Date: 2013-09-09
From: Katahdin Stream Camp Ground

To: Katahdin Mountain Northern Terminus Sign
Miles today: 5.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Start Katahdin Stream Campground, mile 2180.8Stop Katahdin Mountain Northern Terminus sign, mile 2185.4Hiked 5.1 miles (even though the miles above don't look like they add up to 5.1....it really is 5.1 miles according to Baxter State Park signs)FINISHED!!!!!!!Old Goat's notes:I must say I have the bravest wife on the planet. She hiked Mount Katahdin today even though the hike terrified her. She has balance issues and is afraid of heights yet she climbed the mountain anyway. The first two miles are normal mountain hiking lots of ups with rocks, roots, and water. Then it gets hairy with rock climbing for another mile. The rock climbing scares Check 6 so much so that sometimes she must go up on hands and knees. Many of the small footings are too far apart that they are out of her reach. She does not do well at walking on bare rock either. This may sound like I'm tearing her down for these things but I am not. Many people would turn around and go back down from the mountain but she continued up knowing full well that the return trip will be even more scary. She is very brave to do what she did.I on the other hand am not effected by this type of climbing. I go up and come down with more ease than she does. I'm not careless by any means just more sure of the footings. I also love the view from heights and don't seem to be effected by standing on the edge of a mountain. Katahdin is the perfect spot to complete the Appalachian Trail. It is a mountain top experience that can not be beat. When you get a clear day of weather the view is spectacular. Achieving a goal at such a special place as Katahdin, Baxter Peak is as good as it can get. Check 6 is now an Appalachian Trail 2000 miler. It took 5 years to achieve it but now she is done. Each of the five hiking years we had hope complete the trail. In 2000 she fell and hit her head , we went home because we didn't want to risk permanent brain damage. In 2010 I hurt my knee and had to quit hiking. An operation to repair the meniscus tissue in my right knee fixed that. In 2011 we were out hiking for a month when we left the trail for my nephew's wedding. My father went into Hospice Care the Monday after the wedding, we did not return to the trail again that year. Last year 2012 Check 6 had too many things on her mind to hike. We left the trail after 4 days not knowing if we would return again this year. That brings us to this year 2013, we resolved the issues we had last year and we came back out this year. Here we are 29 days into this years hiking and we completed the whole Appalachian Trail. We will be doing a little sightseeing here in Maine and then returning home. I will compose a post hike journal once we are home. I would like to take the Handbooks and guides we used on this journey and talley up the miles hiked from end to end. Check 6's notes:I hope to never hike up and down Katahdin again...it's a VERY DIFFICULT mountain. I'm so thankful for the perfect weather today!   It snowed up there yesterday and there were still tiny patches of snow when we got up there (not much...only in shaded areas). So even though we did finish hiking all the AT miles on Saturday, we'll count today as our finish day because we have a picture of us at the sign for this year now. My legs and knees hurt a lot right now. Katahdin is HARD. There are many places where you are rock climbing (literally!) both going up and back down. Coming back down is only a little easier because I could slide down on my butt from time to time. I just read what Old Goat wrote, and I'm moved beyond words. Yes, I was terrified in places, but he was so loving and supportive. Sent from my iPhone