Date: 2009-09-10
From: Katahdin Stream Campground

To: Katahdin Stream Campground
Miles today: 10.4
Weather: clear sky

I slept on and off, but didn¢t have the adrenaline flowing through my veins or the ¢Christmas Eve¢ feeling that a lot of thru-hikers describe. I just knew that I had one more mountain to climb. I heard some rustling in the early morning, pitch black hours and thought that Erik and/or Iron Man were arising. However, everything became quiet once again. At five o¢clock (the earliest that I had awoken on the trail), I stepped out of my hammock and quietly started to dismantle it for the final time. As I was nearly finished, Erik awoke and came out of his tent. Iron Man remained asleep. It was a very cold morning and I dressed in all of my layers. Erik got another fire going and we cooked breakfast. As we ate, we kept looking over to Iron Man¢s tent and wondering when he was going to get up!      Finally, I heard some rustling. He got up and cooked his Mountain House eggs and bacon, which turned out to be more like soup! Then, he ate some leftover hot dogs. Erik and I brought the extra food and supplies to the car. I didn¢t want to carry my mug up to the summit, but Erik insisted that I did. I was definitely going to bring everything that I needed to get me through this journey. As I waited for Iron Man, I wondered if my summit song would somehow appear on my ipod when I turned it on, but it did not. Instead, it played ¢Gossip in the Grain¢ by Ray LaMontagne. I thought it was appropriate enough. I listened to the whole thing, as it was quiet and soothing, turned it off, and put it away. My toes and fingers were freezing cold and I needed to get moving! I was glad I wasn¢t finishing any later in the season as it would only get colder!   We made our way down to the ranger¢s station where Iron Man inquired about meeting up with his relatives who were planning on joining him. Erik and I wandered over to the sign at the base of the mountain, so we could wait in the sunlight. We took a picture, and then were joined by Iron Man, and the three of us headed off! We had to stop to sign in, and later on, to strip off some layers as we were getting warm! The guys let me set the pace, just like in the beginning of the trail! I didn¢t want to let them down by not hiking fast enough. They both said that I was keeping a good pace, and that they wouldn¢t go faster on their own. When Sky King and his son joined us, I did a 360 degree spin, which neither Iron Man nor Erik appreciated! They wanted me to make it all the way down the mountain before I did anything like that! The first part of the trail was easy, and made even easier by a series of stone steps. However, the path soon became more tricky as we had to scale large boulders. Another thru-hiker that I had never met passed us. His name was Whiz Kid, and he was very agile! ¢How can he do that?¢ I wondered aloud as he scaled the giant rocks with quickness and ease. He stayed with us for a little bit so we could chat, and then he was off!   The next section of the trail consisted only of boulders, but was also made easier with the perfect placement and shapes of rebar handles to aid us. At one point, Iron Man offered me his hand, but I declined his help, wanting to do it myself. We could see a false summit, but Iron Man thought it was the end and wanted to get there as soon as possible. His nephew was waiting for him at the top. Erik and I wanted to take a snack break. We sat on a large rock and looked at the views, and then got moving toward the steepest and slowest section. My knee hit a rock in front of me and drew blood. This mountain wasn¢t going to let us off easy!      After we reached that pinnacle, the tablelands stretched out before us, and the path became easy again. I did not bring much water, expecting to fill up at Thoreau¢s spring, but we found no water... Erik decided it must be on the blue blaze path and started walking that way. I stopped after a bit, not wanting to spend unnecessary energy. Erik kept walking and walking, and I realized he would keep going until he came to some water, even if it was unreasonably far away. I had to chase after him and call him back. There was no water on that path. The spring had dried up. We continued up the last portion of the climb. I could see a small gathering of people and knew that was the summit! Erik walked with me a little longer and then went ahead so I could collect my thoughts and take the last few steps on my own (and so he could photograph me). I didn¢t get very emotional, and I didn¢t cry. I knew that it would be a different experience with Erik walking with me than if I had climbed the mountain alone. I probably would have been more emotional if I was alone. But this was more of a social experience, and both my body and mind knew that there was no alternative to being done. It simply wasn¢t possible to go any further. I passed Sky King, who was changing into his 1930¢s pilot¢s garb for his summit photo, and then saw the sign itself, as I made my way toward it. I saw the group of thru-hikers that I had never met sitting on the summit, and walked over to the summit sign and put my hand on it. Then, I had Erik take a few pictures of me with the sign.   Iron Man and his nephew came over to congratulate me, and Erik pulled out a bottle of champagne from his backpack. That is why he wanted me to bring my mug so badly! The cork exploded into the atmosphere, and we toasted to the journey, as we looked out at the world around us. Knife¢s edge was razor sharp, and we could see all the way into its gulf. I was so lucky to have such a beautiful day for my finish, as I had for my start! For two hours, we stayed on the summit, enjoying the sun and the company of the other hikers. Carpenter and Double Zip made it up, surprising us, at they had skipped the section from here to Whitehouse Landing.    We finally decided that we better start heading back, as descending would take more time than climbing. At times, it went painfully slow, but Erik was very patient, stayed with me, and took my poles when I needed the use of my hands. I was tired and really wanted to be done, but we had a long way to go! I didn¢t even want to stop for a foot soaking in the brook, because I just wanted to finish and get to Millinocket! On the last stretch, we passed an older woman, who we had seen on our way up. She handed Erik her car keys and asked him to drive her minivan up to the trailhead, as she had no energy to make it to her car. We had no idea how far away it was! I knew I wanted to go the ranger¢s station to sign in and read the entries before leaving. We ended up giving the keys to a ranger, who pointed out the minivan only several feet away! We were astounded that she couldn¢t walk that tiny distance! Then, the ranger told us that she had spent the night on the mountain! They were waiting for her to emerge and would assess her condition.   We finally made our way over to our fully packed car and eventually out of the park on the very long, slow, dusty road. I had to fish out my form to hand to the man at the exit station and then we made our way to Millinocket. We were both so tired! As we entered town and found a place to eat, I saw the group of thru-hikers who had summitted earlier at the Laundromat. ¢The thru-hikers are doing their laundry!¢ I exclaimed to Erik.¢Yeah...! What else are they going to do?¢ he replied.This is the moment,This is the day,When I send all my doubts and demonsOn their way.Every endeavor,I have made - ever -Is coming into play,Is here and now - today!This is the moment,This is the time,When the momentum and the momentAre in rhyme.Give me this moment -This precious chance -I'll gather up my pastAnd make some sense at last!This is the moment,When all I've done -All the dreaming,Scheming and screaming,Become one.This is the day -See it sparkle and shine,When all I've lived forBecomes mine.For all these years,I've faced the world alone,And now the time has comeTo prove to themI've made it on my own.This is the moment -My final test -Destiny beckoned,I never reckoned,Second Best.I won't look down,I must not fall.This is the moment,The sweetest moment of them all!This is the moment!Damn all the odds!This day, or never,I'll sit foreverWith the gods!When I look back,I will always recall,Moment for moment,This was the moment,The greatest momentOf them all!(Jekyll and Hyde Soundtrack)