Date: 2008-07-08
From: 1 mile south of Poplar Ridge Lean-To 

To: Maine Route 4, Rangely
Miles today: 12.0

4:40 am: Up with the first light and the early birds. I slept well last night except around 10:00 pm, when awakened from a sound asleep when four thru hikers came by 10 minutes apart from one another. The first one woke me with a start because he sounded like a moose on the loose tromping down the trail only yards from where my tent was set up. Each of the following three stopped, and the conversation was almost identical. Each would say, ¢Nice stealth campsite. How far to the shelter? Where is water?¢ ¢Bye,¢ and they were off. They were all putting in 23 plus miles and suffering from very bad cases of ¢Katahdin fever.¢ With their end in sight, they just wanted to get as much out of each day as possible. At 6:05 am: I was out of camp, leaving zero trace that I had ever been there. By 6:30 am: I was over Jr. Saddleback. At 8:05 am: I reached the Summit of The Horn, where I am now sitting and enjoying the mountain breeze, the July sunshine, a South Beach bar, and water. The trail from here to the top of Saddleback is above tree line, and I can see it clearly from where I am sitting. I am glad I got an early start to the day (Now to take my gratitude filled heart, and put it to work pumping my feet up and over the summit).9:50 am: I am now at the Summit of Saddleback Mountain. I am having lunch (an early lunch!) with a Section Hiker named Lee, who is from Atlanta, and another named ¢Old Graceful,¢ who is on the last leg of his 12-year Section Hike en route to Katahdin. A really nice guy. 10:30 am; I am back on the Trail heading down to Katahdin. I just got hold of Bob O¢Brien who runs the Gull Pond Lodge, and he is going to meet me at the trail head at 4:00 pm. I hope I make it. 4:07 pm: I just walked out of the woods, and there was Bob with his ever faithful chocolate lab named Guinevere. Bob is taking me into the lodge to clean up and make plans for the next day or so. I am thinking seriously about ¢slack packing¢ tomorrow and the next day as opposed to sticking to my original plan because the temperature is getting quite warm, and the ever present threat of thunderstorms is only increasing. 6:30 pm: I had a delightful shower and a trip into town to do some shopping for extra groceries and replenishment. I still have not made up my mind whether or not I am going to continue to hike through or stay an extra night at the Gull Pond Lodge and have Bob drop me off tomorrow and do a little extra mileage. I am waiting for my salad with buffalo wing chicken strips on the top of it, and a small ¢meat lovers¢ pizza. 7:30 pm: I am at the local ¢Frosty¢ ice cream spot, which is to die for. I am sitting here waiting for Bob to pick me up, enjoying a single scoop (the size of most quadruple scoops in NYC!) of ¢Bear Track¢ ¢ award winning vanilla ice cream with raspberry swirl and chocolate covered raspberry chips. Tastes pretty good!8:30 pm: I have decided to slack pack tomorrow and enjoy another night here at Gull Pond Lodge. I have a private room (the only private room) with a fan and two windows that look out onto the lake. I was able to dry all of my gear (wet from perspiration and a leak in my platypus pack) by spreading it out in the yard near the lake. Bob has offered me a day pack to use tomorrow from a collection he has downstairs, so I will be in pretty good shape, I am sure. 10:00 pm: Lights out for me. Cannot wait to see what tomorrow holds.