Date: 2006-07-27
From: Birches Campsite

To: Mt. Katahdin
Miles today: 5.2
Weather: overcast clouds

3:03am. Awake. Wide awake. Alarm doesn't go off for another 27 minutes. I closed my eyes. Tried to go back to sleep, but not a chance in hell was that gonna happen. 3:27am. I turn off the function of my watch, no need for it to go off, I was already wide awake in anticipation. I pushed 2 Shoes and told him to "wake up sunshine." Here it was, completely dark outside and I was wide awake, eager to get hiking, and I was waking everyone up. I was even up before Restless.So I sat up and ripped into my package of fig nuitons, the breakfast of champions. We were all quiet as we packed up and got ready. It was as if we were focusing for the "Big Game". Fusing tired mind and broken body into one jimmy rigged machine that is only capable of one last voyage before every square inch of materials self-destructs from overuse.4am. Headlamps are one, packs are loaded, and we're off. We stopped in at the Ranger Station so 2 Shoes and Restless could swap out their packs for a day pack that the park provides. I opted to stick with my whole pack because I was a purist. though, I had been able to really drop my pack weight a bit more while I was in Monson so I was down to about 16 lbs, fully packed.4:29am. We headed for Hunt's trailhead, the passage the A.T. takes to the top of Baxter's Peak, the end of our journey. At the trailhead, we signed our names and the time we were starting up the trail. It was 4:30am.About 5 minutes into our hike, 2 Shoes cracks a sarcastic remark about how he didn't bring a pack cover in case it would rain. We laughed because there were no signs of rain and plus he had a slack pack anyways with only water and a powerbar in it. It was funny. What was not funny was about 10 seconds after he finished his sentence it just started pouring down rain. I was in awe. I mean this stuff was coming from no where. It rained enough to get us all socked and then it stopped as suddenly as it came, so it rained for a total of about 10 minutes. I then told everyone that we are not going to mention the "R-A-I-N" word again.The morning was completely dark and still with a deep fog that sat in amongst the trees. The terrain started out very simple but became gradually more complex and difficult with every step. We went from flat, to a slight incline, then small rocks, then medium rocks on the trail, then the occasional boulder we'd have to go around, then we were climbing up boulders, which turned into rock walls, all the while becoming more and more impassable as we went on.Soon the trail led us above treeline where we could of had some great views but we were so blanketed with fog that visibility was at about 25 feet. It was so thick it even seemed to muffle our voices as we climbed, making it seem that we all were much more isolated from each other than we really were.On and on we climbed, for 3 miles, through tight squeezes, tall ledges, rebar for hand holds and anything else the mountain could throw at us. I felt like I was climbing the Agrocrag from the nickolodean TV show "guts", but in reality the climbing was probably more like "Mt. Doom" from Lord of the Rings. Though, I think the climbing wasn't as tiring as it was technical. I'd rather climb Katahdin any day than have to climb anyting in the White Mountains again.So up and up we went, rendevousing at the end of 3 miles where the table starts. 2 more miles to go. I had to take an emergency bathroom break so the other two guys went on ahead. So I finished up my business, took some pictures and just took my time. I wanted to get some space between me and the other guys because I wanted these last two miles to be just God and I. Eventually, I got going again.The table , the final two miles, was a breeze. It consisted of some rockas and a slight uphill whose difficulty slightly increasd near the end. I remember praying that God would meet me in a big way at the end. I guess I was expecting some sort of thunderous cloud to surround the peak and God to yell down from heaven congradulations and that He's please with me, but that's not exactly how it happened.So I kept going. Hopping rock to rock, strolling along, and even found my way around trail that was covered with water from the nearby string. I remember constantly looking ahead, trying to see if I could make out a faint image of the sign that graced the top of Baxtor's Peak, the end of my journey, but never able to see through the thick fog. So thick, you could taste the wetness on your tongue.Soon, I found myself suddenly upon a trail sign. It read "Baxtor's Peak 1 mile". 1 mile. 20 minutes. I rest my stopwatch. I looked up. Go!It was rather bland weather wise so far today, but this is where I think God showed up. I was hiking very fast now, all the while singing "Amazing Grace", the words bringing tears to my eyes with every verse. Out of nowhere, in what seemed a crescendo that grew with every step, the light from the sun increased, piercing the white fog and turning the thick fog that surrounded me into a deep red glow. It was so red now that the landscape around me seemed like I was walking on Mars. I thanked God for this moment. I just took it all in. But as quickly as it came so it was as it left.I looked down at my watch. 9 minutes had passed. 11 minutes left. I picked up my already quicker than normal pace. All morning long I never once felt tired and now was no different. The terrain got a tad steaper, but it didn't slow me down.15 minutes had passed. 5 left. I focused myself not to stray from just hiking, because all I wanted to do was bust out into an all out sprint. But I held back.18 minutes passed. 2 left. I busted out into my fasted pace I've ever kept during the entire trail.21 minutes passed. I looked up in shock. I should almost be there. I began to run, which turned into only a few feet. There it was. The End. No one wa around. I walked up to the sign and yelled, "YES! That's right MoFro" then I collapsed on to the sign, my arms resting on the sign with my head resting between them. I first caught my breath which slowly led to the inevitable tears.Restless emerged from the rocks around the corner where 2 Shoes and he were waiting, allowing me to experience the finish line uninhibited. Restless snapped a few pictures of me and then let me be. It was an emotional moment. Though, not as emotional as I thought I'd be, probably because there were 2 other dudes there with me.I finally stepped back and read that wonderful sign, "Baxtor's Peak, The Northern Terminus of the Appalachian Trail." If I wasn't trying to watch my language I probably would have said something different than, "Holy crap." It was the first time I was rally able to digest part of the fact that I just walked from Georgia to Maine. Holy crap.With watery eyers, I soon joined Restless and 2 Shoes down the backside of the Peak, a few feet out of the cold wind for a bit and grab a bite to eat. We all ate out powerbars with an extra snap in our chew. We were done. We just finished hiking the Appalachian Trail. Unfortunately, we still had to walk down the mountain 5 more miles to be done done.So it was picture time and we took our share. It was interesting. I started out this trail surrounded by white, snow, and now I end in white, the fog. I t was as foggy in our pictures as it was for that guy in that famous picture of the thru-hiker kneeling down at the sign.After we had exhausted every angle for pictures, we deemed it time to go. I let Restless and 2 Shoes go ahead first so I could have a few moments alone. This was the end. Dang. I had finished. I did not become a statistic but rather a finisher. I walked from Springer Mountain., Georgia to Baxtor Peak, Maine. Holy crap.So I turned around and started hiking back down, or what we sarcastically called the beginning of our Southboung section hike. I caught up with Restless and 2 Shoes at the place where we really started heading downhill.On the way down we ran across a guy that asked if on eof us was Messenger. He was a friend of a man named Uncle Bud, a hiker I met in VA at a shelter, and he'd been folling me through my trailjournal and told his friend who was hiking today that he might come across me. He was so excited to find out that I was Messenger. So we talked for a bit and then I continued on.Restless and 2 Shoes must have had join replacements at the top of Katahdin because they were flying down the mountain and soon were way ahead of me.   So I kept chugging along, blazing down the mountain, caring less of the strain my quick pace was putting on my body. I passed a lot of people on my way down, mostly day hikers.About 3/4 the way down I ran into my Dad who was on his way up to the top. It took him 2 hours to get this far, we were just below treeline at the time. Mom told me that he was going to try to meet me at the top but I knew that wasn't going to be possible. I was in better shape, and started earlier. There's no way any day hiker could beat a Northbound thru-hiker to the top. So I had a feeling I'd run into him on the way down.He was so excited to see me and instantly gave me a hug. He couldn't stop smiling and saying, "You made it, you made it!" I haven't seen my dad that excited in a very long time. So we talked for a bit and I gave him the lowdown of what he had ahead of him. He thought he was pretty close to being done but his mood changed once I told him that he was just getting started. But I knew that he would get to the top. When he sets his mind to something he does it. The last thing we did before we parted ways was play catch with a rock. He had promised earlier in my hike that we would play catch on Katahdin. I was suppose to carry the tennis ball all the way from VA to Katahdin but I sent it home in the last trail town to save on weight, which I slightly regretted. I did want to take it all the way.So after one last hug and a final congradulations, dad told me that he hid some trailmagic, AKA beer, down in a stream a bit further down. SWEET! I could use some celebration liquid.So I pushed on, blazing down the rest of the mountain. Going up the challenge of the mountain slowing increase but now it was slowly decreasing, which led to me going faster and faster, I had one thing in mind, seeing Keri.I found the place where dad left the beer. So I grabbed one and popped it open and drank it as I flew down the mountain. Once it was done, I crushed it and put it in my backpack. I swear, at this point if I looked back you would be able to see fire burning behind me I was going so fast.In the midst of my sprint I prayed, "God, let this be a special meeting between me and Keri." And no sooner did I finish those words did I look up and see my gorgeous girlfriend sitting on a rock, waiting for me to come down and meet her. I stopped suddenly in surprise and also shocked by the irony. She then ran to me and the we hugged for a very, very long, and deserved, time.So we hugged, and kissed, and hugged, and kissed, and then hugged some more. Smiles, tears, and just utter joy were in our hearts. It was an amazing feeling. She was wearing this ribbon on her, because she was my prize for finishing. She also had the tierra that she was suppose to be wearing but couldn't get it to stay on her head. Then, out of nowhere I see Jenny and Larry's son come up the trail. I was like, whoa. Now that is awesome that their whole family came up here to see me.So we all headed down the trail and finally met up with everyone. Jenny and Larry's family, Momma and Pop, Denis and Mom, they were all there. It was very humbling to see all these people there to support my finish. They even hiked a bit up the trail so they could see me sooner. I mean come on, that's love. Momma could barely walk, she had recently had surgery on her ankle but still wanted to go up the trail to meet me.So we all headed to the pavillion where we ate lunch. Restless and 2 Shoes also joined us with some food. We swapped stories a bit and also received comments on how bad we smelled. But we didn't care, we were done. We were done with the AT. So after everyone was done eating we headed into town where they had rented a hotel for the night.Pop and Denis ended up giving Restless and 2 Shoes a ride to the next town so they could catch their train the next day and head home themselves. It was intersting saying bye to them. It was sad at all like it should have been. Here I was, saying bye to some of my great friends on the trail, but it was more like saying, "I'll see you soon, no worries." So they left and I headed for the shower.I shaved up and then took the longest shower of my life. I just stood there letting the hot water run. It felt so refreshing. Once done, I got dressed and then joined the girls out on the porch and had a beer. I finally got to open the presents Keri had been telling me that she got for me. One was a glass beer mug that had my name and the dates I hiked the trail on etched in on it and the other was a scrapbook of the first half of my hike. They were soooo awesome. She did an amazing job trying to make this special time for us even better.So we all sat and talked for a bit and soon enough Pop and Denis came back. I was getting tired because I usually started heading to bed around 7 or 8pm but today I got up so early I was just extra tired. I tried to take a nap but just couldn't do it.Soon enough, it came time for us all to go to dinner. We went to this rugged yet nice restaurant that was able to cater to all of us. There we laughed, ate, drank, and just had a good ol' time. Dad was even able to join us later on. It ended up taking him 10 hours to go up and then back down Katahdin. It took me 5 hours. He was beat but was very happy that he did it. He said, "Katahdin kicked my butt." It was funny.So we all headed back to our hotels and called it a night. I went in to change into my pjs and then I came back out and waited for Keri in the lobby so we could hang out some more, but she never came back out. I guess she thought that I was going to bed without saying goodnight to her.So I tried to get her attention by slamming my door, coughing outside her room, saying her name, but got no response. I even got my mom's cell phone and called her phone but to no avail. So, I eventually hit the sack.Thank you God for giving me the strength and the ability to finish this great adventure. I was taught so many things about myself and about life while out here and none of it would have been possible without your doing. You were my support, my encouragement, my scapegoat, and my answer to all my needs. Thank you for letting me have such a great accomplishment that I do not deserve. I hope that my journey has furthered your Kingdom and brought glory to you.fig nuitons---powerbars x6---turkey sandwhich, fruit---salomon