Date: 2005-09-03
From: Poplar Ridge Lean-to 7:37pm - The Long Goodbye

To: Carrabassett River 8:58pm ÃÂÃÂ¢ÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂ The Final Countdown
Miles today: 13.1

Carrabassett River 8:58pm ¢ The Final CountdownI always seem to forget to mention the most significant event of the day when journaling. For example, toward the end of yesterday I stumbled across a red stuff sack about 75 feet off the trail. It was full of soaked clothing ¢ socks, shirts, and underwear (slightly soiled). I was faced with an ethical dilemma. Do I hike the bag out even though it weighs about seven pounds? Do I forget I saw it and leave it in the woods? Perhaps I could move it closer to the trail and hope somebody else picks it up. In the end I chose to hike it out, dump the clothes, and keep the rather nice stuff sack. When I got to camp I set up a clothesline and spread out the clothes hoping they would weigh less dry.They were still a bit damp when Red Wing, Hopeful, and I left this morning so I hung one of the shirts on the outside of my pack to dry. I also learned that muffins don¢t pack well for breakfast. With clothes in tow and a full belly we headed out into a beautiful morning. The trail was drier still today though still a bit wet and muddy in places. The ford across Orbeton Stream looked tricky so I plowed straight through even though the others managed to rock hop. We had lunch at the very nice Spaulding Mountain Lean-To, which we reached in three and a half hours. It was eight miles. I can¢t recall the last time I averaged more than two miles an hour.After lunch we planned to meet two of Red Wing and Hopeful¢s friends on Sugarloaf Mountain. Sure enough, we found a note from Dan and Janelle indicating they had gone up the side trail to the summit. We ran into them on their way down as soon as we started up. It didn¢t take much arm twisting to convince them to go up again.Sugarloaf Mountain is famous for its spectacular views. On a clear day one can see Mt. Washington to the south and Mt. Katahdin, the trail¢s terminus, to the north. Today was a clear day. It was a little overwhelming to have the end of the trail literally in sight even if it was a distant, hazy peak. To think, nearly one sixth of the trail¢s distance was visible from a single point!There¢s also a summit house that is open to hikers. Many stay there overnight and I¢m sure they get fantastic sunsets and sunrises but that wasn¢t in the cards today. Still, we checked it out. There was a relief map showing all of Maine. It looks as though we¢re almost out of the big climbs. There was also a lower floor. It was ambiguous whether it was officially open but we entered anyways. (For any law enforcement officers reading, we didn¢t break and enter; we merely entered.) Inside was a gondola exit with a few cars docked for the summer. Ski resorts really do look like ghost towns in the summer. Afterwards we hiked a few miles down to a river near where Dan and Janelle were parked. We snagged a prime campsite and just in time ¢ no less than three other groups showed up hoping to claim it for Labor Day weekend before they returned from the car with their gear. We ate dinner then roasted hot dogs and s¢mores. I especially enjoyed meeting these two friends from the ¢real world.¢ It¢s always fun to catch a glimpse of another hiker¢s alter ego. Plus, they were two extremely nice people that were great conversationalists. We talked for quite some time on trail culture and the like. And to top it off they even took the mountain clothes off my hands. I look forward to a much lighter pack tomorrow.Daylight is now gone and our fire has faded. The stars are shining brightly overhead, undimmed by city lights. It¢s getting dark early, by 7:30pm. Summer, I fear, is drawing to a close.