Date: 2014-07-17
To: 2185.9
Miles today: 9.3
Weather: scattered clouds

I said my goodbyes to Cowboy and Cornwall, but then realized that I would pass them on the trail as we traveled in opposite directions. They would start where I planned to finish and I would start on the other side of the mountain they would be climbing up. There were two section hikers with me in the shuttle up to my start point. When we got there I had a minutes panic because this was not where my son and I came off the trail last year. The driver said 'this is Kinsman's Notch', and it was, but it was the parking lot with a connecting trail to the AT. When I figure that out I backtracked to the very spot I had come off last year and took a picture. Then off I started. Not very far into the trail I came to a sign that warned of the danger of this trail, basically if you are not very experienced find another way. Well 2100+ miles gives me experience, but it was still daunting. The trail started off following the creek, which very quickly became an amazing cascade, then a sheer waterfall, then back to cascade. My guess would be somewhere a little more or less than a mile was right beside the falls. This was steep with a lot of log ladder steps, followed by rebar steps and even some long rebar handles pounded into the granite on the side of the trail for a hand hold. When I got to the top of one particularly sheer up spot and turned and looked back, man was I ever thankful I did not have to go down that. At 1.6 miles into the climb there is Beaver Brook Shelter, 1/10th east off the trail. I pulled off here for a rest and to have my first lunch. I was glad that I was doing this as a slack pack (day pack) rather than a full 30-35lb backpack. Also, leaving from the hostel this morning I had pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and coffee. Gave me a much better start than most morning. Add the adrenalin rush of knowing this would finish the trail and I was almost floating up the mountain. Key word here almost. While eating at the shelter a couple teen/early twenties guys came in for a rest also. I had to tell them my story, they congratulated me ahead of time. I headed on up the mountain shortly after they left. When I reached the first of three 'early' summits I came across Cowboy and Cornwall. They told me the south side of the mountain was not to difficult, easier than they had expected. We took each others picture and said goodbye. When I came out of the tree line and saw the first of the incredible views it was awesome. At the summit sign there were many groups of young people chaperoned by young adults. There was another way up the mountain other than the AT. The two young guys I had met at the shelter were there and I took their picture at the summit sign and they took mine for me. My last mountain to climb!! I had my lunch and one of the young guys was drinking a beer and I said I should have brought champaigne to celebrate. He said I have one more beer if you want that. I declined, thanking him but said I still have six miles of down hill to go. I know this one is getting long so I will wrap it up. The downhill was still 6 miles so I started down. At the bottom of he mountain there was still about a mile to the road that I needed to get to, along the way I saw a sign to old cemetery. I went in and found it. The last tombstones were in the 1860's, the earliest was 1811. They all showed only when they died, none had date of births.Next I came to the last shelter I would pass on the trail and pulled off to check it out. It was only 4pm and I had less than a mile to go to the hostel and Greg was not picking me up till six. I wrote in the shelter journal my last entry. As I was leaving a guy came out of a tent pitched near by and said 'are you fifteen?' I said yeah, how did you know. He said the word was out on me on the trail that I was finishing. He and his brother were doing from Mass to Katahdin, they were in their 50's I would guess. They congratulated me and said the hostel had a surprise party waiting for me. Oh no, I had not told the hostel that I had a ride taking me back to Hanover. When I got to within 1/8th of a mile from the road I would finish there was a sign warning of possibly not be able to cross the creek ahead and gave an alternate route. I walked up to the creek, looked up, looked down, sure enough no place to rock hop. I just walked right in, only knee deep so over I went. When I got to the road and end spot I took a video congratulating myself and headed to the hostel. When I got there they met me with a cold beer before I got to the door and took my picture by their sign. Then one of them gave me a bottle of Crown Royal of which I poured a tablespoon in the bottom of a cup and gave back to him. It was a little after five but within 10 minutes Greg got there. The hostel owner said they were taking me out to eat and I explained Greg had come all the way from Hanover. Everyone was exceptionally nice. I packed up and Greg and I headed back to Hanover.I DID IT, THE WHOLE 2185.9WHAT'S NEXT? Still working on that, any suggestions?Thank you all for following my journal. I will do a conclusion/wrap up some time in the not to distant future.