Date: 2022-08-29
From: Big Moose Inn (exit at Katahdin Stream Campground) Mile 2189.1

To: Mt Katahdin Mile 2194.3
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: scattered clouds

We all woke up early slightly before the alarm as I¢m pretty sure we¢re all excited and anxious at the same time. My dad is driving us to Katahdin Stream Campground and we left the Inn at 5:30 so we could be at the gate when it opened. We arrived prior to the gate opening and waited in a line with about 20 other cars. When the gate opened at 6 they were directing you into two lanes - one for those with parking passes and one for those without passes who are hoping that there are no shows and they can get in. It probably took about 15 minutes to clear the guard house and another 30 minutes to drive to the campground. We saw Pilgrim and his wife as we pulled in and they started up the Hunt Trail (AT) as we used the facilities. Orchid, her dad, and I got a proper sendoff from my dad and we were on our way as well around 7AM. We¢d seen Just Tom in the parking lot and it turns out that my dad gave him a ride to the Abol trailhead which is how he is going up.Shortly after we started we got passed by Atlas, Ryan, Sasquatch and Timber. The start of the trail is relatively easy but it quickly starts climbing. While you are below the tree line there are not too many technical spots, and those that exist are not much different than anything that NH and ME didn¢t already through at us. We were definitely slower with Orchid¢s dad but it was a lot of fun to hike with him and it¢s very cool that she got to summit with him. Above tree line though, the terrain changed and there were more boulder scrambles and areas where you had to pull yourself up. Definitely more challenging, especially if you are shorter, but nothing terribly difficult. It felt a bit like Mahoosuc Notch where it might be harder but it was a lot of fun to do. We caught up to and passed Pilgrim and his wife in this section. Looking forward and back you could see a steady stream of small groups of people heading up and down the mountain. It took a while to make it through this section, before we came to the plateau leading up to the summit. Throughout the day the summit was clear, but the day was very hazy so we were not able to see much past Whitecap Mountain. However, the views of the surrounding mountains and all the lakes in the valley were amazing.The next mile or so had only a slight rise and had a pretty good trail. We were hoping to get water at the Thoreau Spring but the best water flow was down the middle of the trail and we spent some time trying to find the source or a better location before giving up. Pilgrim passed us back while we were looking. We saw several of the hikers we knew coming down from the summit during this stretch but we missed the twins. It was at this point that we firmed up our plans for going down the mountain and choose the Abol Trail. We didn¢t want to go back the way we came and the Knife¢s Edge was not in the cards for today.The final half mile climbs up to the summit and the iconic Mt Katahdin sign. There were about two dozen people at the top but we didn¢t have to wait long for our turn to take pictures on the sign. We got individual and group pictures and then proceed to eat lunch at the summit. it was windy, but I didn¢t think that it was cold although there were a lot of people in puffies. It was definitely a little bit sad to be at the top. While this is not the end of my journey, it is the last time that I will likely see many of the people I have been hiking around and have grown to like. This adventure of mine has been amazing and I am having the time of my life, and one big aspect of that is the people that you meet and get to know. I¢m definitely going to miss them.Before I started down from the top I headed out on the Knife¢s Edge for about 100m to take some pictures and see what it¢s like. It has the feel of Mt Madison in the whites as far as the rocks go, but its spine is narrower but not scary narrow. Looking at it, it was not something the three of us should be doing today, but it¢s been added to the Bucket List. We passed Pilgrim on the way down to the Abol Trail split and we said our final in person goodbyes. Slice had been at the summit with us and we hiked down much of the trail with her before we couldn¢t keep up with her anymore. Abol Trail is shorter which means that it is just as steep as coming up the Hunt Trail. There were lots of places that we were scooting on our butts down a large boulder. It was also now in full sun and shielded from the wind and so it was getting pretty hot. It took well over an hour to go the first half mile. Eventually we made it back below tree line and we found a stream to top off our empty water bottles. Just after 4PM, 9 hours after we started, we reached the Abol trailhead and my dad waiting with the car. We hung out for a little bit before driving back to the Inn. The trail ends at the summit so you don¢t get any credit for all the miles you have to walk to get back to the base¢¦ funny how that works.A shower, dinner, and some preliminary packing rounded out the last full day in Maine. Another state has been completed and It is 22 days in ME without a Moose sighting and I¢m not optimistic for tomorrow. This ends the northbound portion of my journey. I¢m taking off a couple of days at home before flipping back to Rockfish Gap and starting the southbound leg.Steps 22160Weather Forecast: Summit low 60 with 10-20 mph winds