin looming behind him. Tom & Katahdin. Somehow in my mind they had become one. If I could just get to one, I could then get to the other. Tom and Katahdin were my carrots. I chuckled. Before Tom left, we had decided that Tom's trailname, should he be able to join me, would be Carrots. As in Whirled Peas & Carrots. Cheesy, I know. But we're a cheesy couple. But then it also occured to me, that throughout this entire journey and especially as of late, Tom has been my "carrot." And the thought that he was within 5 miles of me at that very moment was almost overwhelming. I turned my phone on airplane mode, picked up my pack and pressed on.I stopped at the Potaywadjo Spring Lean-to to fill up on water from the artisanal spring that bubbled up straight out of the ground. It was a large area, about the size of a hot tub with a board walk leading to the head of the spring. There was a sign urging hikers to treat the water, but I decided to heck with it. It just doesn't get any purer than that. I filled my reservoir and savoured the cold, fresh water. I'll really miss all the fresh spring water.I continued down the trail for another 15 minutes or so. I came around a corner of trees, and I saw three hikers sitting about 10 yards off the trail. Lady & Canon and a third hiker who I didn't recognize and whose back was to me were huddled on the ground near an opening in the trees that looked out onto Jo-Mary Lake. They were cooking up lunch on their campstove. Lady shouted out that I should really come have a look at the view of Katahdin from the lake's edge. I wasn't the least bit interested, and I quickly racked my brain for an excuse to keep moving. I was about to offer up some lame reasoning, but something about the third hiker caught my eye. He wasn't scruffy enough to be a thru-hiker, and there was something about his squat. It took my brain a fraction of a second to process what I was seeing. Omigoodness. I knew who it was before he could even stand up and turn around. I threw my hiking poles down, and I tore at the straps on my pack trying to free myself of it. Sobs poured out of my throat and tears streamed down my face. I ran to him and wrapped my arms around him and buried my face in his neck. He held me tight as I just cried and cried and cried. Tom had found me, just as I had dreamed that he would. He came and found me in the 100-mile Wilderness of Maine.After I regained my composure, we walked out and stood on some drift wood and rocks and looked out of Jo-Mary Lake, the fall foliage and Katahdin. It suddenly looked much, much closer. The mountain growers taller everytime I see it. We walked back onto land, and bid our farewell to Lady & Canon. Tom took my pack- this is the first time I've not carried my pack in the entire journey- and carried it for me as we headed northward towards White House Landing. We chatted (okay, I did most of the talking) as we walked along. It simultaneously seemed unreal and yet perfectly normal to have him there with me hiking along through the fall colors of Maine. We finally got to the boat dock across from White House Landing. Tom did the honors of blowing the air horn, and soon Bill came over to fetch us in his boat. The place is quiet, and Tom and I were the only guests until Poppins arrived later in the evening. We got a private cabin and sat out on the front porch and watched the sun shimmer off the water. The weather has been spectacular, and most thru-hikers seem to be pushing on through the 100-mile Wilderness rather than stopping here for a rest. Oh, but I'm so glad to have a rest. We walked down to the water because I was determined to go for a swim. Whew, it was cold! I managed to get in for a couple of minutes, but Tom stood shin-deep covered in goose-bumps. We watched one little duck swim around. Linda said it's the only one that hasn't flown south. We took showers, and I washed some socks and underwear. Then we sat on the porch and waiting for dinner. Linda & Bill fixed us up 1 lb hamburgers each, and we polished them off with no problem. Afterwards, we wrapped ourselves in blankets and sat out on the porch in our chairs while the stars came out one at a time. First there was a single bright star (Saturn, maybe?) that shimmered and swayed like a snake on the water's surface. As the star sunk lower in the sky, the shimmering, swaying snake worked its way across the lake until it disappeared into the darkness of the trees and hills. We stayed for a bit longer, watching the stars and talking, but finally the day's hike and excitement got the best of me. We headed inside, turned off some of the propane lanterns, and crawled into bed. Peas and Carrots together again.