Date: 2006-09-04
From: The Birches thru hikers Shelter

To: Mount Katahdin
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: light rain

I listen to 'Red Dane' and her companion's indescernable whispers in the shelter darkness, as the rain continues outside; but no one really sleeps much all night. Finally at 4 am we abandon all pretense of even trying and quickly eat a last meal of pop tarts, trail bars or whatever. No one wants to waste time cooking, we just want to go and get it done. Our small wet group of weary hikers head out into a misty, still dark morning and reach the trailhead at 0520 am where we sign in and head up in the dark. It is only 5.2 miles but it is about a mile of uphill hiking then 3 miles of hand over hand rock climbing, then another mile or so across the Katahdin Tabletop to the final ascent area which is only a few hundred yards of climbing-hiking again to Baxter Peak. None of our group knows what the reason is for the Peak to be Baxter Peak but the Mountain Katahdin? It is still damp but the sun is soon out and despite the very cold and gusty wind it is a Class Two day. I quickly move ahead of 'Red Dane' and her friend and despite my fear of heights manage the difficult climb. At the Tabletop I am moving as fast as I can but do not know why. I fail to concentrate and boom, fall face forward by tripping over a small rock. I literally lay there and laugh now. I am only a few hundred yards from the top of the final mountain and I fall! I get up and continue on slower. I reach the top and it is very cold and windy. I am alone at the top. The first hiker of the day apparently. There is no register at the top strangely. The only hiker at all, no one else even in sight yet. It is anti-climatic, I wait for someone to celebrate with. I take the shark tooth that I carried from Key West,Florida to Georgia to Maine and place it on the Katahdin sign. I had told other hikers that if they got to Katahdin and saw the tooth they would know I had made it. It is a lonely feeling being by myself though. I check the temperature and it says 55F but the high winds (20-30 mph steady with higher gusts) make it feel much colder. The clouds and fog drift in and out rapidly, wetting me too. I wait nearly 40 minutes until another hiker shows up and we take pictures of each other, then groups begin arriving even some coming up the Knifes Edge Route; and there is a lot of hugging and kissing of total strangers going on. Thru hikers, section hikers, day trippers, sex, age, familiarity means nothing, we are all hikers now. The views go from clear to bad again and again. There is a surreal experience going on. You do not want to leave now that you have made it. Practicality makes you realize that bad weather is expected today (heavy rain and possible hail) and the smart thing is to get off the mountain as soon as possible.I rejoice for a while then head down only to remember I forgot the BUCS props I had taken up for photos so I climb back up the three hundred yards again to the very top once more for a few more pictures then start the 5.2 miles back to the camp and the journey home. I meet 'Mummy Toes' who had slept in! How he could sleep is beyond my comprehension. No wonder I was able to beat him up to the top. My next task is to yogi a ride to Millinocket to a motel to clean up for the journey home.