Date: 2016-07-06
From: Me 4, coming south this time, then Rangeley Inn 

To: ME 27, then Stratton Hostel
Miles today: 16.9
Weather: few clouds

Slack packed Northbound today 16.9 miles from Perham Stream, ending the day at the intersection of the AT with ME 27 where I am in a hostel tonight in Stratton.   Staying at the hostel is "Bear-bag", who I last saw in Erwin, Tennessee where he buried another hiker (Drifter) in a taco eating contest. Also at the hostel are "Raisin Bran Kid" and Gary (no trail name). They were also at the Farmhouse Inn where I recently stayed. Raisin Brand Kid is a retired Rural Mail Carrier who hiked the AT in 2013, took a fall near Mahoosuc Notch in Maine, tearing his rotator cuff and having his bicep muscle separate from the bone. He is back to finish what he started! Gary and I are keeping about the same pace right now and may be together at the end of the day for the next few days. The highlight of the day was seeing my first bear, even if it was from the shuttle that was taking us to the trail!   Other highlights included passing the 2000 mile mark and seeing where the finishing touches on the AT were completed by the CCC in 1937. Since then, the trail has expanded to 2189 miles, so I have about 189 miles left. For those interested I some AT fun facts: Fascinating Appalachian Trail FactsPosted by: Kenny Howell April 10, 2014 Source is Kenny Howell1. The Appalachian Trail is¢¦¢¦a nearly 2,200 mile hiking trail through the Appalachian Mountain Range in the Eastern United States.2. It is the longest ¢hiking-only¢ footpath in the world.It is also among the longest continuously marked trails. The AT is marked with approximately 165,000 2 x 6 inch white blazes along the trail guiding hikers all 2,186 miles.1,23. The Trail travels through 14 different states:1. Georgia2. North Carolina 3. Tennessee 4. Virginia 5. West Virginia 6. Maryland 7. Pennsylvania8. New Jersey9. New York10Connecticut11 Massachusetts12Vermont13New Hampshire14 Maine 4. The Appalachian Trail is the largest AND longest running volunteer conservation project in the world. The entirety of the trail is maintained by an army of volunteers organized into 31 distinct maintenance clubs. Clubs do everything from maintaining existing trails and painting blazes to excavating trail reroutes and building new shelters. Each club is responsible for maintaining specific sections of trail as small as the Wilmingtons Trail Club¢s 7.2 miles and as large as the Maine Appalachian Trail Club¢s 266.8 miles.5. The elevation gain/loss of hiking the entire Appalachian Trail is the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest 16 times. The summit of Mount Everest sits at 29,029 feet. Doing a little math that means that the elevation changes hikers traverse along the AT totals up to an approximate 464,464 feet!56. Less than 15,000 people have completed a successful thru-hike. According to the records kept by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) as of this writing there have been 14,485 successful thru-hikes of the Appalachian Trail since its creation. That¢s 14,485 people out of all people that have ever existed. Ever. Even if you throw in estimates of how many people may have completed a hike without reporting it to the ATC it still makes for quite the impressive figure 7. It¢s estimated that about 99% of the entire trail has been either relocated or rebuilt since its completion.Many of the most scenic sections of trail we enjoy today were not originally a part of the trail. This includes Tennessee¢s Roan Mountain, Virginia¢s Grayson Highlands, New Jersey¢s Pochuck Creek swamp, and Maine¢s Saddleback Mountain.8. The AT cuts through the oldest mountain range on the planet. While it is fairly difficult to prove that it is, in fact, the ¢oldest¢ it is at least considered one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world. How old? Well it is believed the the Appalachian Mountain Range predatesthe creation of the North American continent! In its early years The Appalachian Mountains were likely stunning peaks reminiscent of the Rocky Mountains. However, centuries upon centuries of weather, ice, and erosion have rounded the peaks giving us the mountains we know and love today.99. No one seems to actually know why the southern Appalachian bald mountains existThe grassy balds of the southern Appalachian Mountains are some of the most exciting destinations along the early parts of the Appalachian Trail. A ¢bald¢ essentially describes a high-elevation area that is devoid of prominent vegetation such as trees. The Roan Highlands, Big Bald, and the Grayson Highlands are all included in this category. Balds such as these are considered oddities.Up north bald mountains such as those found in the White Mountains are not uncommon. The colder, harsher climates of New Hampshire and Maine create an alpine environment that commonly causes the effect. Yet in the warmer climate of the South this result is abnormal. Theories abound about how these famous mountain tops may have been cleared. Some believe they were high enough to be susceptible to lightning strikes and fires. Others believe overgrazing of livestock inhibited growth. Still others say logging is to blame. The truth is there is apparently little evidence to support any of these claims to eliminate the idea that it may actually be a naturally occurring phenomenon.101110. The idea for the Appalachian Trail and the Long Trail were conceived atop the same mountainIt was atop Stratton Mountain in Vermont that these two famous scenic trails got their start. In 1909 James P. Taylorfound himself on the mountain when he birthed the idea of a trail stretching from Massachusetts to Canada. This would later become The Long Trail in Vermont. It was during the construction of the Long Trail that Benton Mackaye stood atop the very same mountain finding the inspiration for the beginnings of the Appalachian Trail. The two trails are contiguous for about 100 miles. Stratton Mountain may not be the most awe-inspiring view along the trail, but it is certainly one of the most significant.14Nature Quotes for todayThe tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity... and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself. William Blake When you do something noble and beautiful and nobody noticed, do not be sad. For the sun every morning is a beautiful spectacle and yet most of the audience still sleeps. John Lennon