Date: 2008-09-11
From: Safford Brook Trail, ME

To: Long Falls Dam Road, ME
Miles today: 8.8

Wow was it cold last nite¢¦I mean, even in the room it was cold! How much of a cold weenie is Certain? So much of one that I get cold inside of a motel room with 2 comforters on the bed¢¦geez¢¦.So up and out the door by 7:15 a.m. Sunny and very brisk again this morning, but the wind was not blowing, so that was good. Karen had me back at the Safford Brook Trailhead by 8:00 a.m. Up I went again around 8:15 a.m., but since I did this quick 2.2 miles yesterday morning and was familiar with this trail, it seemed to go by faster. I was back at the AT by 9:17 a.m. and headed north now towards Little Bigelow Mtn. This, today, was an important day for me. Little Bigelow is the last significant mountain in Maine until I get to the 100 mile wilderness and¢¦drum roll please¢¦I hit my 2,000 mile mark!!! I can¢t believe it, I¢ve put 2,000 MILES on my feet and legs.So I started north and have to say that I think Little Bigelow Mtn. was quite nice, compared to other Maine mountains. It was about a 1.5 mile ascent, but much of it was pretty flat with a short straight up section that led to more flat trail. It wound through pine forests and large rocks with green moss all over. So beautiful, the sun coming through pockets in the tree cover creating spots of sunlight all over the forest floor. Without wind, it was just great.I was passed by a guy named Jack, from NH. We only talked a bit, but he seemed very nice. Then, 3 hikers that Sue had dropped off at East Flagstaff Rd. this morning for a slackpack, came by sobo. I can not remember their names unfortunately, but they were all very nice. I asked if there were some views and they said yes¢¦and then I got to tell them that they had Avery Peak coming up next, and it could be the best view they¢ve had in Maine, especially today.I got up to the first peak of Little Bigelow, which has 3 humps you go over. This mountain is nothing compared to Bigelow Mtn., which I hiked yesterday. My gosh was it beautiful still though. I could see Avery Peak and West Peak behind me, and the sun was shining warmly, hardly any breeze, so I crawled up on a large round rock and layed down to just absorb this whole moment. Pretty amazing folks¢¦ I ate a snack, it was about 9:30 a.m. now.I headed on, down, winding through the forest again and up to the second hump. Another great view towards Sugarloaf Mtn. I could also see the third and final hump in front of me. Wow, to think this was it¢¦.this was the last substantial climb and it wasn¢t even that bad.I headed on, really lost in thought today considering the date. I got to the third bump around 11:30 a.m. and decided to stop and eat lunch. Sun beaming down warm, perfectly clear skies, and all I could think about was how I wished Karen could be here to see the view, but then my thoughts went to how every single year for the rest of their lives..on this date, countless people would have to face the dark reality that their loved ones would never be able to join them for anything¢¦ever again. May all people somehow¢¦someway find peace on this day.So, I ate lunch and moved on, where I¢ve got a bit futher to go and then started a 3 mile descent down to East Flagstaff Rd. The descent was not bad at all. It alternated between slab smooth rock to then going into the forest and going down in elevation, just do end up on rock slab again. This happened for 1.5 miles and then it went to awesome flat trail along a stream, near Little Bigelow Lean-to.I zoomed along and came to East Flagstaff Rd, which is a dirt road. You hike down this road a bit and then I saw some packs lined up down a little drive and saw a campfire. I went to check it out and it ended up being trail magic!!! Awesome trail magic in fact, by Walking Home, Fig, and Jan¢¦all from Maine. They had big tents set up with tables of food, supplies, and they said, ¢Whatever you need¢¦just take it.¢ They also had grills, so Walking Home made me a cheesburger and a hotdog! There were coolers of cold drinks and a port-a-jon, which I¢m not sure if it was there already or not, but who cares right?Other hikers there were Jack, Racoon, and the 4 that I can¢t remember their names. I sat down and talked with Jack, Racoon and Fig, Jan, and Walking Home. We laughed and and enjoyed food and finally, around 2:30 p.m., everyone else was gone but Jack and I, and we decided we¢d better head on. I had 2.5 miles left to Long Falls Dam Rd. where Karen was picking me up between 3:30-4:30 p.m. Jack decided to hike with me so we could talk, and man does he hike fast, so I was practically running at times to keep up, but I was fine with doing that because I knew it was only a minor climb over one more bump. We ended up hiking right past Flagstaff Lake, and took a very short path to a rocky beach. Wow was it gorgeous, mountains all around, clear water, rocky bottom and shoreline. We both took pics for the other.We hiked on talking about all sorts of stuff, but Jack¢s goal was to hike home from Georgia, and home is NH. He accomplished this and now has a new job he starts in a few weeks and has decided to end his hike at Monson and come back out next year to be able to take time through the wilderness. He could probably make it this year, but doesn¢t want to rush. I respect that so much. What a cool guy, and the conversation totally made the few miles fly. Next thing I know, we¢re at the road and the infamous 2,000 MI. that¢s painted in the middle of the road!! Actually, it¢s now located at around 2005 miles, but who cares¢¦it¢s a milestone to reach this point, so Jack and I took each other¢s pictures. I laid down in the middle of the road, but no worries, you can hear and see cars coming far away, so it¢s not dangerous. Finally, Jack had to go so we said bye, and I sat there till Karen got me.We drove a different way back to Stratton to see if it was faster than taking the logging road, but it was slightly longer¢¦a nice drive though. We got back to the Stratton Motel, I showered, and gathered stuff for a load of laundry. I went down to start it and asked Sue if she¢d be around in the morning or not. I wanted to tell her bye, but she invited Karen and I to go see the other hostel she owns, The Roadhouse, and to see the place she lives in, that¢s connected to it. We said cool, but we¢d go later.I was expecting a call from A.M. tonight, and at 7 p.m., she called me and guess what..she¢s coming back to hike with me from just before Caratunk all the way to Monson for about 4 days!! YIPPY!!! Karen got our room and I emailed A.M. the info.Then we got a knock on the door and it was Sue, so we all hopped in her vehicle and on the way over, she showed us some prime moose-viewing spots, but there weren¢t any this evening. We got to the Roadhouse and wow is the place amazing. It used to be a huge bar and Sue, who is an incredibly talented woman who knows how to do woodwork, has renovated this whole place into an awesome hostel and home for herself. She gave us the grand tour and Karen was amazed as well. Sue also gave us 3 books about hiking trails in Virginia. I mean, where does this woman¢s generosity come from? It¢s amazing to me.We left and it was dark, so on the way back to the Stratton Motel, guess what we saw on the side of the road? A young moose!!! That makes 2 on the road now¢¦just waiting to see one in the wild.We got back to the room and ended up watching this totally intense special on 9/11 on the History channel. I don¢t even feel like writing about this menial hiking day after watching this¢¦my gosh¢¦.the tragedy of it all.So it¢s late, I¢m hiking tomorrow, but need sleep now.   168.7 miles to go.~Certain