Date: 2015-08-18
From: Pierce Pond Shelter

To: Bald Mountain Brook Lean-to
Miles today: 18.7
Weather: light rain

Sometimes it is hard to decide how to begin these things.We awoke to the sound of loon calls echoing across the pond. At first, it was a little eerie as the sound waves echoed over the water, the calls rippling out over the water's surface and into the shelter. But then, as the birds approached shore, it just sounded kind of ridiculous.Anyway, it was loud, and woke everyone up. I was the first one in the shelter to get up, heading uphill with my stiff limbs and uncooperative toes to the privy for my morning relief.Then it was back to the shelter to pack. This morning, I got to put on DRY CLOTHES! They were still smelly and gross, but I'll take what I can get.The day's excitement started with pancakes. I wanted to get there early so that I could charge my phone (thanks, Mr. Harrison!), so I didn't laze about too much before stuffing Gertrude.Yesterday, we took a blue-blaze trail which is kind of parallel to the AT to get to Harrison's camp. Last night, as we discussed heading back in the morning, Silent Force said, "The question is, when we go back in the morning..."By this, he meant... do we take the blue-blazed trail or go back up the AT, and take the long way to the camp?THERE IS NO QUESTION. NO SKIPPING OF WHITE BLAZES IS ALLOWED.I was the first one to head out. I crossed over a rather unsafe wooden dam and then headed down the wrong side trail. But eventually I got there.I greeted Mr. Harrison and plugged in my electronics. When he went out to put gas in the generator, I flipped the pancakes cooking on the stove, thinking that they would surely burn.You can apparently refill a generator a lot faster than I thought. I apologized for intruding in the kitchen, but he didn't seem to mind too much.I was HUNGRY because I usually eat breakfast before six but pancakes weren't to be served until seven. So I made some hot chocolate, which I made more delicious with real milk.I sat and waited for everyone else to arrive, and then we had PANCAKES. They were very thin (I prefer fat puffy pancakes, not sad crepes), but had real fruit in them, so they were good. I ate them all. Everyone cleaned their plates. Apple Cider was the only one who had eggs along with her pancakes, and she polished those off, too.The Aussies hold their forks and knives differently. I switch my fork to my left hand when I use my knife, but they don't. It is really weird and made part of breakfast really confusing as I tried to remember how I cut my pancakes after I had finished scarfing them down my throat.Mr. Harrison was EXTREMELY KIND and let me use his phone to call home, asking mom to send last-minute SteriPen batteries. I also asked her to send all the leftover trail food, so I can give it to friends or leave it in a hiker box in Monson. If it arrives in time, anyway. Also, I just wanted to talk to my mom...With my belly super full, I set off. Silent Force was ahead of me. I declined his offer to let me pass, because I was full and slow.I felt bad hiking right behind him because it drives me crazy when people do it to me. So I paused for a long pee break. But I eventually caught back up to him again. But then he got a bug in his eye, so I sped past him anyway.Shortly afterwards, I came upon Iso, who was sitting on the ground just before the Kennebec river, waiting for the ferry service to begin.It's unsafe to ford the river, so from 9-11 and 2-4, a man in a canoe shuttles people back and forth across the river. The hours are more limited when the season isn't so busy.Shortly after my arrival, Silent Force caught up. And then, after about five more minutes, we saw the ferryman putting in on the opposite shore.Apple Cider and the Aussies arrived, and we all headed down towards the boat. Iso and I were the first to sign release forms and clamber aboard. He took the head seat, offering to row in a gentlemanly way. I sat in the middle and took a picture of the faded white blaze painted in the bottom of the canoe.The ferryman, hired by the MATC (Maine Appalachian Trail Club) and the ATC (Appalachian Trail Conservancy), told us that he expects to ferry around 2,500 people this year. He had already canoed about 1,200 across the river this year. Last year, he had 1902 riders.Usually, he has about 20-30 people pass through a day. Yesterday, he only had 8. The weird negative bubble is just ahead of us now.He dropped us off, and a southbound hiker arrived to wait for a ride. I waved to my friends on the opposite shore before heading up the trail, but no one was paying attention so it was a wasted effort.After the Kennebec, I enjoyed a very nice section of trail to the first shelter, where I stopped for water and an early lunch.I ate about 59383738 snacks today, easily triple what I should eat. Those cookies in my food bag just keep calling to me... "We're delicious! Chocolate will give you more energy to get up that hill!"There are no more cookies left.Thankfully, mom and Dan are apparently eating all of the M&Ms I had them take out of my mail drops. I don't want there to be any candy in the house when I get home, because I will devour it because it is delicious, and I have developed a compulsion to eat everything I see. See, eat. See, eat, regret.After my lunch break, I headed up Pleasant Pond Mountain. It was really freaking hot today, so it was an extra slow and sweaty climb. It took quite a long time. Heading above treeline was terrible, because it meant SUN. SO MUCH SUN. ON MY POOR SKIN. IT WAS SO HOT. I spend most of the day in the shade! Exposure to light makes me want to shrivel up like a frying vampire.I almost suffered a gear casualty on my way up the mountain. As I brushed by a tree, I felt a rush of water down my side. It felt like the tree had been soaked after a rain, and had deposited the excess water on my shirt and shorts.But there had been no rain!I looked back at my Gertrude side pocket. My Platypus! Sometimes the cap gets twisted and it leaks. Actually, it happens like every other day. It's really kind of annoying.But that wasn't the case this time. Water was spurting out of a HOLE in the stupid plastic bag-bottle. It had been punctured by a sharp, dry branch.I stared at it in horror as it gushed, plugging the hole with my finger. WATER WAS WASTED. FILTERED, CLEAN, DRINKABLE WATER. ON A HOT DAY.TRAGEDY!I pulled it out awkwardly and also pulled out my Nalgene-style water bottle, which I use to SteriPen my water (the Platypus doesn't have a big enough opening). I filled my Nalgene and guzzled the rest of my water.Luckily I have another Platypus, so all is not lost. Usually I carry two liters during the day, but fill three at night for cooking and teeth brushing, pot-washing and chores. I spent part of the afternoon patching the hole. First, with vinyl patch I bought in case of tent rippage, then with the Tenacious Tape that Alexa gave me before we departed for Georgia (thank you!), and finally also with duct tape, just for good measure. It seems to be holding, so I will swap out the broken bottle and use it only at night.Just before the summit of the hot, hot mountain, I met two hikers who told me they thought that they could see Katahdin from the peak. They wished me luck on the last of my trek before we headed in our respective directions.SEEING KATAHDIN. How can it be that close?!I keep thinking about that day, about getting to the top and seeing that sign. How will I feel? What will I feel? Sadness? Relief? Excitement? Disappointment?More and more, though, I think about climbing back down. I think about the bottom. I think about meeting mom and Dan. I think about being able to say, "I did it."The end is so close.Climbing down that mountain kind of sucked. I was hot and tired and my knees didn't want to work anymore. I went down, then BACK UP. Why?! Why not just DOWN the mountain?!NOPE, can't do that! I had to go down and back up, down and back up, before the trail got a bit gentler.It was a long but not unpleasant hike through the afternoon. There were many beautiful parts. I am loving Maine again.I arrived at the shelter just before 4, which is a good time to end. Silent Force arrived about half an hour later. Then the Aussie Legs and Iso showed up.On my way back to the shelter from the brook (where I bathed and filled my bottles), I slipped on a rock and SLAM, landed right on my tailbone. I immediately threw my pelvis back in the air, holding myself up in the air like a crab,-walking child. And for a couple of minutes, I just couldn't move. I was kind of afraid that I had seriously injured myself. But after a short pause, I pulled myself up and limped back to the shelter. Now my upper butt area feels quite sore.I DIDN'T CRY. It really hurt, though. I wonder if it will bruise. I don't know if I'll be able to tell. My neck might not bend enough to see.I cooked dinner before everyone else because I was hungry. ALWAYS HUNGRY. The Aussie Legs arrived quite a bit later than I did and spent a long time bathing, so I was done eating before they even started cooking.Evening discussion topics included the myriad of people we all crossed paths with on the trail today (so many southbound hikers!), the horrible heat, and whether hot chocolate or cold chocolate was a better choice, Muddy Duckling's desire to have children, and whether or not to wear fresh socks tomorrow.As I have been peer-pressured into slowing down and sticking with the wonderful new bubble, tomorrow will be a pathetic 13 mile day. Hopefully it won't rain. I might go swimming!I had teriyaki Rice Sides (which had pasta in it... what the heck?!) for dinner and it was much better than my last two dinners.What else? It is late and I am too tired to write more. It was another good thinking day, a good hiking day, a good day to be out in the woods.I am thankful for breakfast and phone calls, tape and cookies.I am so grateful to be out in the woods. Real life awaits me soon, but I am thankful to have time left to sleep in the middle of the woods in a little wooden lean-to next to a babbling brook.It is amazing out here.